A scene from ‘Karna Moksham’.
The Mahabharata has many memorable characters, certainly one of whom is the compassionate Karna, whose tragic life involves an finish throughout the battle between the Pandavas and Kauravas.
Tales from the Mahabharata kind an integral a part of the Kattaikoothu repertoire. This can be a difficult Tamil theatre kind the place actors are required to sing, dance, act and converse dialogues. It handles the theme of Karna’s liberation or loss of life, and is believed to have been written by a poet named Pukalenthi Pulavar.
The model of ‘Karna Moksham’ introduced by the Kattaikkuttu Sangam, led by famed actor, director and playwright P. Rajagopal, options the Perungattur fashion of Kattaikkuttu. Perungattur is a village close to Cheyyar in Tiruvannamalai District the place many hereditary exponents of this fashion lived. A condensed model of Karna Moksham was staged in December final on the premises of the Sangam at Punjarasantankal village as a part of its Mahabharata pageant.
For the reason that authentic play is designed as a nightlong efficiency, just a few vital sections of the play had been staged. Analysis scholar Hanne M. Debruin, who undertook the transcription and translation of the play, has extensively analysed and documented these features of Karna’s story which might be distinctive to Kattaikoothu, with the assistance of Rajagopal. “Karna Moksham carries ritual significance amongst rural communities as it’s carried out as a part of a funeral customized generally known as the karumaantaram noticed on the sixteenth day after an individual’s loss of life. Relations of the deceased hope that the staging of the play will facilitate the deceased’s soul to be liberated from the cycle of delivery, reflecting what occurred to Karna within the story,” explains Hanne.
The play started with a dialog between the protagonist Karna (performed by R. Kumar) and the Kattiyakaaran (graveyard employee, performed by A. Dillibabu). Subsequently, a bunch of characters made dramatic appearances as a part of their self-introduction sequences. It should be famous that references to Karna’s spouse are sparse within the Mahabharata — it describes her because the mom of Karna’s slain sons Vrishasena and Sushena. Nonetheless, regional variations gave significance to this character. In ‘Karna Moksham’, she known as Ponnuruvi (or Ponmalai or Shubhangi) and is a daughter of the king of Kalinga. A big chunk of the play is dedicated to depicting the strained relationship between Ponnuruvi and Karna. The flexibility of Kattaikoothu as an artwork kind may be gauged from the truth that the depictions on this play have been extremely localised and contemporised.
From ‘Karna Moksham’, which is carried out as a part of a funeral customized generally known as the karumaantaram
“Throughout festivals, actors give attention to emphasising the play’s heroic features, like the ultimate battle between Karna and Arjuna, and Karna’s loss of life on the battlefield. Nonetheless, when carried out at funeral ceremonies, features associated to household life are given extra significance. Separation and loss of life are the predominant features for elaboration in such ceremonies” says Rajagopal. He additionally explains how the play stays related to native village audiences by focussing on modern points akin to discord between {couples}.
Kattaikoothu additionally ties again Karna’s id with Taanasuran, a thousand-headed asura who loses all however certainly one of his heads to Nara-Narayana, in the end searching for refuge with Surya, Karna’s father. Hanne says that Taanasuran is akin to Narakasura within the Sanskrit epic.
The musical features of Kattaikoothu are attention-grabbing too. Rajagopal elaborates that the songs are primarily divided into paattu and virutham. Paattus have talam whereas viruthams don’t. The songs are sung by the primary actor on stage who’s known as munnani and they’re repeated by the refrain (pinnani) with the mukhavinai. Viruthams are vital to deliver out the emotional potential of sure scenes like Ponnuruvi waking up from her sleep, and talking to her pals a couple of mysterious voice she hears.
S. Vijayan on the harmonium, P. Sasikumar on the mukhavinai and A. Selvarasu on the mridangam elevated the efficiency.
Among the many many scenes and characters that delighted the viewers, Kattiyakaaran appeared essential. A scene the place he interacts with the thozhis of Ponnuruvi has a country, earthly tone to it, and are savoured by rural audiences.
The sequence involving the maidens, portrayed by R. Mahalakshmi, S. Srimathy, A. Bharathi and A. Sathiya, all alumni of the Kattaikkuttu Gurukulam, had witty dialogues and satire.
Scenes portraying the ultimate battle between Krishna and Arjuna, and Saliya (S Gobinath) and Karna had been energetic and charged with brisk foot actions and dynamic, daring dialogues. The play concludes when Krishna calls for and takes the ‘dharmam’ or the results of all of Karna’s charitable acts, paving the best way for Karna to realize liberation.
Kattaikoothu must be appreciated by a wider viewers in order that it’s accorded due significance by the general public and different stakeholders.
