KATTAIKKUTTU

The Theatre Kattaikkuttu or Terukkuttu is a popular theatre of the northern parts of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. A theatre of ritual and entertainment, Kattaikkuttu remains closely tied in with the social, economic, religious and communicative domains of contemporary village life. The theatre derives its name from the special ornaments called kattai or kattai camankal. The kattai consist of head, shoulder and breast ornaments made of wood and inlaid with mirrors or decorated with coloured paper. The ornaments represent power, heroic qualities and royalty. They are worn by a specific category of heroic characters called kattai veshams. Kattaikkuttu is a combination of song, music, dance and drama. The actors are elaborately made up, almost mask-like, and wear costumes rich in colour. The orchestra accompanying the players consists of a harmonium, two drums, a mukavinai (a small oboe-like instrument) and two sets of hand cymbals or talam. Kattaikkuttu music is based on the South Indian system of Carnatic music. However, rhythmical patterns and melodies are performed to fit the requirements of the theatre and its open-air performances. In contrast to some other South Indian theatre forms, which use a background singer, Kattaikkuttu players sing themselves. Their lead singing on stage is supported by a chorus, which consists of actors who do not perform a role on stage at that moment. The voices of the actors have a rough quality that is much appreciated by the audience and they carry far through the night. Drawing on the rich oral reservoir that underlies the theatre and that includes music, songs, spoken text and visual imagery, the players and musicians together build up a familiar story that they adapt to the local context and taste of their audiences. Kattaikkuttu uses scenes from the mythological story repertoire. Characters and problems presented in these stories are frequently used to reflect on local social and political conditions. The kattiyakkaran or clown fulfils a pivotal role in the performances. As narrator, herald and comedian he links the world of the mythical gods and heroic kings of the stories to the every-day lives of the spectators. Kattaikkuttu's different styles and substyles are geographically determined: companies based in the Viluppuram and Cuddalore Districts and the Union Territory of Pondicherry perform in what is known as "southern style"; companies based in the Kanchipuram, Vellore, Tiruvannamalai and Tiruvallur Districts perform in "northern style"; companies based in the Dharmapuri District, the Tanjavur District and the Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh represent three other styles of Kattaikkuttu. Performance context Kattaikkuttu performances take place during the night and last from about 10 PM to 6 AM the next morning. There is no elevated stage and no amplification. The spectators are seated on the ground along three sides of the ground-level performance area. The occasion for a performance may be a Hindu religious festival, a funeral or a special celebration in the village. Paratam festivals provide an important setting for the organization of several nights of Kattaikkuttu theatre. Paratam festivals are held in honour of Draupadi or Tiraupatiyamman. She is the heroine of the Mahabharata, the epic that is the central narrative of many of the Kattaikkuttu plays. In rural Tamil Nadu Draupadi has been deified and is worshipped as a powerful goddess. Depending on the occasion Kattaikkuttu performances will be sponsored by an entire village or by an individual family. Performers Performers used to learn the art from their fathers and other close relatives. They belonged to several different, lower, castes. In addition to these traditional players, quite a few other people, for whom Kattaikkuttu is not a hereditary profession, have entered the theatre recently. Until a few years ago Kattaikkuttu was an all-male theatre form. Male actors specialized in these roles would perform female characters and this is still the regular practice. The first performance of an all-night play in Kattaikkuttu style by a group of women performers took place in 1996. Professional performers are organized in so-called "companies". These companies represent an informal, private enterprise system. They operate in the countryside and provincial towns and depend for their patronage upon rural audiences. Traditional repertoire The following plays constitute the core of the traditional Kattaikkuttu repertoire of companies performing in the "northern style". The themes of these plays represent episodes from the Mahabharata, which have been reworked to suit the local Tamil language and village context. The Bending of the Bow or Draupadi's Marriage (Vilvalaippu allatu Tiraupati kalyanam) Subhadra's Marriage (Cupattira kalyanam) The Royal Sacrifice (Rajacuyayakam) The Game of Dice and the Disrobing of Draupadi (Pakatai tukil) Arjuna's Penance (Arjuna tapacu) Draupadi-the-Kuratti (Kuravanci) The Killing of Kicaka (Kicaka vatam) Krishna's Embassy (Kirushnan tutu) Abhimanyu's Battle (Apimanan cantai) Karna's Death (Karna moksham) The Eighteenth Battle (Patinettam por) Special dramatic episodes are acted out in the streets of the village by one, two or more actors during Paratam festivals. The performers belong to the theatre company that is also responsible for the enactment of all-night Kattaikkuttu plays. One such "off-stage" performance is Arjuna's tapas or Arjuna's penance, which he performs on top of a huge pole. Another "off-stage" performance is the enactment of the final fight between Bhima and Duryodhana that decides the outcome of the great Mahabharata war in favour of Bhima and his four Pandava brothers. For this performance a huge lying statue of Duryodhana is made in the centre of the village, which is transformed into the battlefield of Kurukshetra. This statue substitutes for the actor impersonating Duryodhana during the final scene in which he gets killed. "Off-stage" episodes such as these two form the ritual culmination of stories performed "on-stage" during the previous night. In addition to Mahabharata or Paratam plays most companies include in their repertoires also one or more Ramayana plays, a few plays based on popular purana stories and lesser known or newly invented episodes from the Mahabharata that feature existing and novel, imagined characters. Challenges to the theatre's viability In spite of the great popularity of Kattaikkuttu and the on-going local support for the theatre, its existence and integrity are seriously threatened by the competition of mass media entertainment such as film and television. This trend is regrettable because it deprives the people of the villages of the opportunity to see their own lives on stage and to comment on the proceedings. Furthermore, the commercialization of the rural economy has changed the financial basis of theatre companies and the system of patronage drastically. Among other things, this has resulted in a vicious circle of indebtedness of rural performers to financers from outside the professional theatre world that has proved hard to reverse. The life of contemporary Kattaikkuttu actors and musicians is physically trying and there is very little financial security. This is one of the reasons why it is difficult to attract young people to become Kattaikkuttu players so that the tradition can be continued. Reacting to the challenges posed to their profession a small group of professional Kattaikkuttu performers decided to establish the Tamil Nadu Kattaikkuttu Kalai Valarchi Munnetra Sangam