Kathakali and Kerela seem inseparable. Mention Kerela and immediately the image of a Kathakali dancer in his entire splendor, springs to mind.

The word Kathakali literally means "Story-Play". Kathakali has a long tradition. It dates back to the 17th century. It was given its present form by Mahakavi Vallathol Narayan Menon, who was the founder of the Kerala Kala Mandalam. Its roots though go back almost 1500 years. It draws from almost every type of formalized dance, drama and martial arts.

A number of its elements and choreography have been influenced by the 9th century art of Kuttiyattam, the only surviving form of Sanskrit theatre. Despite the inroads of modern theatre, cinema and television, Kathakali, continues to attract enthusiastic audiences. This dance-drama has also been able to retain much of its original stylized form, rich in its theatrical traditions and unique values, based on the ancient Natyashastra.

The themes are religious in nature and typically deal with the Mahabarat, the Ramayana and the ancient scriptures known as the Puranas. The little language that is used in the performance, is generally Sanskritised Malayalam. Practiced traditionally by men, it is an exacting discipline. Men dressed in women's costume portray female characters. However, in recent years, women have started to become Kathakali dancers.

Kathakali is a unique combination of the insights of an actor, dancer, singer, drummer, sculptor, designer and dreamer. It is distinguished by the richness of its color, a complex language of eye-movements and its hand-gestures, the mudras. It is also the most dynamic dance form unrivalled for its majesty and impact enhanced by glittering costumes of special design. The costume is the most distinctive characteristic of Kathakali. There are several kinds of costume. There are: Sathwika (the hero), Kathi (the villain), Minukku (females), and Thatti. These basic divisions are further subdivided in a way, which is very well known to Malayali (Keralite) audiences. Each character is instantly recognizable by their characteristic makeup and costume. The dancers wear large head dresses, and the contours of the face are extended with molded lime. The extraordinary costumes and make-up serve to raise the participants above the level of mere mortals.One of the most interesting aspects of Kathakali is its elaborate make-up code, which could take four to five hours. Characters are categorized according to their nature. This determines the colors used in the make-up.

The faces of noble male characters, such as virtuous kings, the divine hero Rama, etc., are predominantly green. Characters of high birth who have an evil streak, such as the demon king Ravana, are allotted a similar green make-up, slashed with red marks on the cheeks. Extremely angry or excessively evil characters wear predominantly red make-up and a flowing red beard. Forest dwellers such as hunters are represented with a predominantly black make-up base. Women and ascetics have lustrous, yellowish faces. The materials that comprise the makeup is all locally available. The white is made from rice flour; the red is made from Vermilion (a red earth such as cinnabar). The black is made from soot.

Kathakali dancers, perform through mime, hand-gesture and eye movement. The story is interpreted by highly symbolic mudras - meaningful gestures of the land - conveying a whole world of emotions. In this sign language, hands and figures positioned differently stand for specific words, tenses verbs and phrases. There are 24 basic gestures with many permutations and combinations, which together, convey ideas, feelings, objects and actions. Through his facial expressions and eye-movements a dancer conveys emotions like love, passion, laughter, ridicule, sorrow, pity, horror, disgust, tranquility, heroism and wonder. To attain the high degree of flexibility and muscle control required for this art, a Kathakali dancer undergoes a strenuous course of training, and special periods of body massage. Such rigorous training is imparted at Kathakali schools from the age of about twelve. The most notable among them is the Kerala Kalamandalam at Cheruthuruthy established in 1930 by the celebrated Kerala, poet Vallathol Narayana Menon and his friend Mukunda Raja.

The music of Kathakali has some similarity to the larger body of South Indian classical music (Carnatic); however the instrumentation is decidedly different. The orchestra of a Kathakali performance includes two drums known as the chenda and the maddalam, along with cymbals and another percussion instrument, the ela taalam. Normally, two singers provide the vocal accompaniment. The style of singing particular to Kathakali is called Sopaanam. The orchestra of a Kathakali troupe is unique and provides not only the background to the dancing, but also serves as a highly expressive special effects team. In the traditional village ambiance, the percussionists also provide publicity for the event by playing outside the venue for some hours before the start of the show.A traditional Kathakali performance begins in the evening and continues throughout the night, culminating at the auspicious hour of dawn, when Good finally conquers Evil. Today, however, it has been modified for the proscenium stage, and urban audiences can participate in this ritualistic theatre experience in the comfort of a plush auditorium, within the span of a couple of hours.

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