Kalakeyavadham (The Slaying of Kalakeya) is a

Kathakali Kathakali ( ml, കഥകളി) is a major form of classical Indian dance. It is a "story play" genre of art, but one distinguished by the elaborately colourful make-up and costumes of the traditional male actor-dancers. It is native to the M ...

play ( Aattakatha) written by Kottayam Thampuran (also known as Kottayathu Thampuran) in

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

.Based on the

Mahabharatha The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruks ...

, the play describes the events surrounding the

Pandava The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, IAST: Pāṇḍava) refers to the five legendary brothers— Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva—who are the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. They are acknowledg ...

prince

Arjuna Arjuna (Sanskrit: अर्जुन, ), also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is a character in several ancient Hindu texts, and specifically one of the major characters of the Indian epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among Panda ...

's visit to his father

Indra Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes/ref> I ...

's abode, paradise. The role of Arjuna is considered a challenge for any Kathakali actor. The four plays of Kottayam Thampuran, namely,

Kirmeeravadham Kirmeeravadham (The Slaying of Kirmeera) is a Kathakali play( Aattakatha) written by Kottayam Thampuran (also known as Kottayathu Thampuran) in Malayalam. Based on the Mahabharatha, the story concerns itself with events in the course of the fore ...

Bakavadham {{More citations needed, date=March 2023 Bakavadham (The Slaying of Baka) is a Kathakali play( Aattakatha) written by Kottayam Thampuran (also known as Kottayathu Thampuran) in Malayalam.Based on the Mahabharatha, the play narrates the events surr ...

Kalyanasaugandhikam {{Use Indian English, date=December 2019 Kalyanasaugandhikam is a Kathakali play ( ''aattakatha'') attributed to Kottayathu Thampuran. Based on the Mahabharatha, the play narrates an episode from the life of the Pandava princes in exile. Bheema set ...

and Kalakeyavadham, are considered very important in the Kathakali repertoire and are a combination of conventional structure ('chitta') with intermittent possibilities for improvisation ('manodharma')."Touchstone of artistic expression" from ''The Hindu'', 2 February 2012
/ref>

References

{{reflist Kathakali Indian plays Malayalam-language literature