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 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.
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).
Ottan Thullal - Kalyana Sougandhikam: a solo narrative dance form with music, in Malayalam. Performers: B. C. Balachandar (singer, actor) who studied at the Kerala Kalamandalam in Cheruthuruthy, Unni Krisnan (second singer), Parameswaran Nair (mṛdaṅgam), Thankappan Nair (singer, elathalam cymbals, uḍukku), and an unidentified musician (surpeṭī / sruti box). 1a. Make-up and costuming: Ottan Thullal artist B. C. Balachandar completes makeup for the green-faced (pacha) storyteller character he will enact. He smiles at the elderly mother of Thankappan Nair, who walks in and sits beside him, engaging him in conversation. Balachandar ties the black headcloth at the back of his head. He stands and puts on the brown cotton pajamas, and knocks on the wall, signaling that he is ready for the ornaments to be brought to him. Costuming is completed. <br/><br/>1b. Performance of the story of Kalyana Sougandhikam (The Auspicious Sweet-Smelling Flower), a satirical narrative dance written in verse by Kunjan Nambiar (1705-1770), originator of the form. The story is based on an episode from Mahābhārata. Thankappan Nair (singer, with elathalam cymbals); dancer/singer B. C. Balachandar; Prameswaran Nair (mṛdaṅgam); Thankappan (uḍukku, standing), musician (surpeṭī / sruti box). The main part of the dance is the verbal confrontation between Bhima and Hanuman. Bhima is searching for the flower in the jungle, and comes upon Hanuman, his half-brother. Hanuman recognizes Bhima, but Bhima does not recognize Hanuman. Bhima is furious at Hanuman for blocking the pathway with his enormous tail. The storyteller enacting Bhima directs his fury at the children in the audience in a comical way, which causes the children to giggle and laugh. Performed at the home of the Sithankan Thullal artist B. C. Balachandar.
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.
