CHENNAI : We’ve all heard Pallikoodam, a Tamil word that stands for school. Likewise, Kalai Koodam is a Tamil word that stands for a community art space. This is a platform for people to come together and learn to perform different art forms like music, Bharatanatyam and parai dance. It is an initiative by the volunteers of the Urur-Olcott Kuppam Vizha that has been an encouraging platform for diverse art forms.
After about eight months of planning, they recently opened the school. “This is for those who have the drive to learn but do not know where to go.]
We want to teach the art forms that might be a little alien to them. People from different places and across ages have applied,” shares Monali Sanyal Balasubramiam, who will be teaching vocals, which will be a combination of Hindustani and Carnatic. They have received 25 applications so far. The other two teachers in the panel are Shreejith Krishna who will teach Bharatanatyam and Deepan who will teach parai. “For a person to understand an art, it has to be seen and experienced. The visual and oral components play a big role in shaping the performances,” says Monali. While the music and dance classes will be an hour-long session, parai will be for one and a half hour.
Urur-Olcott Kuppam has been providing opportunities to nurture many young talents and highlight the myriad art forms to the public through performances every year, for the last four years. Smaller and lesser-known art forms are given larger space to be showcased especially in beaches and open stages to spread awareness about the rich culture. The central idea is to celebrate oneness. “Basically it is a give-and-take between different art forms. After a month, we will plan for more batches. If there are more people, we might even start separate sessions for male and female performers,” she says.