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Think of Kerala and almost every video that tries to portray its art and culture would include the chenda — the longish wooden drum slung over the shoulders of the percussionists who beat it relentlessly for about an hour or more.
Its lesser known but equally important cousin, the mizhavu , is a big copper vessel that is covered at the mouth and placed in a custom-made wooden encasing ( mizhavana ).
Kochi, Kerala, 29/01/2016: Mizhavu artist Kalamandalam Rajeev during a Nangiarkoothu performance in the city. Photo : Thulasi Kakkat
Traditionally used as the backdrop to most forms of Kerala’s theatre, the mizhavu was played exclusively by the Nambiar community, especially those who hailed from the Ambalapuzha region, until the Kerala Kalamandalam infused some reformation in the 1960s.
New Delhi:27/04/2013: Geeta Chandran's prestigious Natya Vriksha Young Dancers Fest opening with a performance 'Kutiyattam' by Kalamandalam Sangeeth Chakyar (As Ravana), to mark World Dance Day at India International Centre, in New Delhi on April,27,2013. Photo:Sushil Kumar Verma
The mizhavu has become more and more compact over the years. The older versions even went without the wooden casing.
50-year-old Ammanur Madhava Chakyar in traditional attire gives a performance of 'Chakyar Koothu.' Behind him is a Nambiar with his huge close-necked 'Mizhavu' on which he plays at intervals.Photo: The Hindu Archives
Kunchan Nambiar, the famous satire-poet of Kerala from the 18th century, was a famous mizhavu player. His king-size instrument (the copper gone green over the years) is preserved at the Sree Krishna temple in Ambalapuzha.
Alappuzha. The 'mizhavu', which was used by Kunchan Nambiar, is preserved on the stage he used to perform on in the historical Ambalapuzha Sree Krishna Swamy Temple, Alappuzha. Photo:H_Vibhu,30/06/08.
Unlike the chenda , there are no drumsticks for the mizhavu . It is played purely with the hands. And even more recently, there have been attempts to perform the instrument as a solo ( thayambakam ) rather than as an accompaniment to Koodiyattam or other forms of theatre.
Kochi, Kerala, 02/07/2016: Kalamandalam Rajeev and group performing 'Pancha Thayambaka' in 'Mizhavu' for the first time at the ongoing 'Ramayanam Prabandhakoothu Mahotsavam' at Ammannur Gurukulam in Inrinjalakuda, Kerala. 'Mizhavu' is one of the most ancient percussions of Southern India used mainly in accompaintment of Kudiyattam theatre. In recent times a lot of experiments are being made in the field of developing 'Mizhavu' as a performance by itself. Photo : Thulasi Kakkat
The credit for this move is generally given to 89- year-old P.K. Narayanan Nambiar, a legendary figure renowned for his scholarship in Koodiyattam and his mastery of the mizhavu .
koodi12 PATAKAM by PK Narayanan Nambiar
At the ongoing ''Ramayanam Prabandhakoothu Mahotsavam'' — a local theatre fest — at the Ammannur Gurukulam in Inrinjalakuda, Kalamandalam Rajeev and his group performed a pancha thayambakam in mizhavu , featuring five percussionists on the drum, for the first time.
Listen to the beats of the mizhavu right here:
