Chenda melam always comes packed with nostalgia and festive joy among Malayalis everywhere. However, under its thunderous sound is a contradiction — the very force that awakens the spirit can, over time, steal the hearing of those artists who devote their lives to playing it.
K Sreenath discusses this contradiction in his documentary ‘Drumming into Silence’, which has been selected for the 2024 Kalamandalam University’s Best Documentary Award.
Sreenath, a Chenda player himself, grew up attending the grand Chenda melam of the Vrischikaolsavam held every year in Tripunithura at the Poornathrayeesa temple.
Inspired by the sound, he pursued sound engineering, and it was during this period that one of his teachers advised him to protect his ears from hearing loss.
“My teacher told me to cover my ears to protect them from the loud sound of the instrument. I then started wearing earplugs whenever I played the chenda, but was made fun of and ridiculed,” he recalls.
But something made him curious. “I started researching how Chenda caused hearing trouble. As part of it, I decided to make a documentary and let people know how many of the biggest names were actually suffering,” he says.
The team behind the documentary started working on it back in 2019, starting with recording visuals of the Chenda melam during the Vrischikaolsavam. Sreenath was accompanied by his friends and classmates from NEO Film School — Anson Antony as the cinematographer, Joel Elias as editor, Manikandan S handled sound mixing and Amal Rubinson, another cinematographer.
When the pandemic hit in 2020, they had to halt their plans. They restarted their work the following year, meeting artists such as Peruvanam Kuttan Marar, Peruvanam Satheeshan Marar, Peruvanam Santhosh Marar, Kalamandalam Sankara Warrier, Thiruvalla Radhakrishnan and many more.
In 2022, the documentary was selected for the International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala (IDSFFK).
“The loud sound of the melam has caused hearing issues amongst all of the artists that we interviewed. Some even complained about their ears bleeding. But there is a strong stigma surrounding this issue within the chenda artists’ community,” informs Sreenath.
“They feel awkward about wearing hearing aids, even when doctors recommend them. They think about how they will be perceived by others,” he adds.
The change in the style of performing the melam has also added to the problem. Within the documentary, the artists explain that today’s crowd prefer high-pitched beats. The art of listening to a melam patiently has diminished.
Slowly waiting for the crescendo to build, taking the listeners and the artists to a rhythmic high... However, they explain that it is important for the audience to enjoy the melam. And the artists are ready to pay the price, even if it is hearing loss.
“This is one of the reasons why I felt it was important to make this documentary. The audiences that look forward to being thrilled at every melam should be aware of how our artists are suffering behind the scenes,” he says.
Having screened the documentary in several festivals, the 34-year-old filmmaker hopes to change the perception among artists and audiences alike.
“I have noted a small change since the documentary’s release. Some chenda artists have started wearing earplugs to protect their hearing. At least, there is an effort among the artists to take precaution,” says Sreenath.