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  • Plate 1 Bhagvathi Kalam
  • Plate 2 Bhagvathi Kalam
  • Plate 3 Chattu Kalam
  • Plate - 4 Mudikettu Kalam
  • Plate - 5 Vyrikhathakan Kalam
  • Plate - 6 Brhmarakshasa Kalam
  • Plate - 7 Gadharvan Kalam
  • Plate - 8 Peedakkal Kalam
  • Plate - 9 Tripuranthakan Kalam
  • Plate - 10 Divathar Kalam
  • Plate - 11 Yakshan Mandramoorthi Kalam
  • Plate - 12 Hanuman Padma Kalam
  • Plate - 13 Ayyapan Theeyattu Kalam
  • Plate - 14 Mavilan Mandravada Kalam

DHULI SHILPA

Dhuli Shilpa, for today’s audience, is a valuable artistic heritage, even as it evokes the memories of a primordial culture. It is the expression of art that an ancient culture shaped and nurtured. To use modern terminology, Dhulishilpa can be called an Installation, with wholeness and symmetry close to perfection, quite incredible for those far off days. It is a comprehensive art form that includes drawing, painting, music, singing, percussion, dance, drama and magic. Community participation made this art-form a special genre, almost a postmodern concept in its multiplexity.

Originated among the indigenous peoples of Kerala, Dhulishilpa (Kalamezhthu or Dhulichitra) represents one of the oldest traditions, of pictorial art, animated by impulses inherent in religious cults and beliefs.

It must have started among aboriginal tribes. In feudal days it was prevalent among poor agricultural workers. ‘Abhilashidhardha Chindamani’, believed to have been written in the 12th century, mentions Dhulishilpa. There were more than 160 varieties of Dhulishilpa or Kalams harnessed to a number of purposes by the lower social segments in the feudal hierarchy that practised Kalamezhuthu as a sacred activity. Memory recalls floor paintings in other parts of India, like Rangoli, Kolam, Alpana, Jinundhi etc. But these were and are for decoration. Kalamezhthu, on the other hand, was a sacred activity connected with the very survival of the people concerned. For them, art was not a special genus. Later, in the course of social history when the upper class entered the scene of Kalamezhuthu, stylization started. Aesthetics enhanced the ritual, raising it to the level of art. Now the traces of calendar art can be discerned in figurative Kalams, because of their popular appeal.

As the term suggests Ezhuthu or sacred writing starts with drawing or painting on the ground prepared for the ritual. The hallowed precincts are used for worshipping and propitiating deities, the wellbeing of the village community, appeasing snakes, taming evil, cure, as an offering of gratitude for good crops, or, as part of ancestral worship.

Kalams can be broadly divided into two - abstract, (Padma kalam, non- figurative) and figurative (Roopa kalam). Magical signs are a feature of primitive religions all over the world. Geometrical signs like triangles and squares, grouped in various permutations and combinations of vivid colours, cast a spell. In the deepening dusk under lights from bell- metal lamps placed at cardinal points, the picture seems to rise like a 3- dimensional sculptural illusion. Later the phenomenal world found representation in figures. And in Kalamezhuthu there are combinations of both the figurative and the magical, as in Sarpa kalam. Some of the figurative kalams like the Bhgavathi kalam represent Mother Earth in non-figurative form while mythical representations of various aspects of Durga and Kali are also there.

Special mention has to be made about the colours. The colours culled from Nature are the palette of Kalam artists. They started with three colours -- white, black and red. Later, yellow and green entered. Rice powder is used for white and charcoal powder from burnt husk for black. The yellow is from turmeric. A mixture of turmeric and lime (chunnampu) forms the red. Leaves of certain indigenous plants (Kunni, Vaka, Manchadi, Ithikanni) undergo a special process of drying to make the green powder. The artists also knew the chemistry of making shades out of varying combinations of five primary colours. Pictorial art in these colours has a rude, primitive splendour.

From the functional point of view, Kalams fall into two categories - manthric and tantric. Most of the exorcist Kalams which appear to have appeared first are manthric or magical Kalams. Aboriginal peoples haunted by fears of the unknown had conjured up protective forms across the world. Magical Kalams in this category are used widely to ward off evil, harness mental strength against mortality, for the cure of illnesses etc. Tantric kalam is basically for propitiation. The central figures of Kalams represent both good and bad aspects of the elemental world, depending on their function.

In rural Kerala, exorcist Kalams are a living tradition which is practised as a force complementary to medicine. The performer uses chants, spells and herbal medicines to cure deep-seated traumas in the subconscious. The treatment goes on as people watch. And the process is curative for both the patient and the community in which he/she lives. It is a combination of magic and logic. A lot of study is necessary in this field to understand its anthropological dimensions.

Kalams have been a source of inspiration for artists from Kerala. Glimpses of Kalamezuthu traditions are seen in the works of stalwarts like K.C.S. Panikker, Akkitham Narayanan, Paris Viswanadhan, Haridasan Achuthan Koodallur and C.N.Karunakaran, to mention a few.

Today, Kalamezhuthu (Dhulishilpa) as a traditional practice is marginalized because of changing perceptions. As an art- form it has to survive. Secular platforms for showcasing this dying art will encourage Kalam artists to keep alive their tradition. From the artistic point of view, the Kalams are a perennial source of designs rich in folk elements. Art and textile industry can use them for an authentic touch and replenishing the tradition at the roots. For, the folk mindscape is the signature of Kalamezhuthu.

Portfolio Name: Dhuli Shilpa
Source: Lalit Kala Akademi