Culture of Kerala

Kerala’s culture is mainly Dravidian in origin, deriving from a greater Tamil culture region known as Thamizhagom. Later, Kerala’s culture was elaborated upon by centuries of contact with overseas lands.[50] Native performing arts include koodiyattom, kathakali (from katha (”story”) and kali (”performance”)) and its offshoot Kerala natanam, koothu (akin to stand-up comedy), mohiniaattam (”dance of the enchantress”), thullal, padayani, and theyyam. Other arts are more religion- and tribal-themed. These include oppana, popular among Keralite Muslims.

Native to Malabar, oppana combines dance, rhythmic hand clapping, and ishal vocalizations. However, many of these artforms largely play to tourists or at youth festivals, and are not as popular among most ordinary Keralites. These people look to more contemporary art and performance styles, including those employing mimicry and parody. Additionally, Malayalam cinema has provided Keralites an alternative to both Bollywood and Hollywood.

Malayalam literature is ancient in origin, and includes such figures as the 14th century Niranam poets (Madhava Panikkar, Sankara Panikkar and Rama Panikkar), whose works mark the dawn of both modern Malayalam language and indigenous Keralite poetry. The “triumvirate of poets” (Kavithrayam: Kumaran Asan, Vallathol Narayana Menon, and Ulloor S. Parameswara Iyer) are recognized for moving Keralite poetry away from archaic sophistry and metaphysics and towards a more lyrical mode. Later, such contemporary writers as Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy (whose 1996 semi-autobiographical bestseller The God of Small Things is set in the Kottayam town of Ayemenem) have garnered international recognition.

Kerala’s music also has ancient roots. South India’s carnatic tradition dominates Keralite classical music; this was the result of Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma’s popularization of the genre in the 19th century.[51][52] Additionally, raga-based renditions known as sopanam accompany kathakali performances. Melam (including the paandi and panchari variants), is a more percussive style of music; it is performed at temple-centered festivals using the chenda.

Up to 150 musicians may comprise Melam ensembles, and performances may last up to four hours. Panchavadyam is a different form of percussion ensemble where up to one hundred artists use five types of percussion instruments. Kerala also has various styles of folk and tribal music. The popular music of Kerala - as in the rest of India - is dominated by the filmi music of Indian cinema.

Kerala has its own Malayalam calendar - this used for timing agricultural and religious activities. Kerala’s cuisine - pachakam - is typically served as a sadhya on green banana leaves; such spicy dishes as idli, payasam, pulisherry, puttucuddla, and puzhukku, rasam, and sambar are typical. Keralites - both men and women alike - traditionally don flowing and unstitched garments.

These include the mundu, a loose piece of cloth wrapped around men’s waists. Women typically wear the sari, a long and elaborately wrapped banner of cloth, wearable in various styles. Several martial arts are also native in origin. Kalarippayattu (kalari (”place”, “threshing floor”, or “battlefield”) and payattu (”exercise” or “practice”)) is attributed by oral tradition to Parasurama and is among the world’s oldest martial arts. Other popular ritual arts include theyyam and poorakkali. In modern times, attention to these activities has been largely supplanted by more modern sports such as cricket, kabaddi, soccer, badminton, and others. These are viewed by Keralites at dozens of stadiums across the state, including Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi and Chandrashekaran Nair Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram. Inroads have also been made by television (especially “mega serials” and cartoons) and the Internet. Yet Keralites also have high rates of newspaper subscription - 50%- spend some seven hours per week reading novels and other books,[53] host a thriving “people’s science” movement, and participate in such activities as writer’s cooperatives.

Native traditions of classical performing arts include koodiyattom, a form of Sanskrit drama or theatre and a UNESCO-designated Human Heritage Art. Kathakali (from katha (”story”) and kali (”performance”)) is a 500-year-old form of dance-drama that interprets ancient epics; a popularized offshoot of kathakali is Kerala natanam (developed in the 20th century by dancer Guru Gopinath). Meanwhile, koothu is a more light-hearted performance mode, akin to modern stand-up comedy; an ancient art originally confined to temple sanctuaries, it was later popularized by Mani Madhava Chakyar.

Other Keralite performing arts include mohiniyaattam (”dance of the enchantress”), which is a type of graceful choreographed dance performed by women and accompanied by musical vocalizations. Thullal, padayani, and theyyam are other important Keralite arts. Kerala also has several tribal and folk art forms; also important are various performance genres that are Islam- or Christianity-themed. These include oppana, which is widely popular among Keralite Muslims and is native to Malabar. Oppana incorporates group dance accompanied by the beat of rhythmic hand clapping and ishal vocalizations.

However, many of these native art forms largely play to tourists or at youth festivals, and are not as popular among ordinary Keralites. Thus, more contemporary forms - including those heavily based on the use of often risque and politically incorrect mimicry and parody - have gained considerable mass appeal in recent years. Indeed, contemporary artists often use such modes to mock socioeconomic elites. In recent decades, Malayalam cinema, yet another mode of widely popular artistic expression, have provided a distinct and indigenous Keralite alternative to both Bollywood and Hollywood.

Music

The ragas and talas of lyrical and devotional carnatic music - another native product of South India - dominates Keralite classical musical genres. Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma, a 19th-century king of Travancore and patron and composer of music, was instrumental in popularising carnatic music in early Kerala.

Additionally, Kerala has its own native music system, sopanam, which is a lugubrious and step-by-step rendition of raga-based songs. It is sopanam, for example, that provides the background music used in kathakali. The wider traditional music of Kerala also includes melam (including the paandi and panchari variants), as style of percussive music performed at temple-centered festivals using an instrument known as the chenda.

Up to 150 musicians may comprise the ensembles staging a given performance; each performance, in turn, may last up to four hours. Panchavadyam is a differing type of percussion ensemble consisting of five types of percussion instruments; these can be utilised by up to one hundred artists in certain major festivals. In addition to these, percussive music is also associated with various uniquely Keralite folk arts forms. Lastly, the popular music of Kerala - as in the rest of India - is dominated by the filmi music of Indian cinema.

Martial arts and sports

Kerala also has its own indigenous form of martial art - Kalarippayattu, derived from the words kalari (”place”, “threshing floor”, or “battlefield”) and payattu (”exercise” or “practice”). Influenced by both Kerala’s Brahminical past and Ayurvedic medicine, kalaripayattu is attributed by oral tradition to Parasurama.

After some two centuries of suppression by British colonial authorities, it is now experiencing strong comeback among Keralites while also steadily gaining worldwide attention. Other popular ritual arts include theyyam and poorakkali - these originate from northern Malabar, which is the northernmost part of Kerala. Nevertheless, these have in modern times been largely supplanted by more popular sports such as cricket, kabaddi, soccer, badminton, and others.

Literature

Malayalam literature is ancient in origin, and includes such figures as the 14th century Niranam poets (Madhava Panikkar, Sankara Panikkar and Rama Panikkar), whose works mark the dawn of both modern Malayalam language and indigenous Keralite poetry.

The Triumvirate of poets (Kavithrayam: Kumaran Asan,Vallathol Narayana Menon and Ulloor S. Parameswara Iyer) are recognized for moving Keralite poetry away from archaic sophistry and metaphysics and towards a more lyrical mode. Later, such contemporary writers as Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy (whose 1996 semi-autobiographical bestseller The God of Small Things is set in the Kottayam town of Ayemenem) have garnered international recognition.

Calendar

Kerala also has an indigenous ancient solar calendar - the Malayalam calendar - which is used in various communities primarily for timing agricultural and religious activities.