KOCHI: It was a moment to cherish for art connoisseurs at the Government Sanskrit College when Kalamandalam Hariharan and Kalamandalam Narayanan Nambiar presented the subtle strains of thayambaka with the ritualistic membraphone, ‘mizhavu’.
“Since the circumference of the percussion instrument is small it demands rigorous practice to present a thayambaka on mizhavu,” says Kalamandalam Hariharan.
The two youngsters started the performance with the traditional pathikalam.
With its characteristic slow pace, the creative numbers presented by the duo got a boost amidst the encouraging bass voice of veekkan chenda (a drum that keeps the basic rhythm) and elathalam (cymbals).
After the narrative rhythmic presentation in pathikalam, the performers went on to present ‘atantha kooru’.
Here they displayed their expertise in this unique percussion by playing crystal clear rhythmic patterns on the mizhavu.
Atantha kooru was followed by edanila wherein Hari highlighted the tonal clarity of the membraphone with a skilful presentation. Narayanan Nambiar added to the tonal quality of the rhythmic conglomeration by presenting an entirely different creative number keeping the rhythm in athantha kooru. The climax of the symphony was so attractive that both the artists unanimously presented some selected pieces in basic rhythm which showcased the extraordinary similarities in the wavelength of thalam.
The accompaniment provided jointly by the Panjal Brothers on veekkan chenda and elathalam accentuated the beauty of this rhythmic experience.
After mizhavil thayambaka a detailed elaboration of the subhadraharanam nangiar koothu was also presented by Aparna Nangiar. An episode which describes the views of Subhadra, Sree Krishna’s sister, about her lover Arjuna also portrays her abduction by the demon sent by Duryodhana and her rescue by Arjuna near the holy lake Prabhasa Theertham.
Aparna Nangiar, through her inimitable acting style, especially pakarnaattam, presented an enviable performance by acting out the roles of Subhadra and Arjuna.
Thus the monthly programme presented by International Centre for Koodiyattom turned into a unique merging of two entirely different temple art forms, nangiar koothu and mizhavil thayambaka.
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