Terukkuttu

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Dharumar @Therukkuthu

Terukkuttu is a Tamil street theatre form practised in Tamil Nadu state of India and Tamil-speaking regions of Sri Lanka. [1] Terukuttu is a form of entertainment, a ritual, and a medium of social instruction. [2] The terukkuttu plays various themes. One theme is from the Tamil language versions of the Hindu epic Mahabharata , focusing on the character Draupadi. [3] The terms Terukkuttu and Kattaikkuttu are often used interchangeably in the modern times; however, historically the two terms appear to have distinguished, at least in certain villages, between two different kinds of performance: while Terukkuttu referred to mobile performances in a procession, Kattaikkuttu denotes overnight, narrative performances at a fixed performance space. [4]

Contents

History

The term terukkuttu is derived from the Tamil words Teru ("street") and Kuttu ("theatre"). [5] The word "Kattaikkuttu" is derived from the name of special ornaments known as kattai (or kattai camankal).

The writer M. Shanmugam Pillai has compared terukkuttu to the Tamil epic Silappatikaram, calling Silappatikaram a proto-form of terukkuttu. The Silappatikaram story is still performed by the terukkuttu actors, the terukkuttu drama commences and ends in a manner similar to the commencement and end of each canto in the epic, and the actors sing and converse in verse interspersed with prose, the prose coming after the verse as its explanation. Both Silappatikaram and terukkuttu are centered around the chastity and moral power of women as cherished values. [2]

However, historically, the terukkuttu is not more than two to three centuries old. [2] The researcher Richard A. Frasca wrote that certain of his performer-informants believed that the terukkuttu originally emanated from the Gingee area. [6] It spread from South India to Sri Lanka, and became popular in Jaffna and Batticaloa. The early Sinhala Nadagam (open-air drama) closely followed Terukuttu plays in presentation and in style. [7] The Jesuit priests in Jaffna also presented Catholic plays from the Portuguese tradition in Terukuttu style. [8]

Many scholars note the similarity between terukkuttu and other neighbouring regional drama forms, such as Yakshagana and Kathakali. [9] However, unlike Kathakali, terukkuttu is less codified, and is generally considered a folk art rather than a classical art form. [10] In recent times, some terukkuttu groups have also started operating as professional troupes. [11]

Theme

Many terukuttu performances center around the enactment of Mahabharata story, with emphasis on the role of Draupadi. Terukkuttu plays on Ramayana are performed at Mariyamman festivals, and some of the plays also involve local deities. [9]

The terukkuttu plays form part of ritual celebrations including the twenty-one day temple festival starting in Chittirai, the first month of the Tamil calendar. [2] The terukkuttu performances begin in the middle of the festival, and continue till the morning of the penultimate day.

The core themes of the terukuttu plays include:

Style

The terukkuttu plays are a combination of song, music, dance and drama along with "clever stage tricks". [13] The actors wear colorful costumes. The musical instruments used by the terukkuttu musicians include harmonium, drums, a mukhavinai (an instrument similar to oboe), and cymbals.

An acting arena is marked at courtyard of a temple, open ground or any other convenient site and people squat on the three sides of the rectangular arena. The chorus of singers and the musicians occupy the place on the rear side of the stage, and the actors use the front side. Two persons holding a curtain enter the arena, with an actor in the guise of Ganesha, the elephant-headed Hindu god. The chorus begins an invocation to Ganesha, and prayers are also offered to many other deities. The actor playing Ganesha now moves out of the arena, and Kattiyakkaran (jester and sutradhara i.e. the narrator) appears on the stage. Kattiyakkaran relates the story of the play to be performed and introduces the characters. Sometimes, the characters introduce themselves. Kattiyakkaran links the scenes, provides context to the happenings on the stage and also jests in between the scenes. The actors sing themselves, supported by the chorus.

The text of a terukkuttu play is a series of songs related by a theme. Each song is rendered in a raga, structured in form of a classical song. It is preceded by viruttam, chanting of four-line verses in the same raga as the song. [14] After the song, an actor delivers a speech based on it.

The French theater group, Théâtre du Soleil, used elements of Terukuttu, including the two stories The Vow of Draupadi, and The defeat of Karna in their play, A Room in India. [13]

Related Research Articles

<i>Mahabharata</i> Major Hindu epic

The Mahābhārata is one of the two major Smriti texts and Sanskrit epics of ancient India revered in Hinduism, the other being the Rāmāyaṇa. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kurukshetra War, a war of succession between two groups of princely cousins, the Kauravas and the Pāṇḍavas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Draupadi</span> Character in the Hindu epic Mahabharata

Draupadi, also referred to as Krishnā, Panchali, and Yajnaseni, is the main female protagonist of the Hindu epic Mahabharata, and the wife of the five Pandava brothers—Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva. She is noted for her beauty, courage, and polyandrous marriage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duryodhana</span> Eldest Kaurava in the epic Mahabharata

Duryodhana, also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He was the eldest of the Kauravas, the hundred sons of the king Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karna</span> Warrior in the epic Mahabharata

Karna, also known as Vasusena, Anga-raja, and Radheya, is one of the main protagonists of the Hindu epic Mahābhārata. He is the son of the sun god Surya and princess Kunti, and thus a demigod of royal birth. Kunti was granted the boon to bear a child with desired divine qualities from the gods and without much knowledge, Kunti invoked the sun god to confirm it if it was true indeed. Karna was secretly born to an unmarried Kunti in her teenage years, and fearing outrage and backlash from society over her premarital pregnancy, Kunti had no choice but to abandon the newly born Karna adrift in a basket on the Ganges, in the hope that he finds foster parents. The basket is discovered, and Karna is adopted and raised by foster Sūta parents named Radha and Adhiratha Nandana of the charioteer and poet profession working for king Dhritarashtra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yudhishthira</span> Eldest Pandava in the epic Mahabharata

Yudhishthira also known as Dharmaraja, was the king of Indraprastha and later the Kuru Kingdom in ancient Indian History and the eldest among the five Pandava brothers, he is also one of the central figures of the ancient Hindu epic Mahabharata.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shakuni</span> Antagonist in the Mahabharata

Shakuni is one of the antagonists of the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He was the prince of the kingdom of Gandhara when introduced, later becoming its king after the death of his father, Subala. He was the brother of Gandhari and the maternal uncle of the Kauravas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohini</span> Hindu goddess of enchantment, the only female avatar of Vishnu

Mohini is the Hindu goddess of enchantment. She is the only female avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. She is portrayed as a femme fatale, an enchantress, who maddens lovers and demons, sometimes leading them to their doom. Mohini is introduced into Hinduism in the narrative epic of the Mahabharata. Here, she appears as a form of Vishnu following the Churning of the Ocean, a mesmerising beauty who distributes the amrita to the weakened devas (gods) and depriving it to the dominant asuras (demons), allowing the former to defeat the latter with their newfound immortality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koothu</span> Tamil performing folk art

Koothu or Therukoothu (jwalith), is an ancient art, where artists play songs with dance and music in storytelling the epics, performed in Tamil; it is a folk art originated from the early Tamil country. More precisely Koothu refers to either Terukuttu (Tamil:தெருக்கூத்து) or Kattaikkuttu. The terms Terukkuttu and Kattaikkuttu are often used interchangeably in modern times; however, historically, the two terms appear to have distinguished, at least in certain villages, between two different kinds of performance: while Terukkuttu referred to mobile performances in a procession, Kattaikkuttu denotes overnight, narrative performances at a fixed performance space. Koothu as a form of entertainment reached its peak hundreds of years ago in Tamil Nadu, as mentioned in the Sangam texts about the development of iyal (literature), isai (music) and natagam (drama). Going beyond just a means of entertainment, koothu educates the rural people about religion and their history.

Koovagam is a village in the Ulundurpettai taluk in Kallakurichi district, Tamil Nadu. It is famous for its annual festival of transgender individuals, which takes fifteen days in the Tamil month of Chitrai (April/May).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iravan</span> Minor character from the Hindu epic Mahabharata

Iravan also known as Iravat and Iravant, is a minor character from the Hindu epic Mahabharata. The son of Pandava prince Arjuna and the Naga princess Ulupi, Iravan is the central deity of the cult of Kuttantavar (Kuttandavar) which is also the name commonly given to him in that tradition—and plays a major role in the sect of Draupadi. Both these sects are of Tamil origin, from a region of the country where he is worshipped as a village deity and is known as Aravan. He is also a patron god of well-known transgender communities called Alis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kunti</span> Character from Indian Hindu epic, Mahabharata

Kunti, born Pritha, is a prominent figure in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. Recognized for her pivotal role as the mother of Karna and the Pandavas, the central protagonists of the narrative, she is depicted as possessing notable beauty, intelligence, and shrewdness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vanniyar</span> Hindu agrarian caste in Tamil Nadu, India

The Vanniyar, also spelled Vanniya, formerly known as the Palli, are a Dravidian community or jāti found in the northern part of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

<i>Mahabharat</i> (1988 TV series) 1988 TV series by B. R. Chopra based on Mahabharata

Mahabharat is an Indian Hindi-language epic television series based on the ancient Sanskrit epic Mahabharata. The original airing consisted of a total of 94 episodes and were broadcast from 2 October 1988 to 24 June 1990 on Doordarshan. It was produced by B. R. Chopra and directed by his son, Ravi Chopra. The music was composed by Raj Kamal. The script was written by Pandit Narendra Sharma and the Hindi/Urdu poet Rahi Masoom Raza, based on the epic by Vyasa. Costumes for the series were provided by Maganlal Dresswala. The serial claims to have used the Critical Edition of Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute as its basic source with Vishnu Sitaram Sukthankar and Shripad Krishna Belwalkar as its primary editor.

<i>The Mahabharata</i> (1989 film) 1989 American film

The Mahabharata is a 1989 film version of the Hindu epic Mahabharata directed by Peter Brook. Brook's original 1985 stage play was 9 hours long, and toured around the world for four years. In 1989, it was reduced to under 6 hours for television. Later it was also reduced to about 3 hours for theatrical and DVD release. The screenplay was the result of eight years' work by Peter Brook, Jean-Claude Carrière and Marie-Hélène Estienne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kattaikkuttu</span> Folk theatre of Tamil Nadu, India

Kattaikkuttu is a rural theatre form practised in the State of Tamil Nadu in South India. The performers – by tradition only men – sing, act and dance and the musicians accompany them on the harmonium, the mridangam and the mukavinai. The terms Terukkuttu and Kattaikkuttu are often used interchangeably. However, historically the two terms appear to have distinguished, at least in certain villages, between two different kinds of performance: while Terukkuttu referred to mobile performances by two actors participating in a procession for the village deity Mariamman, Kattaikkuttu denotes overnight, narrative performances at a fixed performance space acted by an ensemble of about fifteen actors and musicians.

<i>Karnan</i> (1964 film) 1964 film by B. R. Panthulu

Karnan is a 1964 Indian Tamil-language Hindu mythological film produced and directed by B. R. Panthulu. It stars Sivaji Ganesan leading an ensemble cast consisting of N. T. Rama Rao, S. A. Ashokan, R. Muthuraman, Savitri, Devika and M. V. Rajamma. The film is based on the story of Karna, a character from the Hindu epic Mahabharata.

The Mahabharata is a French play, based on the Sanskrit epic Mahābhārata, by Jean-Claude Carrière, which was first staged in a quarry just outside Avignon in a production by the English director Peter Brook. The play, which is nine hours long in performance, toured the world for four years. For two years the show was performed both in French and in English. The play is divided into three parts: The Game of Dice, The Exile in the Forest and The War. In 1989, it was adapted for television as a six-hour mini series. Later, it was reduced to about three hours as a film for theatrical and DVD release. The screenplay was the result of eight years' work by Peter Brook, Jean-Claude Carrière, and Marie-Hélène Estienne.

<i>Venmurasu</i> 2014-2020 novel that is currently the longest novel ever written

Venmurasu is a Tamil novel by writer Jeyamohan. A modern renarration of the Indian classical epic Mahabharata, it is considered Jeyamohan's most ambitious work to date, with "a scope and scale that seeks to match the grandness of the epic itself." It is one of the longest novels ever published. Jeyamohan started writing the work in January 2014 and announced plans to write it every day over ten years. He completed Venmurasu in 2020, spanning 26 volumes and 26,000 pages.

Alfred John Hiltebeitel was Columbian Professor of Religion, History, and Human Sciences at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., US. His academic specialism was in ancient Sanskrit epics such as the Mahabharata and Ramayana, together with Indian religious tradition and folklore.

References

  1. ↑ Sarachchandra, Ediriweera R. (1966). The Folk Drama of Ceylon. Colombo: Department of Cultural Affairs, Ceylon. p. 116. OCLC   63859810.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Varadpande, Manohar Laxman (1990) [1987]. History of Indian Theatre. Abhinav Publications. pp. 39–44. ISBN   978-81-7017-278-9. OCLC   18270064.
  3. ↑ Srinivas, Smriti (2004) [2001]. Landscapes of Urban Memory. Orient Longman. p. 23. ISBN   81-250-2254-6. OCLC   46353272.
  4. ↑ Bruin, Hanne M de (1999). Kattaikkuttu: The flexibility of a south Indian theatre tradition. E. Forsten. pp. 85–99. ISBN   978-90-6980-103-2. OCLC   42312297.
  5. ↑ Barfoot, C.C. (1993). Theatre Intercontinental: Forms, Functions, Correspondences. Rodopi. p. 116. ISBN   90-5183-575-2. OCLC   29909259.
  6. ↑ Frasca, Richard Armando (1984). The Terukkūttu : ritual theater of Tamilnadu (Ph.D. thesis). University of California, Berkeley. p. 140. OCLC   13876271.
  7. ↑ W. T. A. Leslie Fernando (24 December 2003). "Daily Mirror". Archived from the original on 23 March 2004. Retrieved 21 November 2007.
  8. ↑ W. T. A. Leslie Fernando. "Did Sinhala drama originate in Christmas?" . Retrieved 21 November 2007.
  9. 1 2 Hiltebeitel, Alf (1988). The Cult of Draupadi: Mythologies: From Gingee to Kuruksetra. University Of Chicago Press. pp. 146–149. ISBN   978-0-226-34046-3. OCLC   18739841.
  10. ↑ Richmond, Farley P.; Darius L. Swann; Phillip B. Zarrilli (1993) [1990]. Indian Theatre: Traditions of Performance. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 309. ISBN   978-0-8248-1322-2. OCLC   20594132.
  11. ↑ "From Street Theater to Kattaikuttu". 4 November 1999. Retrieved 21 November 2007.
  12. ↑ Symbol of sacrifice: Online edition of The Hindu, 17 August 2001
  13. 1 2 Green, Jesse (6 December 2017). "Review: 'A Room in India' Overflows With Astonishing Visions". The New York Times.
  14. ↑ edited by Stanley Sadie. (1980). "Introduction to Indian Music: Folk Music". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians . Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-1-56159-174-9.{{cite book}}: |author= has generic name (help)

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