Sadanam Divakara Marar was an Indian percussionist, known for his scholarship on sopana sangeetham, ''marappani'', ''parisha vadhyam'' and ''

thimila Timila, thimila or paani, (Malayalam:തിമില) is an hour-glass shaped percussion instrument used in Kerala, South India. It is made of polished ''jackwood'', and the drumheads made of calfskin (preferably taken from 1- to 2-year-old ...

paani'' and his mastery over various temple and ritual percussion instruments of traditional Kerala music.

Biography

Divakara Marar was born on 29 April 1937, to Venkittaramanan Embranthiri and Parukutti Marasyar Amma at Pazhoor, a small hamlet near the town of

Piravom Piravom is a municipality in Ernakulam district and a suburb of Kochi in the Indian state of Kerala. It is located with in 31 km southeast of Kochi city center, at the boundary of the Ernakulam and Kottayam districts. Piravom is famous for ...

Ernakulam district Ernakulam, ; ISO: ''Eṟaṇākuḷaṁ'', in Malayalam: എറണാകുളം), is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala, that takes its name from the eponymous city division in Kochi. It is situated in the central part ...

, in the south Indian state of Kerala. Marar started learning music at the age of nine, under the tutelage of his uncles, Narayana Marar and Kunjikrishna Marar. Later, aged 18, he enrolled at

Unnayi Warrier Smaraka Kalanilayam Unnayi Warrier Smaraka Kalanilayam is a performing arts training institution in Irinjalakuda in Thrissur District of Kerala. The centre is affiliated with the Government of Kerala. History The institution was established in 1955 in memory of ...

, Irinjalakuda, a known

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 ...

institution and mastered

chenda The Chenda ( ml, ചെണ്ട, ) is a cylindrical percussion instrument originating in the state of Kerala and widely used in Tulu Nadu of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in India. In Tulu Nadu (Coastal Karnataka), it is known as ''chende ...

, under the guidance of Alankarathu Appu Marar. He, then, submitted himself to advanced training on chenda under the renowned chenda exponent, Chandra Mannadiar. This was followed by his training stint on

thayambaka Thayambaka or tayambaka is a type of solo chenda performance that developed in the south Indian state of Kerala, in which the main player at the centre improvises rhythmically on the beats of half-a-dozen or a few more chenda and ilathalam pla ...

at '' Peroor Gandhi Seva Sadanam'', which added the prefix of ''Sadanam'' to his name. He was married to Omana and the couple had two daughters, Radhika and Rethika, and a son, Rajesh. Divakara Marar died on 29 July 2014, at his residence in Tripunithura, due to age related illnesses.

Career

Divakara Marar began his career as a teacher at

RLV College of Music and Fine Arts Radha Lakshmi Vilasam "RLV" College of Music and Fine Arts is an academic institution situated in Thripunithura, Kochi in the state of Kerala, India. It is affiliated to the Mahatma Gandhi University and offers graduate and postgraduate courses ...

, Tripunithura, where he taught kathakali chenda. He also taught many disciples through ''Padana kalaris'' (short term teaching camps), too. He retired as the Principal of ''Vaikkom Kshethra Kalapeetom'' run by

Travancore Devaswom Board Travancore Devaswom Board is statutory and autonomous body managing around 1200 temples in southern part of India. The regular operations of one of the major temples of India, Sabarimala temple, works under its guidance. History and Administra ...

. He remained a visiting professor at the institute and was active teaching at '' Ernakulam Siva Kshethra Vadhya Kalalayam'' and ''Kanayannoor Vadhya Kalalayam'' till his death. Marar has performed at many temples and festivals in Kerala throughout his career. He was also actively associated with the Viswa Kala Kendra of

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 ...

, See India Foundation and International Kathakali Kendra (International Centre for Kathakali), New Delhi, throughout his career.

Awards and recognitions

Divakara Marar has received many awards and recognitions, a few of which are: * Kendra Sangeet Natak Akademi * Fellowship – Department of Culture, Government of India * Vadya Kala Visaradh –

* ''Veera Srungala'' (Gold Armband) of

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 ...

External links

* Tribute – Part One * Tribute – Part Two * Temple performance on YouTube * Tribute page of a student * News report * Blog report

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marar, Divakara 1937 births 2014 deaths Indian music educators Indian percussionists Malayali people People from Ernakulam district 20th-century Indian musicians

Biography

Career

Awards and recognitions

See also

External links

References