Today, Kalakshetram Dombivli is falicitating 'Madambi Aasaan' and Guru Krishnan Kutty Varrier.
I personally had some great association with both Dombivli Kalakshetram and Madambi ettan. ( I always used to address him as Madambi ettan)
First about Kalakshetram. Dombivli Kalakshtram started their Kathakali yatra with an arangettam performance of my 'aattakatha' - 'Sathyavan Savitri' - in 1984. In 1982 after I came back from abroad, I was trying to settle down in Mumbai. I used to travel a lot as a consultant during those 2 or 3 years, and started a bit of writing - continuing what was left off from the school days. I enjoyed writing a couple of childrens' novelettes written specially for my children Daisy and Deepu - books modelling on Enid Blyton, but themes taken from my childhood memories in Kerala - during those travels. Also, during these travels I wrote Sathyavan Savitri, taken a bit of inspiration from Shri N V Krishna Varrier's great radio-musical-drama.
Kalamandalam C Gopalakrishnan used to teach Kathakali to my daughter during those days. He he once happened to see the 'Sathyavan Savitri'. He took it and Choreographed it into a proper 'Aattakatha'.
It was staged in Bharatiya Music & Arts Society hall in Sion, under Kalakshetram Dombivli in 1984.
After 10 years, another one of my aattakathas 'Naranathu Bhranthan' was also staged under Kalakshetram. Both the kathas had seen a few more stages in Mumbai as well as Kerala. Kalakshetram in their Silver Jubilee celebrations staged 'Satyavan Savitri' again.
So, it is an unforgettable relationship I have with Kalakshetram.
And Madambi Ettan.... That friendship - can' simply call it friendship, it is much more than that - started during our childhood. When we were children, I used to go to 'Cherumittath' - a neighbouring illam to Madambi illam in Thottara. My father's cousin - my achanpengal was married there and during visiting them, I used to go to Madambi illam, used to swim there with the children there - including ettan, his younger brother and cousin.
Then during the annual festival of Pachayil temple, pachayil utsavam as I remember, we used to be there for 5 days watching Kathakali in the night, watching other temple arts like chakyar koothu, padhakam, ottamthullal etc during other times. We used to find some time to do a bit of playing with the chidren artists from the Kathakali troupe also - used to be Kottakkal troupe with a few other prominent artists added.
Those good old days ended when I went away to Mumbai as an engineer. Madambi Ettan later married my achanpengal's daughter Parvathi - but God called her away too soon.
I am not qualified to write any comment on Madambi Ettan's music. I can only say that he is one of the rarest Kathakali singers - who is probably purist to a fault. The Kathakali audience still looks upto him when it comes to highly structured music of 'Kottayam Kathakal' and similar classics. Even if you learn music for a few years - (a few months in my case, 'trying' to learn), you can only wonder like a child standing in a beach with a drop of water in hand looking astonishingly at the endless ocean that is in front of you .....
About Shri Guru Krishnan Kutty Varrier - I have heard of him a lot during the early 1980s, met him a few times. Somehow, I did not have much interaction with him and the loss is entirely mine.
I congratulate Kalakshetram on this occassion and pray to God for long well-being of Madambi ettan and Guru Krishnankutty Varrier.
I personally had some great association with both Dombivli Kalakshetram and Madambi ettan. ( I always used to address him as Madambi ettan)
First about Kalakshetram. Dombivli Kalakshtram started their Kathakali yatra with an arangettam performance of my 'aattakatha' - 'Sathyavan Savitri' - in 1984. In 1982 after I came back from abroad, I was trying to settle down in Mumbai. I used to travel a lot as a consultant during those 2 or 3 years, and started a bit of writing - continuing what was left off from the school days. I enjoyed writing a couple of childrens' novelettes written specially for my children Daisy and Deepu - books modelling on Enid Blyton, but themes taken from my childhood memories in Kerala - during those travels. Also, during these travels I wrote Sathyavan Savitri, taken a bit of inspiration from Shri N V Krishna Varrier's great radio-musical-drama.
Kalamandalam C Gopalakrishnan used to teach Kathakali to my daughter during those days. He he once happened to see the 'Sathyavan Savitri'. He took it and Choreographed it into a proper 'Aattakatha'.
It was staged in Bharatiya Music & Arts Society hall in Sion, under Kalakshetram Dombivli in 1984.
After 10 years, another one of my aattakathas 'Naranathu Bhranthan' was also staged under Kalakshetram. Both the kathas had seen a few more stages in Mumbai as well as Kerala. Kalakshetram in their Silver Jubilee celebrations staged 'Satyavan Savitri' again.
So, it is an unforgettable relationship I have with Kalakshetram.
And Madambi Ettan.... That friendship - can' simply call it friendship, it is much more than that - started during our childhood. When we were children, I used to go to 'Cherumittath' - a neighbouring illam to Madambi illam in Thottara. My father's cousin - my achanpengal was married there and during visiting them, I used to go to Madambi illam, used to swim there with the children there - including ettan, his younger brother and cousin.
Then during the annual festival of Pachayil temple, pachayil utsavam as I remember, we used to be there for 5 days watching Kathakali in the night, watching other temple arts like chakyar koothu, padhakam, ottamthullal etc during other times. We used to find some time to do a bit of playing with the chidren artists from the Kathakali troupe also - used to be Kottakkal troupe with a few other prominent artists added.
Those good old days ended when I went away to Mumbai as an engineer. Madambi Ettan later married my achanpengal's daughter Parvathi - but God called her away too soon.
I am not qualified to write any comment on Madambi Ettan's music. I can only say that he is one of the rarest Kathakali singers - who is probably purist to a fault. The Kathakali audience still looks upto him when it comes to highly structured music of 'Kottayam Kathakal' and similar classics. Even if you learn music for a few years - (a few months in my case, 'trying' to learn), you can only wonder like a child standing in a beach with a drop of water in hand looking astonishingly at the endless ocean that is in front of you .....
About Shri Guru Krishnan Kutty Varrier - I have heard of him a lot during the early 1980s, met him a few times. Somehow, I did not have much interaction with him and the loss is entirely mine.
I congratulate Kalakshetram on this occassion and pray to God for long well-being of Madambi ettan and Guru Krishnankutty Varrier.
No comments:
Post a Comment