TRIPUNITHURA: Govindan Namboodiri, hummed a portion of ‘Vathapi Ganapathim’, a ‘keerthanam’ based on ‘Hamsadhwani’ raga, as he briefed about the progress of the college. “Ours is one of the three music colleges in the state, where each and every art form find a place in the curriculum. It is the first of its kind in the state where music and fine arts have been blended perfectly into various UG and PG courses,” said Namboodiri, Principal in-charge Radha Lakshmi Vilasam College of Music and Fine Arts.
Pointing to an old pencil drawing of Swathi Thirunal on the the wall he said that it was done by ‘nadaswaram’ exponent Thiruvizha Jayashankar when he was a student of the college. “Kalamandalam Krishnan Nair, who made a mark in kathakali was a faculty of this college in the beginning. Legendary playbak singer K J Yesudas studied here during early 60s, said Namboodiri with pride and respect.
Moving from the traditional architecture near the Sree Poornathrayeesha Temple to a modern four-storey building a few miles away where a woodmill once existed, the ambience of the college reverberates with a mix of music, dance and art installations.
The college is on an innovation path. To begin with, the Fine Arts Department of the college is looking forward to the being part of Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2014 which would be kicked off on December 12.
The senior faculty of the department and the former student of the college, Abraham, said, “We hope to become a possible venue for the event and expect some tourist inflow. Despite setbacks, the department has some new facilities. We have conducted several tour programmes for students which helped them interact with artistes of other states. Last year, we took them to the KCS Panicker Art Gallery in Thiruvananthapuram. The students also visited Viswabharathi in West Bengal and Konark in Orissa with the grant from the state government,” said Abraham.
“We have also conducted scholar residence programme. Artists such as Pankaj Panwar, Jayaram Pothuval and Riyaz Komu have conducted seminars here.
Concept of smart classrooms in music and dance department and the mirrored walls have been helpful to students. “Students can rectify their dance movements by looking at the mirror and attain perfection”, said Madhavan Namboodiri,a senior lecturer.
A state of the art digital recording studio and sound-proof classrooom exclusively for kathakali are also beneficial. “After a brief hiatus, the interest in kathakali is gaining momentum, going by the admissions,” he said.