Elavoor Anil, a young talent in Chakyarkoothu, showcased his skill as an actor during a recent performance of ‘Guru Rithwesha Manisha Mama' (O sir, you are my teacher) in Angamaly. ‘Guru Rithwesha Manisha Mama' is the famous concluding line of ‘Manisha Panchakam', a philosophical poem by Sankaracharya, which relates the saint's views and vision on spirituality. In it Sankaracharya speaks of the great principle of Advaita, citing ample examples.
Anil took the slokas and developed it into a full-length story for Chakyarkoothu along with necessary interpretations and explanations. It was his 25th stage with this particular act.
In it he narrates the meeting between Lord Shiva, disguised as a Chandala, and Sankaracharya at Kashi. Sankaracharya encounters the Chandala on the road, and asks him to step aside to let him pass. Instead, the Chandala holds his ground and questions Sankaracharya and asks him to clarify how the saint is superior to him. The Chandala tells him that both their bodies consist of Annamayakosha and that there is no difference between their souls.
Although he is well-versed in aspects of the atman and brahman, in this particular instance Sankaracharya forgets all that he had learned. Soon, though, he realises that the Chandala is Lord Shiva himself and prostrates before him uttering ‘guru rithwesha manisha mama'.
Deft and humorous
While narrating the story, Anil deftly and humorously brought out the arguments that took place during the encounter. The highlight was the way in which he interpreted the philosophical principles within the narration. With ease, he conveyed to the audience, the three states of atman – swapna, sushupti and jagrat. His enactment, accentuated with comedy and mime, had the audience in splits.
Making use of contemporary situations, the artiste, however, did not forget to weave those into the narration, keeping intact the Vidushaka dharma of pointing out the foibles of society. It must be noted that Anil did not stoop to base sarcasm in his act.
Another highlight of the performance was a mizhavu melam that was introduced in the beginning featuring three mizhavus and an edakka. Kalamandalam Sivaprasad, Kalamandalam Abhijosh and Kalamandalam Rahul Aravind accompanied on the mizhavu, while Kalamandalam Navaneetan Namboodiri played the edakka and Kalanilayam Ranjini kept the tala.
The performance was held under the aegis of Mahatma Gandhi Smaraka Grandhasala, Elavoor, near Angamaly.
