Why Kathakali face is green?
Some characters have a green face (representing heroic or excellence as a warrior) with red dots or lines on their cheeks or red-coloured moustache or red-streaked beard (representing evil inner nature), while others have a full face and beard coloured red, the latter implying excessively evil characters.
What is the story of Kathakali?
Part-dance and part-mime, Kathakali originated in the state of Kerala between the 16th and 17th centuries, around the same time as Shakespeare. The Kalluvazhi Chitta style being performed by these dancers was born on the stage at the now-closed Kathakali school at Olappamanna Mana in Vellinezhi, almost 200 years ago.
What are the main roles in Kathakali?
In Kathakali, Vesham portrays archetypal characters, and hence several hours are dedicated exclusively for the make-up of the artists. The five major Veshams in Kathakali are Kathi (Knife), Pacha (Green), Thaadi (Beard), Minukku (radiant) and Kari (Black).
What are the components of Kathakali?
Kathakali is a blend of dance, music and acting and dramatizes stories, which are mostly adapted from the Indian epics. It is a stylised art form, the four aspects of abhinaya – angika, aharya,vachika, satvika and the nritta, nritya and natya aspects are combined perfectly.
Who is the God of Kathakali?
Zarrilli also opines that presumably the dance-drama art form called ‘Krishnanattam’ that illustrates legends from the life of Lord Krishna is a precursor of ‘Kathakali’. ‘Krishnanattam’ dance form developed under the auspices of the Zamorin ruler of Calicut, Sri Manavedan Raja ((1585-1658 AD).
What is the literal meaning of Kathakali?
“story-play
The literal meaning Kathakali means “story-play”. Kathakali is best known for its elaborate costumes, glaring makeup, detailed gestures and well defined body. The actors rely very heavily on hand gesture to convey the story. These hand gestures, known as mudra, are common throughout much of classical Indian dance.
What is special about Kathakali?
Although ‘Kathakali’ incorporates and reflects several elements of different Hindu temple art forms, its uniqueness lies in its performance where the actor-dancers concentrate exclusively on emoting the scene through acting and dancing while the voice artist delivers the lines very much contrary to the ancient forms …
What are the costumes in Kathakali?
There are several kinds of costume. There are: Sathwika (the hero), Kathi (the villain), Minukku (females), and Thatti.
What are mudras in Kathakali?
Actors do not speak or sing, but enact dialogic sections called padams through mudras (hand gestures and facial expressions. There are 24 mudras in Kathakali which express the nine rasas or emotions viz., serenity, wonder, kindness, love, valour, fear, contempt, loathing and anger.
What Kathakali means?
Definition of kathakali : a spectacular lyric dance drama of southern India based on Hindu literature and performed with acrobatic energy and highly stylized pantomime — compare bharata natya, kathak, manipuri.
What is Purappadu in Kathakali?
It is impor- tant in the training of an actor as it has all the dance patterns of Kathakali, but it is usually omitted these days. 3. The purappadu, meaning ‘going forth’, an introduction in pure dance which in its original form was intended to introduce the main character of the play being performed.
What is the costume of Kathakali?
The red-beards wear a red jacket and the white-beards wear a white jacket. While the scarfs which hang on either side follow the colour patterns set by the make-up. The lower half of the costume of Kathakali dancer is common to all types excepting the minukku characters.
What are the five elements of Kathakali?
Kathakali is a combination of five arts namely Literature (Sahithyam), Music (Sangeetham), Painting or make up (Chutti), Acting (Natyam) and Dance (Nritham). The theme for playing Kathakali is obtained from the Indian mythology.
How many mudras are there in Bharatanatyam?
In Bharatanatyam, the Classical Dance of India performed by Lord Nataraja, approximately fifty-five nine root mudras (hand/finger gestures) are used to clearly communicate specific ideas, events, actions, or creatures in which thirty-two require only one hand, and are classified as `Asamyuktanamasa Hasta’, along with …
Which ornaments are worn in Kathakali performance?
The ornaments and jewellery include necklace, bracelets, bangles, gilt breast-plates and bunches of tiny bells strung round the ankles. The language of the eyes or the Nayanabhinaya assumes an exceptional role in this style of dance.
What are Kathakali masks of Kerala?
Kathakali is recognized for its unique form of make-up and dress. Kathakali Masks of Kerala are nothing but masks that replicate the faces of the Kathakali dancers with the colors and make up that are applied on the dancers’ faces.
What is Kathakali dance?
Kathakali is a popular genre of Indian classical dance. It’s a “story play” kind of art, but it’s differentiated by the usually male actor-dancers’ lavishly colourful make-up, costumes, and face masks. Read more about other Indian dance forms.
What is a Kathakali story?
The kathakali themes are based in Hinduism and yogic philosophy. The stories typically come from ancient narratives, like the ” Mahabarata ” and the ” Ramayana ,” and the scriptures called the Puranas. Traditionally, a kathakali would begin in the evening and last until dawn. Today, many are abridged versions, lasting four hours or less.
What are the mudras of Kathakali?
Hand gestures or mudras are discussed in several ancient Sanskrit writings, including Natya Shastra and Hastha Lakshanadeepika. Unlike other Indian traditional dances, Kathakali strictly follows the Hastha Lakshanadeepika. In Kathakali, there are 24 primary mudras.