Think ‘thayambaka’ and the first image that pops into the mind is that of half a dozen percussionists drumming away on their chendas. However, Kalamandalam V K Hariharan had something else to offer the city on Wednesday, when he performed a ‘Mizhavil Thayambaka’.
The ‘chenda’ took a distinct backseat here simply setting the base for the star of the show – the mizhavu, the ‘devavadyam’ typically associated with ‘Koothu’ art forms such as Kutiyattam, Chakyarkoothu, etc.
The structure was that of a typical thayambaka set to a chembada (eight beat) thalam. The second stage or the ‘kooru’ adopted was the ‘adantha kooru’, typical of the Palakkad school.
Beginning with single beats, the tempo picked up progressively and the climax was a frenzy of beats and blurred fingers with Kalamandalam Rajeev and Kalamandalam Jayaraj, seated on either side of Hariharan, keeping pace with the maestro. Kalanilayam Unnikrishnan maintained a steady rhythm on the ‘valamthala (bass) chenda’ with Kalamandalam Anil Irinjalakuda on the ‘ilathalam’ (cymbals).
At the end of the 40-minute performance, the band stand area on the museum premises was packed with people, having been attracted by the zealous concert put together by Hariharan and his team.
The event was part of the Centre for Kutiyattam’s bimonthly attempt to disseminate and popularise the ancient art form of Kutiyattam among the public.
The mizhavu, a large copper drum with a narrow opening covered with animal skin, is said to have originated in northern Kerala, but it is not certain when.
“It is believed to be an instrument of the ‘devalokam’ (heaven) and is considered sacrosanct; it is treated as a ‘Brahmachari’,” explained V K Hariharan.
Traditionally associated with Koothu dance forms, it was only performed by the Nambiar community. There are now people from other castes picking it up, according to Hariharan.
“As far as female performers are concerned, I don’t know of any in Kerala,” he said. “But I have taught girl students in other parts of India like Delhi and Mumbai, and abroad.”
As an accompaniment to Kutiyattam and other Koothu forms, this instrument sets the mood of the dance performance, strengthening the ‘abhinaya’ of the actors. However, the ‘Mizhavil Thayambaka’ is a rare solo performance where the ‘mizhavu’ is in the spotlight and the percussionist can give full reign to his improvisation (‘Manodharmam’).
“It was the legendary percussionist P K Narayanan Nambiar who gave shape to ‘thayambaka’ on the ‘mizhavu’,” said K K Gopalakrishnan, Director Centre for Kutiyattam. “It was also he who started a scheme for imparting systematic training on the ‘mizhavu’ in Kalamandalam in 1965 when the Department of Kutiyattam was opened there.”
Following Nambiar’s footsteps, his student Kalamandalam Easwaran Unni also spent time perfecting this solo performance. But after that, nobody ventured into this for a long time until VK Hariharan, also a student of P K Narayanan Nambiar, came along with a ‘mizhavil thayambaka’ in Mumbai in 2003. One of the only known artistes specialising in this form, he spends his time between performances and teaching at his institute in Thrissur.
