Arts Forms of Kerala.....Kathakali

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Kathakali dance is a traditional dance form of Kerala. In Kerala, the Kathakalli dance form is often known as the King of theater performances. The long hours of make-up, the elaborate and colorful make up, the heavily adorned costumes, all contribute towards making this dance form certainly larger than life. This traditional Kathakali dance form is a very aggressive dance, with no delicate and subtle movements. The actions are powerful and require high amounts of energy to perform. This is also one reason why males play the characters of females as well. It is said that this dance form has evolved over a period of 300 years.

The Kathakali dance basically means story telling. The scenes that are enacted are emoted with much vigor and vitality to bring life to the myths and legends. This dance form highlights complex body movements and facial expressions. The characters they enact seem so real, that at some point during the performance you will feel as though they have swapped their real identities with the characters . Since these complex and intricate body movements require suppleness of muscles, the Kathakali performers have to undergo special massage for their arms, necks and faces. Since the music does not have lyrics, thedance is performed on drum beats and other instruments.

The make-up is very fine and minute details are taken care of. The make-up of a single character can takes hours together. The costumes comprise of heavy multi layered skirt, heavy ornaments and an elaborate headgear. The make up is done according to 5 main types of characters. Each color has its own importance and highlights the significance of the character and the dominant role of that character. The 5 main types of make up are:

Pacha (Green): The color green is used for noble characters.
Kathi (Knife): This make up is used to portray villainous characters.
Kari (Black): Black colored make up is used for demonesses.
Minukku (Prettying Up): This make up is used for female characters and sages.
Thadi (Beard): Some characters require a beard and the bearded look is again of 3 types:

I adore Kathakali dance!! It is so impressive to see the Kathakali dancers moving very small and hidden muscles, the ones I personally never was aware of their existence- an amazing masterfulness, not to mention the breath taking make up and the traditional thrilling stories told without words, only by body movement and face expressions. I wish women too could learn Kathakali.