Pattikkamthodi Ravunni Menon (1880-1948) was a pivotal figure in the history of

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 ...

, having played a crucial role in remoulding and refining its grammar in the famed Kalluvazhi tradition of the classical dance-drama from

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

in south

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He was trained in the art form at a culture-patronising

Namboodiri The Nambudiri (), also transliterated as Nampoothiri, Nambūdiri, Namboodiri, Nampoothiri, and Nampūtiri, are a Malayali Brahmin caste, native to what is now the state of Kerala, India, where they constituted part of the traditional feudal e ...

mansion in

Vellinezhi Vellinezhi is a small but culturally crucial village located in Palakkad district of Kerala in southern India. Geography The sylvan, rugged land is located on the banks of the Kunti, a slender rivulet that forms tributary to the broad, west-f ...

near his home.

Early life

Young Ravunni, a native of Chethallur in present-day Palakkad district, was groomed in Kathakali by the Kalluvazhi Kuyilthodi Ittirarissa Menon at Olappamanna Mana with Kariyattil Koppan Nair and Malankattil Sankunni Nair as his co-students. Ittiraricha Menon's demise led to Ravunni Menon becoming the chief tutor at Olappamanna, since when he started handling lead roles (Aadyavasana vesham) on Kathakali stages. He was initially associated with the

Manjeri Manjeri () is a major town and municipality in Malappuram district, Kerala, India. It is the fourth-most populous municipality in state. It is situated southeast to Karipur International Airport and northeast to Malappuram, the district hea ...

Kaliyogam (Kathakali institution-cum-troupe). Menon, who was till then said to be focused solely on the body movement aspect of Kathakali, acquired a major asset in his profession when he imbibed the essence of emotive acting ( rasabhinaya) under Kunjunni Thampuran. It gave birth to a new chapter in the Kalluvazhi style, noted for its economy of space while moving the body, well-defined hand gestures, their clinical synchronisation with the musical beats and percussion accompaniment. This quantum improvement later helped him earn quite a few epoch-defining Kathakali disciples when he joined

Kerala Kalamandalam Kerala Kalamandalam, deemed to be University of Art and Culture by the Government of India, is a major center for learning Indian performing arts, especially those that developed in the Southern states of India, with the special emphasis on K ...

in 1933 and worked there for a decade. Prominent among the pupils are Thekkinkattil Ramunni Nair, Vazhenkada Kunchu Nair,

Kalamandalam Krishnan Nair Kalamandalam Krishnan Nair (27 March 1914 – 15 August 1990) was a Kathakali dancer from Kerala in India. Life He learned and exhibited various styles of Kathakali. A Padma Shri and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awardee, A native of Cheruthazham ...

, Keezhpadam Kumaran Nair,

Kalamandalam Ramankutty Nair Kalamandalam Ramankutty Nair (25 May 1925 – 11 March 2013) was a performer of Kathakali, who practiced the Kerala art form for more than seven decades. Biography His guru was Pattikkamthodi Ravunni Menon, his only teacher in his entire ...

and

Kalamandalam Padmanabhan Nair Kalamandalam Padmanabhan Nair (1928–2007) was an eminent Kathakali exponent, equally known for his capacities as a tutor, theoretician and author of a few authentic texts on the classical dance-drama from Kerala in south India. A son of the ...

(who was also his son). He was also teacher to Mampuzha Madhava Panikkar, Kavungal Sankarankutty Panikkar, Kariyattil Kumaran, Kunhunni Nair,

Guru Gopinath Perumanoor Gopinathan Pillai, more popularly known as Guru Gopinath (24 June 1908 – 9 October 1987) was a well known actor-cum-dancer. He is well regarded as the greatest preserver of the dance tradition. He is a recipient of the Sangeet Natak ...

, Madhavan,

Guru Kelu Nair Guru Kelu Nair was a renowned Kathakali dance artist and teacher. He trained in Kathakali from Kerala Kalamandalam under gurus like Pattikkantodi Ravunni Menon and Guru Kunchu Kurup. He pursued higher studies in Rasa-abhinaya from Rasa-abhinaya ...

, Sivaraman, Sivasankaran, Krishnan, Kattissery Raman, Balakrishnan and Krishnankutty Varrier.

On stage

On the stage, Menon was celebrated for his lead roles in the four Kottayam Thampuran plays: Kalakeyavadham,

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 and Kalyanasougandhikam. His masterpieces also included Dakshan,

Nala Nala (Sanskrit: नल) is a character in the ''Vana Parva'' book of the ''Mahabharata''. He was the king of Nishadha Kingdom and the son of Veerasena. Nala was known for his skill with horses and for his culinary expertise. He married prince ...

n in Nalacharitan Randaam Divasam,

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 ...

n in Subhadraharanam, Cheriya Narkasuran and

Ravan Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations. In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and Rakshasa, rakshasi Kaik ...

an in Balivijayam, Ravanolbhavam, Kartaveerarjunavijayam and Balivadham besides minukku roles like Bhrahmanan in Santanagopalam and Rukminiswayamvaram, and Durvassavu in Ambareeshacharitam. He was known to be particular for using his own set of costume paraphernalia (kalikkoppu) all the time. Menon's notes on the aesthetics of Kathakali have been published in a book, which has also formed material for art research scholars.

References

He Redefined Kathakali

External links

*Websit
Sri Kalamandalam Padmanabhan Nair Smaraka Trust
{{DEFAULTSORT:Menon, Pattikkamthodi Ravunni Kathakali exponents Male actors from Kerala 1880 births 1949 deaths People from Palakkad district Dancers from Kerala 20th-century Indian dancers 19th-century Indian dancers Indian male dancers Dancers in British India