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The Purulia Chhau is never danced as a solo. War and valour are the themes while love seldom is. |
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Chavittunatakam originated
around sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when foreign Christian missionaries
tried to adapt Christian religious themes to the local conditions and develop
a presentable theatrical form, which could be understood by the Kerala
audience.
(P J Cherian, Essays on the Cultural Formation of Kerala). |
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The central figure of
Nartananirnaya is the nartaka or male dancer, hence the title. The nartaki
or female dancer is mentioned only in passing. The dance chapter
is also titled Nartaka Prakaranam. In other dance treatises, the danseuse
is accorded greater importance.
('Nartananirnaya of Pandarika Vitthala' by Priyasri V Rao, Nartanam, Oct-Dec 2002). |
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