KOCHI: While reviving the age-old temple art form, the family of Viswanatha Pulavar, one of the very few tholpavakoothu artists in the state, is adapting to suit the changing taste of the generation. Viswanatha’s wife Pushpalatha, son Vipin and brothers Ramachandra Pulavar and Lakshmana Pulavar are all involved in the art form.
The latest work by the group of artists was for the upcoming movie ‘Mamangam’. Showcasing the art in films, dramas and other platforms where space can be created for tholpavakoothu is one of the major steps they have taken to promote the art form. Earlier, Viswanatha himself had performed the art form for a scene in the film Meesha Madhavan.
“Earlier, in the Malabar region, 20 groups in 30 villages used to perform tholpavakoothu. This has been reduced to a handful now. Our aim is to bring the art form to the younger generation. However, what works against us is time. Everyone wants to learn the art form in a short amount of time; no one is interested in taking the time to acquire a level of knowledge. The time to present it has also shortened, even in temples,” said the artist.
Historically, Sanskrit Ramayana has been the subject of tholpavakoothu. However, 3,000 shlokas from Kamba Ramayana were used later. Profound knowledge of the many ancient texts was necessary to perform the art form in temples as part of festivals. Earlier, there used to be at least 14 members in a group to perform the art form with all the required traditional musical instruments. Now, the numbers have come down to eight, mainly because of a lack of proficiency in various instruments.
In a quest to revive tholpavakoothu, Viswanatha has forayed out of Ramayana. “We do other stories including ‘Sreekrishna Jananam’, tales from panchatantra, and stories of Gautama Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi. We also make puppets here. My wife made more than 90 per cent of the puppets we have,” he said.
Pushpalatha is one of the first women to become associated with tholpavakoothu, which is traditionally an all-male bastion. Viswanatha’s father K L Krishnankutty Pulavar, who was an exponent of tholpavakoothu, introduced his daughter-in-law to the art of puppet making. Currently involved with the performance, Pushpalatha trains students in puppet making. “My daughter learnt the art form since a child,” said Viswanatha.
Hailing from Koonathra in Shoranur, the family regularly lead workshops in tholpavakoothu outside the country, including China and France.