How stories from the Mahabharata are integral to the Kattaikoothu repertoire

Image belongs to Kattaikkuttu Sangam, Photo by PeeVee

The Mahabharata, a voluminous epic, has many memorable characters. Despite leading quite a tragic life that finally came to an end on the battlefield between the Pandavas and Kauravas, Karna was known for his benevolence and compassion. Stories from the Mahabharata form an integral part of the Kattaikkoothu repertoire. This challenging Tamil theatre form where actors are required to sing, dance, act and speak dialogues handles the theme of Karna’s liberation or death exhaustively though the play ‘Karna Moksham’ believed to have been written by a poet named Pukalentippulavar. The version of Karna Moksham presented by the Kattaikkuttu Sangam, led by famed actor, director and playwright P. Rajagopal, features the Perungattur style of Kattaikkuttu. Perungattur is a village near Cheyyar in the Tiruvannamalai District where many of the hereditary exponents of this style used to live.  A condensed version of Karna Moksham was recently staged at the premises of the Sangam at Punjarasantankal village as part of their Mahabharata festival.

Since the play is designed for a whole-night performance, a few important sections of the play were staged. Research scholar Hanne M. Debruin, who undertook the transcription and translation of the play, has extensively analysed and documented the aspects of Karna’s story that are unique to Kattaikoothu with the help of Rajagopal. She explains “Karna Moksham carries ritual significance among rural communities as it is performed as part of a funeral custom known as the karumaantaram ceremony observed on the sixteenth day after a person’s death. Relatives of the deceased hope that the staging of the play will facilitate the release of the deceased’s soul and allow it to ultimately reach Moksham or liberation from the cycle of rebirths, reflecting what happened to Karna in the story.” Interestingly, Hanne also mentions that Karna Moksham was staged last year in memory of noted educationist and gender rights activist Mina Swaminathan who was a great advisor and supporter of the Kattaikkuttu Sangam since its inception in 1990. Mina, the spouse of agricultural scientist M.S. Swaminathan, had requested Rajagopal almost two decades ago to enact the play in her memory after her death. 

The play began with a conversation between the protagonist Karna (played by R Kumar) and the Kattiyakaaran (A Dillibabu), a central figure of the performance who is responsible for guarding the flow of the play. Subsequently, a host of characters made dramatic appearances as part of their self-introduction sequences. It must be noted that references to Karna’s wife are sparse in the Mahabharata which describes her as the mother of Karna’s slain sons Vrishasena and Sushena. However, regional adaptations gave much importance to this character. In Karna Moksham, she is called Ponnuruvi (or Ponmalai or Subhangi) and is a daughter of the king of Kalinga. Hanne however mentions that Vyasa’s Mahabharata contains two slokas which describe the abduction by Karna and Duryodhana of the king’s daughter during her swayamvara A large chunk of the play is devoted to depicting the strained relationship between Ponnuruvi and Karna. The versatility of Kattaikoothu as an art form can be gauged from the fact that the depictions in this play have been highly localized and contemporized.

Image belongs to Kattaikkuttu Sangam, Photo by PeeVee

“On the occasion of Mahabharata festivals, actors focus on emphasizing the play’s heroic aspects like the final battle between Karna and Arjuna, and Karna’s death on the battlefield. However, when performed at funeral ceremonies, aspects related to family life are given more importance. Separation and death are the predominant aspects for elaboration in such ceremonies” said Rajagopal. He also explains how the play remains relevant across time and relatable to local village audiences by focusing on contemporary issues like hidden tension and marital discord between couples through Karna and Ponnuruvi’s scenes. Kattaikoothu also ties back Karna’s identity with Taanasuran, a thousand-headed asura who loses all but one of his heads to Nara-Narayana, ultimately seeking refuge with Surya, Karna’s father. Hanne mentions that Taanasuran is comparable to Narakasura in the Sanskrit epic.

The musical aspects of Kattaikoothu are worth observing. Rajagopal elaborates that songs are mainly divided into paattu and viruttam. Paattus have talam while viruttams do not. The songs are sung by the main actor on stage who is referred to as munnani and they are repeated by the chorus which is known as pinnani. The munnani accompanied by the harmonium handles the first line of a stanza and the pinnani along with the mukhavinai repeat the line. Viruttams are important to bring out the emotional potential of certain scenes like Ponnuruvi waking up from her sleep, narrating to her women friends about a mysterious voice she hears. S Vijayan on the harmonium, P Sasikumar on the mukhavinai and A Selvarasu on the mridangam elevated the performance with their musical contributions. 

Among the many scenes and characters that delight the audience, the role of the Kattiyakaaran seems crucial. One comic scene where he interacts with the thozhis of Ponnuruvi has a rustic, earthly tone to it – these scenes are savoured with great relish by rural audiences. The sequence involving the maidens portrayed by R Mahalakshmi, S Srimathy, A Bharathi & A Sathiya, all alumni of the Kattaikkuttu Gurukulam, had witty dialogues & satire. They also pacified a terrified Ponnuruvi who dreamt of her husband’s death on the battlefield as a premonition. Scenes portraying the final battle between Krishna & Arjuna (B Saravanan & P Moorthy) and Saliya (S Gobinath) and Karna were highly energetic and charged with brisk foot movements and dynamic, bold dialogues. The play ends when Krishna demands and takes away the ‘dharmam’ or the result of all of Karna’s charitable acts, paving the way for Karna to attain moksham or liberation on the battlefield. 

An art form like Kattaikoothu is demanding to learn and perform. The tradition is sustained only due to the interest and financial support of rural communities in North Tamil Nadu. The form needs to be appreciated by a wider audience so that its preservation and dissemination are accorded due importance by the public and other stakeholders. The Kattaikkuttu Sangam organizes numerous performances across the year, mainly at their premises in Kanchipuram, which has been opened up for visitors to stay and enjoy watching shows. 

(The article was originally published in The Hindu on Jan 26, 2024)