Sheethankan Thullal is a dance and poetic performance form in
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 ...
,
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 ...
. This one of the three major ''thullal'' forms prevailing in Kerala. Others are
Ottan Thullal
Ottan Thullal (or ''Ottamthullal'', Malayalam: ഓട്ടൻ തുള്ളൽ) is a recite-and-dance art-form of Kerala, India. It was introduced in the eighteenth century by Kunchan Nambiar, one of the Malayalam triumvirate poets, Prachina K ...
and
Parayan Thullal
Parayan Thullal is a dance and poetic performance form prevailed in the state of Kerala, India. This one of the three major thullal forms prevailing in Kerala. Others are Ottan Thullal and Sheethankan Thullal. Usually, it is conducted in the m ...
. This dance is performed in a very slow tempo. It gives importance to gestures than vocal actions.
Performance
Usually Sheethankan Thullal is performed in midnight. But it can also performed in day time without using any lamps on stage. Minimum three persons should be needed for the performance. One for staging the performance and others for playing musical instruments.
Costume
The performer will be dressed with special costume for thullal. They use yellow coloured powder in face and use dress made up of
Coconut
The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...
leaves. Usually ''Kakali'' is the
metre
The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...
used in this dance form.
Origin
Sheethankan thullal was discovered by famous
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 ...
poet
Kunchan Nambiar
Kunchan Nambiar was a prominent Malayalam poet of the 18th century (1705-1770). Apart from being a prolific poet, Nambiar is also famous as the originator of the dance art form of Thullal, most of his works were written for use in Thullal perfo ...
in
Ambalappuzha
Ambalappuzha is a small town in the Alappuzha district of Kerala state, India. It is located south of Alappuzha which is the district headquarters.
Ambalappuzha is divided into the two panchayats of Ambalapuzha North and Ambalapuzha South.
...
.
See also
*
Ottan Thullal
Ottan Thullal (or ''Ottamthullal'', Malayalam: ഓട്ടൻ തുള്ളൽ) is a recite-and-dance art-form of Kerala, India. It was introduced in the eighteenth century by Kunchan Nambiar, one of the Malayalam triumvirate poets, Prachina K ...
*
Parayan Thullal
Parayan Thullal is a dance and poetic performance form prevailed in the state of Kerala, India. This one of the three major thullal forms prevailing in Kerala. Others are Ottan Thullal and Sheethankan Thullal. Usually, it is conducted in the m ...
References
{{reflist
Dances of Kerala