Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”). He gestures in mock impatience at children in the audience. Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Village children sit and stand to watch from the side. Adult men stand and watch from behind.
Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”). Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Village children begin to appear to watch. Blurry shot due to camera movement.
Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”).Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Village children begin to appear to watch. Blurry shot due to camera movement.
After listening to the A. A. Bake 1938 recording (Tefi 27.6), identified as a Parayan Thullal genre dance drama song from “Pulundhi Moksham” written by Kunjan Nambiar about an Ādivāsī couple sung by two singers, thullal musicians perform the same song for the field researchers to record on PCM. Right, seated: Thankappan Nair, lead singer. Center, standing: uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum player. Second singer using book to sing lyrics. Center: B. C. Balachandar, thullal dancer. Location: Ayamkudy village, Kottayam District, Kerala.
Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”). Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Blurry shot due to camera movement.
Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”). Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Village children sit and stand to watch from the side. Adult men stand and watch from behind.
Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”). Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Village children begin to appear to watch. Blurry shot due to camera movement.
Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”). He gestures in mock impatience at children in the audience. Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Village children sit and stand to watch from the side. Adult men stand and watch from behind.
Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs a namaskaram gesture to conclude his performance of an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”). He gestures in mock impatience at children in audience. Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Village children sit and stand to watch from the side. Adult men stand and watch from behind. Photo blurred due to camera movement.
Dancer B. C. Balachandar performs an episode from the Ottan Thullal solo dance drama Kalyana Sougandhikam (“Auspicious Fragrant Lily”). Musicians are behind him: a musician playing a mṛdaṅgam, a barrel shaped double-headed membranophone (seated, left), a singer and shruti peti musician (seated, center), a singer playing kai mani/jālra / taḷām cymbals (seated, right), a musician with an uḍukku variable tension hourglass drum (standing, right). Village children begin to appear to watch. Blurry shot due to camera movement.
