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 an Indian epithet of Sanskrit origin, used as an honorific title for goddesses in Hinduism and Buddhism. In Hinduism, it is primarily used to address the goddesses Sarasvati, Laks ...

temples across

North Malabar North Malabar refers to the geographic area of southwest India covering the state of Kerala State, Kerala's present day Kasaragod district, Kasaragod and Kannur district, Kannur districts, Mananthavady taluk of the Wayanad District, Wayanad distr ...

Kerala State Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, 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 ...

south India South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...

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

Malayalam calendar The Malayalam Calendar, or the Kollam Era (), is a sidereal solar calendar used in Kerala. The origin of the calendar has been dated to 825 CE, commemorating the establishment of Kollam. There are many theories regarding the origin of t ...

(corresponding to the sun sign Pisces according to the

Julian Calendar The Julian calendar is a solar calendar of 365 days in every year with an additional leap day every fourth year (without exception). The Julian calendar is still used as a religious calendar in parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church and in parts ...

) to honour

Kamadeva Kamadeva (, ), also known as Kama, Manmatha, and Madana is the Deva (Hinduism), Hindu god of Eroticism, erotic love, carnal desire, attraction, pleasure and beauty, as well as the personification of the concept of ''kāma''. He is depicted as a ...

, the god of

love Love is a feeling of strong attraction and emotional attachment (psychology), attachment to a person, animal, or thing. It is expressed in many forms, encompassing a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most su ...

. The performers come from different sects like Thiyya, Maniyani, Nambiar etc. 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 Panickers 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 (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

god of love), tries to awaken

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

to the amorous advances of

Parvati Parvati (, , IPA: /Sanskrit phonology, pɑɾʋət̪iː/), also known as Uma (, , IPA: Sanskrit phonology, /ʊmɑː/) and Gauri (, , IPA: /Sanskrit phonology, gə͡ʊɾiː/), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the Devi, ...

. 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 Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

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 Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

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 ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

or Bhagavata. The leader of the group, known by the name Panicker, 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 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