Historic Bhagavata Mela dance drama held traditionally in Thanjavur district
A common thread of all these dramas in these areas dates back to around 350-400 years and is performed by the villagers themselves.
Artistes in action during the Bhagavata Mela in Thanjavur
TIRUCHY: Commemorating Lakshmi Ramasimha Jayanthi, the 400-year-old dance drama was performed traditionally. All characters in the drama, including women, were performed by men amidst traditional oil and wick lamps at Melattur and Saliyamangalam in Thanjavur district on Tuesday.
According to the organisers, Hiranya Natakams (Iraniyan Drama) or ‘Prahalada Charitram’ which portrays the avatar of Narasimha who slays the demon king ‘Hiranya Kasibu’ used to be performed in a cluster of villages near Thanjavur including
Archuttipattu, Mela Tirupuvanam, Vadakkumnathan, arthevankudikadu, Sarukkai, Ammaiyappan, Tirupuvanam, Ayyampettai, Kumbakonam-Thuvarankurichi, Saliyamangalam (Telugu), Tepperumanallur (Telugu) and Melattur (Telugu).
Though Hiranya Natakam has been the main dance drama of the community theatre tradition of this area many other dance dramas including Usha Parinayam, Rukmini Kalyanam, Harichandra were also performed.
A common thread of all these dramas in these areas dates back to around 350-400 years and is performed by the villagers themselves.
Muthukrishnan, an M Phil graduate of the village trained the more than 40 artistes for over a month.
In Melattur the dance dramas flourished under the patronage of Nayaks and Marathas who ruled Thanjavur. The present-day Bhagavata Melams of Melattur traces its lineage to Melattur Venkatrama Sastri (1743-1809) who composed 12 dance dramas.
As with all the dance dramas of this area in Melattur also it was an all-male affair.
Even the female characters like ‘Leelavati’, were enacted by the male artistes.
The dance drama was performed under the traditional oil and wick lamps instead of electrical lights. Indeed, the ambiance transported the audience back to the earlier age when there were no electrical lights.
The Bhagavata Mela Dance Drama Trust along with Bhavatha Mela Natya Vidya Sangam organised the event at the Sri Nalli Auditorium in Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple at Melattur.
The dance drama that commenced at around 10 pm on Tuesday went on till early hours on Wednesday. The Bhagavata Mela event will culminate with a Rukmani Kalyanam dance drama that will be enacted on May 24 given Anjaneya Urchavam.