“To the more important temples were attached the Natyamandapas, (temple theatres) where nritya (dance) and natya (drama) were performed as rituals to propitiate the gods. These also provided moral education and aesthetic enjoyment to the sophisticated and the cultured as also to the common man” — Govardhan Panchal
The Koothambalam or the Natyagriha has been the privileged space for staging Koothu, Koodiyattam and Nangiarkoothu for centuries. Although Sanskrit theatre tradition existed in the different parts of India it could not stand the test of time except in Kerala. The late Killimangalam Vasudevan Namboodiripad, scholar and aesthete, attributes the Kerala Brahmins’ fixation with temple rituals as the sole reason for the survival of Koodiyattam and, therefore, the continued existence of its hallowed venue, the Koothambalam.
The stage
Of the architecturally exquisite Koothambalams, the one at Koodalmanikyam temple, Irinjalakuda, stands out in terms of structure, aesthetic ambience and ritualistic significance. As one enters the eastern portal of the temple, on the left side is the Koothambalam facing the sanctum-sanctorum. In the expansive compound of the temple, the Natyagriha bears a forlorn look. Devotees-cum- rasikas congregate, by dusk, on the days Ammannoor Kuttan Chakyar or Rajaneesh Chakyar perform Koothu or Koodiyattam.
Unforgettable evenings
An anecdote about poet laureate Unnayi Warrier (latter part of the 17th century) and a Chakyar of his time is recollected even today. One day Unnayi Warrier, author of Nalacharitham Kathakali, walked into the Koothambalam. Chakyar is said to have greeted him and commented: “I haven’t seen you for the Koodiyattam at the Koothambalam all these years.” In no time Warrier retorted: “I have been making garlands for the deity all these years in the Nalambalam. I too haven’t seen you there to watch my work.”
The Ammannoor Chakyar family has been enjoying the exclusive right to perform at the Natyagriha. An outstanding lineage of Chakyars, including the legend Chachu Chakyar, had enlivened the Natyamandapa time and again with Koothu and Koodiyattam in the not-so-distant past.
Octogenarian rasikas in the precincts of the temple fondly remember the magnificence of Madhava Chakyar in his verbal renditions of the Ramayanam Prabandham and the dexterity of his satwikabhinya in enactment of plays such as Thoranayudham, Balivadham, Asokavanikankam and so on.
K.V. Ramanathan, author of children’s books and confidant of the Ammannoor family, recollects the day Chachu Chakyar was to be felicitated at the Koothambalam in connection with his 84th birthday celebrations. Unfortunately Chakyar became indisposed and his nephew Madhava Chakyar received the golden festoon on his behalf from the late K.N. Pisharody. Since the heyday of Chachu Chakyar, the trio of Madhava Chakyar, Parameswara Chakyar and Kochukuttan Chakyar ruled the stage, thus fulfilling the twin objectives: observance of rituals and painstaking portrayal of characters.
Classic construction
The circumference of the Koothambalam is 84x64 metre with 42 pillars supporting the roof. The stage per se is demarcated with four pillars. The entire wooden structure, including the main doors and the doors to Nepathya (dressing room), is made of teak. The earliest reference to the Koodalmanikyam Temple dates back to 854 AD in the form of a stone inscription attributed to the Chera King, Stanu Ravi Varman. But there is hardly any reference to the Koothambalam in any inscription.
Believed to be built by Perumthachan 5,000 years ago, both priests and devotees treat the Koothambalam on par with the sanctum-sanctorum of the temple. Sculpted scenes from the Ramayana and Santhanagopalam adorn the interiors of the roof. Ashtadikpalakas (guardian gods of the eight directions) too are located there. The total height of the Natyagriha comes to 15.45 metre and width 25.47 metre. The height of the roof is estimated as 12.98 metre. These measurements provide excellent acoustics to the Koothambalam. The top of the Koothambalam slants on all sides like a pyramid. There are three diadems attracting positive energy and adding to the opulence of the entire structure. Copper sheet covering the edifice carries a distinct tone.
One of the entrances to the Koothambalam at Koodalmanickyam Temple, Irinjalakuda
The recent repair and renovation of the Koothambalam was led by K.K. Sudhakaran, provisional supervisor of the project.
“The Vivekananda Trust, Government of India, sanctioned ₹3.50 crore for the work. The State Archaeology Department completed the work within the time frame and reinstated the structural exactitude of the Koothambalam,” says Sudhakaran.
Change of ownership
One of the characteristic features of the Koothambalam is that the pillars seldom intercept the vision of the Chakyars or the audience. Hence the communication between the performer and the beholder becomes direct, intimate and spontaneous.
The ownership of the Koodalmanikyam temple and its Koothambalam was with the King of erstwhile Travancore. For a long period Thachudai Kaimal was its custodian as the representative of the King.
In 1970, the Government of Kerala took over the administration of the temple and Kaimal was appointed chairman of the Board of Administration. K.N. Narayanan Moosathu, who has a traditional ritual right, occupies a certain spiritual authority too in the temple.
Even today expenses of the first performance of Koodiyattam at the Koothambalam every year is met by the Travancore royal family while the Koodalmanikyam Devaswom bears the expenses of the Ramayanam Prabandhakoothu held each year. Year after year the Koothambalam has been holding Chakyarkoothu for 28 days and Anguleeyankam for 12 days following the Onam festival.
Nangiarkoothu, the counterpart of Koodiyattam, is confined to a ritualistic recital during the annual festival of the temple. Kunhikuttypilla Nangiar and Subhadra Nangiar had enjoyed the privilege to perform Nangiarkoothu at the Koothambalam for a long time.
Unlike in the Koothambalam at the Vadakkunathan Temple, Thrissur, or the Venganallur Temple, Chelakkara, the right to perform at the Koodalmanikyam Koothambalam is restricted to the Ammanoor family. “Same is the case with the Koothambalam at the Kottiyoor temple where the Mani [Mani Madhava Chakyar] family alone has the prerogative to perform,” comments Ammannoor Kuttan Chakyar.
N.P. Parameswaran Namboodiripad, member of the executive committee of the Devaswom, underlines the significance of the Koothambalam as a space of sanctity. “All the kriyas (rituals) in the sanctum-sanctorum of the Koodalmanikyam temple are to be executed in the Koothambalam and vice versa. Before the renovation, there was the invocation (avahanam) of Nandikeswara from the Koothambalam to the ‘thalakkallu’ inside the sanctum sanctorum. After that the kriyas were repeated and Nandikeswara was reinstalled at the Koothambalam,” he says.
Koodiyattam exponent Venu G. in his recollections on Ammannoor Madhava Chakyar cites an incident in connection with the presentation of Asokavanikankam Koodiyattam at the Koodalmanikyam Koothambalam. “ The slightly raised platform space for audience within the Koothambalam is reserved for Namboodiris. Yet not more than a handful of Namboodiris attend a Koodiyattam recital. The rest of the space is almost always vacant. The cultural activists of Irinjalakuda and even Ammannoor Parameswara Chakyar raised the issue before the thantri (high priest). From then onwards, non-Namboodiris have been allowed to occupy the space within the Koothambalam.”
Since the mainstream culture of the day embraces kitschy exhibitionism, the conservatism and sense of purity retained in and around performance spaces such as the Koothambalam win acceptance and legitimacy. The esoteric ambience of the Koodalmanikyam Koothambalam has proved to be a consolation for all those capable of identifying with the meditative vein of Indian classical arts notwithstanding its social and political implications.
