BENGALURU: Malayalam actor Rima Kallingal and team look like poetry in motion as they rehearse for their upcoming dance production, Neythe. Neythe, which means weaving in Malayalam, speaks about the story and the process that is required for a fabric to be made, making it a tribute to weavers.
The inspiration behind the story goes back to the 2018 Kerala floods, when many villages were affected, and citizens and the government came together to help them out. Kallingal, who was actively volunteering then came across Chendamangalam, a weavers’ village. “That is the first time I understood how this whole weaving process happens. I understood that there are so many men and women involved in the creation of a single fabric. It goes through many hands and mechanisations to finally become the fabric that we wear. What fascinated me the most was that there was an organic rhythm and choreography to this whole movement.
It was monotonous and repetitive but felt trance-like,” recalls Kallingal. Being a trained Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam dancer, the production has a lot of classical elements. However, Kallingal says they have widely used Indian contemporary elements in it too. “ I feel our roots are in our folk elements, so you see a lot of folk and classical influences. It is primarily Indian contemporary,” says Kallingal.
Having been inspired by a weaving village in Kerala, Kallingal made sure the costume was a tribute to the fabric made there. “If you look back at Kerala’s culture, everybody used to wear the off-white mundu. I wanted that to be represented. Also, Chendamangalam is supposed to have their kavi mundu (saffron-coloured lungi worn by men in Kerala),” explains Kallingal, who is staging the production for the second time, the first one being in Kerala a month ago.
Having spent 10 years in Bengaluru, it is a homecoming for Kallingal. “This is the first time I’m bringing a production to Bengaluru after I left in 2011. I started my dance journey with Nritarutya with Mayuri and Madhuri Upadhyay. They trained me and that is when I understood dance could be a serious profession. Bengaluru has opened me up as a person and artiste, so the place is precious to me,” says Kallingal, who is working towards taking a contemporary dance festival to Kerala.
Kallingal is looking forward to a quiet and spiritual New Year celebration. “I don’t want to party. However, I am planning to go for Navarasa sadhana workshop which I am looking forward to. I want to start on a different note,” says Kallingal, who is working on a webseries.