KOCHI: Preetha Balakrishnan, a teacher at St Antony’s Higher Secondary School, Kacheripady, had been a warm, affable friend to her students. On October 27, however, her wards saw a different side of her: with large headgear, rolling eyes, black make-up and loud roars, Preetha looked to have taken on an evil persona. The teacher, a trained Kathakali artist, had transformed herself into Kali to help her students understand Nalacharitham, a lesson in their literature text.
Nalacharitham, a Kathakali play of immense literary value, is a tough nut to crack for Class 10 students. Based on Mahabharat, it is an action-filled romantic drama. For the students who struggle to imbibe Unnayi Warrier’s poetic imagery, Preetha had a simple solution. She performed it on stage, leaving the text forever ingrained in the minds of students.
The 52-year-old donned the role of the vicious Kali, who plots to separate Nalan, the virtuous king of Nishadha, and his consort Damayanthi, while her friend Parvathy Menon dressed up as Pushkaran, the brother of Nalan. An extract from Nalacharitham Day 2, in which Kali lures Pushkaran to defeat Nalan in a game of dice and assume the throne, has been included in the Class 10 Malayalam syllabus.
“Kali, incarnates lust, anger, greed and ambition -- the four qualities that leads to the downfall of a man. My students were struggling to digest the text. Moreover, most of them had never witnessed a Kathakali performance. This was not my first such performance. In 2016, I played Damayanthi at school as a different portion was included in the syllabus,” Preetha told TNIE.
Preetha’s father Balakrishnan, a native of Kidangoor in Kottayam district, was an employee of Government of India Production Centre in Ettumanoor. A Kathakali enthusiast, he started Nalanulli Smaraka Kalakshetram in Kidangoor and Preetha along with her three sisters started learning Kathakali at the age of seven.
“After completing my studies, I started performing Kathakali along with my father’s troupe. Later I got associated with the Thripunithura women’s Kathakali team. I have performed many roles including Krishna, Hanuman, Duryodhana and Roudra Bhima, but this is the first time I played Kali. My students and other teachers were excited as I performed the vicious character and gave a high-pitched roar,” Preetha said.
Preetha played Damayanthi at 15 schools in Ernakulam, Palakkad and Idukki in 2016, and her performances created waves. She married Jayaprakash Narayanan, an architect, in 1996. “I had set a condition to my husband’s famiy that they should allow me to continue performing Kathakali. My mother-in-law was an admirer of the arts and always supported me,” she said.
In 2002, she joined St Teresa’s School as a Malayalam teacher before being transferred to St Antony’s in 2007. “I used to compete at the state-level youth festival and was a university winner in Thiruvathira. I train students at my school in Thiruvathira and have written 101 Thiruvathira songs. I have published two books and also find time to train elderly women in Thiruvathira,” she said.
Her ambition? “My students and colleagues say I am very expressive. I will retire from service in 2027 and I desire to remain active as a Kathakali performer. The dance form has given me everything in life and I want to repay the favour. If my art helps the children in their studies, I will feel gratified,” says Preetha.