Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram festival in

Bhagavathy Bhagavatī (Devanagari: भगवती, IAST: Bhagavatī), is a Hindu epithet of Sanskrit origin, used as an honorific title for female deities in Hinduism. It is primarily used to address one of the Tridevi: Saraswati, Lakshmi, and Parvati. ...

temples across

North Malabar North Malabar refers to the geographic area of southwest India covering the state of Kerala's present day Kasaragod, Kannur, and Wayanad districts, and the taluks of Vatakara, Koyilandy, and Thamarassery in the Kozhikode District of Keral ...

Kerala State Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Can ...

south India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union terr ...

. The Pooram festival begins with the Karthika asterism and concludes with the Pooram asterism of the month of

Meenam The Malayalam Calendar is a sidereal solar calendar used in Kerala. The origin of the calendar has been dated to 825 CE, the beginning of the Kollam Era. There are many theories regarding the origin of the era, but according to recent schola ...

according to the

Malayalam calendar The Malayalam Calendar is a sidereal solar calendar used in Kerala. The origin of the calendar has been dated to 825 CE, the beginning of the Kollam Era. There are many theories regarding the origin of the era, but according to recent schola ...

(corresponding to the sun sign

Pisces Pisces may refer to: * Pisces, an obsolete (because of land vertebrates) taxonomic superclass including all fish *Pisces (astrology), an astrological sign *Pisces (constellation), a constellation ** Pisces Overdensity, an overdensity of stars in t ...

according to the

Julian Calendar The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandri ...

) to honour

Kamadeva Kama ( sa, काम, ), also known as Kamadeva and Manmatha, is the Hindu god of love and desire, often portrayed alongside his consort, Rati. The Atharva Veda regards Kamadeva as the wielder of the creative power of the universe, also descri ...

, the god of

love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...

. The performers mainly come from

Thiyya The Ezhavas () are a community with origins in the region of India presently known as Kerala, where in the 2010s they constituted about 23% of the population and were reported to be the largest Hindu community. They are also known as ''Ilhava'' ...

, Maniyani Different sects of society like also perform Poorakkali. The basis of Poorakkali essentially is the memories of ''Vasanthapooja'' performed by inmates of different worlds like heaven, earth etc. Poorakkali spreads knowledge and entertainment. The show steals the hearts of audience with melodious songs and befitting body movements. The

Panicker Panicker was a title conferred by the king of Travancore to distinguished individuals. Kiriyathil/Illathu Nair panickers should not be confused with Kalari Panicker They were well known as the masters of Kalari tradition, having their ''Nalpathe ...

s are well-known names in the world of Poorakkali and have contributed much to the survival and expansion of this art form.

Story

(the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

god of love), tries to awaken

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one o ...

to the amorous advances of

Parvati Parvati ( sa, पार्वती, ), Uma ( sa, उमा, ) or Gauri ( sa, गौरी, ) is the Hindu goddess of power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. She is a physical representation of Mahadevi i ...

. He is burned to ashes by the fire emanating from Shiva's third eye. To bring love and joy back to the earth, that is left barren after Kama’s death,

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...

instructs heavenly goddesses Rambha to create Kama’s figure with flowers and to sing and dance. Women on earth continued to sing and dance to celebrate Kama’s reincarnation. In the course of time, men took charge of the festivities, though young girls continue to play an integral role in the rituals.

Style

The Poorakkali dance itself is performed by a troop of young men decked in

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus '' Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adu ...

costumes around a huge, multi-tiered, lit lamp, also known as a "nilavilukku." The dance involves masculine movements and acrobatic, martial art steps. No singers or musicians accompany the dance; instead, the dancers themselves keep rhythm by singing, clapping and executing synchronised foot-thumping movements. The dancers usually observe a month of abstinence and undergo strenuous practice before the performance. Most of the songs sung are hymns from

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages ...

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...

Bhagavata The Bhagavata tradition, also called Bhagavatism, refers to an ancient religious sect that traced its origin to the region of Mathura. After its syncretism with the Brahmanical tradition of Vishnu, Bhagavatism became a pan-Indian tradition ...

. The leader of the group, known by the name

, sings the song, and the lines are repeated in chorus by the other dancers. Certain rituals are performed before the dance starts.

Variants of ''Poorakkali''

Marathukali Marathukali is a variant of Poorakkali. ''Poorakkali'' is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram festival in Bhagavathy temples across Northern Kerala (formerly known as Kolathunadu), south India. Marathukali is a ...

is a variant of Poorakkali. This is a form performed by two parties competently. The ordinary play lacks the competent mood displayed in Marathukali. Big disputes ensue between two parties while performance is on and learned people dissuade both parties from further confrontation.

Further Study

Video of Poorakkali

References

External links

Poorakkali - Kerala Tourism
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Gallery