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Kunchan Nambiar

Kunchan Nambiar was a prominent Malayalam poet of the 18th century (1705-1770). Apart from being a prolific poet, Nambiar is also famous as the originator of the dance art form of Thullal, most of his works were written for use in Thullal performances. Social criticism wrapped in humor is the hallmark of his works. Nambiar is one of the foremost comedians in Malayalam.

Kunjan Nambiar
Kunjan Nambiar
Born(1705-05-05)5 May 1705
Died1770
NationalityIndian
OccupationPoet

Nambiar is believed to have been born at [1] Kalathu Veedu at Killikkurussimangalam in Palakkad district of the south Indian state of Kerala;.[2] He spent his early childhood at Killikkurussimangalam, his boyhood at Kudamaloor and youth at Ambalappuzha, and learnt Kalaripayattu and Sanskrit from such masters as Mathoor Panickar, Dronaballi Naicker and Nannikod Unni Ravi Kurup, before moving to the court of Marthanda Varma of Travancore in 1748; later, he served at the court of his successor Dharma Raja.[3] By the time he reached the royal court, he had already established himself as a poet.[note 1] the later part of his life, it is believed that Nambiar returned to Ambalapuzha where he died in 1770, at the age of 65, reportedly due to rabies

Career

Many of Nambiar's verses have transformed into proverbs in Malayalam. 1. ചെറുപ്പ കാലങ്ങളിലുള്ള SHIലം മറക്കുമോ മാനുഷനുള്ള കാലം (cheruppa kalangalil ulla sheelam marakkumo maanushanulla kalam)

Translation: How can a man forget habits that he acquired at his young age?
Closest English equivalent: Old habits die hard

2. ദീപസ്തംഭം മഹാശ്ചര്യം, നമുക്കും കിട്ടണം പണം (dīpastaṃM bhaṃ mahāścaryaṃ namukkuṃ kiṭṭaṇaṃ paṇaṃM)

Translation: Your Deepa-Stambham (A multi-layered oil lamp) is magnificent, and we too want our share of money.
Closest English equivalent: When it is a question of money, everyone is of the same religion.

3. മുല്ലപ്പൂമ്പൊടി ഏറ്റു കിടക്കും കല്ലിനും ഉണ്ടാം ഒരു സൗരഭ്യം (mullappūmpoṭi ēṯṯu kiṭakkuṃ kallinuṃ uṇṭāṃ oru saurabhyaṃ)

Translation: The stone where the pollen of the jasmine flower falls acquires its fragrance.
 
Mizhavu used by Kunchan Nambiar at Ambalappuzha Sri Krishna temple

Kunchan Nambiar is considered by many as the master of Malayalam satirist poetry[5] and is credited with the popularisation of a performing art known as Ottan Thullal.[6] The word, thullal, means 'dance/jumping', but under this name Nambiar developed a new style of verse narration, interspersed with occasional background music and dance-like swaying movements. Popular belief is that Nambiar devised this art form for avenging the ridicule he had to suffer from a Chakyar Koothu performer who chastised Nambiar when he dozed of while accompanying the koothu performance on Mizhavu.[7] He used pure Malayalam[8] as opposed to the stylised and Sanskritized Malayalam language of Chakyar Koothu, and adopted many elements from Padayani and Kolam Tullal as well as some of the other local folk arts. There are three kinds of Tullal distinguished on the basis of the performer's costume and the style of rendering, viz., Ottan, Seethankan and Parayan. Dravidian metres are used throughout although there is a quatrain in a Sanskrit metre. Kunchan Nambiar is known to have written 64 thullal stories.[9] He also developed new metres (for example; Vaytari metres) based on the vocal notation for various talas. The language is predominantly Malayalam with a large admixture of colloquial and dialectal forms.[10]

Honours

The Government of Kerala observes Nambiar's birthday, 5 May, as Kunchan Day.[11] A society, Kunjan Nambiar Memorial Society, has been established by the government overseas the management of various memorials which include Kunjan Nambiar Memorial in Ambalappuzha,[5] Kalakathu Bhavanam, Nambiar's house in Killikkurussimangalam,[12] Kunchan Memorial Library, Kunchan Memorial Arts Society, and Kunchan Memorial Society.[11] Kunchan Smarakam Fort is a fort built by the state government in honour of the poet and the monument houses an institution which promotes teaching of satirist art forms.[1]

Kunchan Nambiar's body of work is composed of at least 21 Otttan, 11 Seethankan and 9 Parayan compositions.[3] The most important of Nambiar's Thullals are: Syamanthakam, Ghoshayathra, Kiratham, Santhanagopalam, Patracharitham, Karthaveeryarjunavijayam, Bakavadham, Kalyana Saugandhikam, Hariniswayamvaram, Thripuradahanam and Sabha Pravesham. Nambiar was critical of the social evils he saw around him and incorporated his satirical views in his compositions even when the main story is from the Hindu Puranas; he would introduce digressions and use such occasions to comment on society.[3]

Extracts from Kunchan Nambiar's poems/writings

 
Ambalappuzha Sri Krishna Temple, the place where Nambiar is believed to have performed Ottan Thullal for the first time.
  • Ravana is speaking to Narada about his own prowess (Kartavirya Arjuna Vijayam):

The kingdom of the Gandhara ruler
Has turned into a mere desert.
The land of the Sinhala King
Is now filled with lions and leopards.
The lord of the Chera people
Feeds himself on cheap vegetables.
The Chola King has nothing to eat
Except the maize of low quality
The kings of the Kuru house
Have nothing but jackfruit seeds.
The lord of the land of Kashmir
Is busy eating cucumbers.
The ruler of the Champeya land
Eats only tubers and broken rice.
The Konkan prince is about to die
Thinking of his wives' breasts.

  • Another passage from the same work:

Tributes must be paid from time to time;
Half the yield should be given to me.
The whole of pepper yield should be handed over
Coconut, arecanut, mango, jackfruit:
All the trees should be confiscated.
There will be no place in my country
For the pomp of local barons.
Double the seed crop should be given
To me by houseowner.
The Tamil Brahmins (Pattars) staying here
Should also give one fourth to me.
The Nayars who stay at home
Should take their bows and spears
And stay at the residence of Ravana
And do whatever chores are assigned.
Nayars who drink toddy
Would be beaten up, beware!

Notes

  1. ^ Ulloor S. Parameswara Iyer propounded a theory that Kunchan Nambiar and Sanskrit poet, Rama Pānivāda, were the same person ("Pānivāda" means "Nambiar" in Sanskrit), but the argument has not been popularly accepted.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b "Kunchan Smarakam Fort Palakkad - Kunchan Nambiar Smarakam Fort Palghat Kerala India". www.kerala-tourism.org. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  2. ^ "Major poets of Malayalam Literature". www.keralaculture.org. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  3. ^ a b c . Department of Public Relations, Government of Kerala. 23 March 2006. Archived from the original on 23 March 2006. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  4. ^ "കുഞ്ചന്‍ നമ്പ്യാര്‍ - മലയാളത്തിന്‍റെ ഹാസ്യസാമ്രാട്ട്". Madhyamam. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Kunchan Nambiar memorial in Ambalappuzha gets facelift - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Ottamthullal - Dance Forms in Kerala". kerala.me. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  7. ^ "Kunchan Nambiar - Veethi profile". veethi.com. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  8. ^ "Thullal and Aattakkatha". keralaculture.org. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  9. ^ Srikanth, Rupa (27 October 2016). "The dramatic language of Ottanthullal". The Hindu. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  10. ^ Biographicon, 'Kalakkaththu Kunchan Nambiar'
  11. ^ a b "Kunjan Nambiar Memorial Society, Ambalappuzha & Killikurissi Mangalam". www.keralaculture.org. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  12. ^ "The Kunchan Nambiar Smarakam, Killikkurissimangalam, Palakkad". Kerala Tourism. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.

External links

  • Two poems by Nambiar (scroll down to "Poetry Section #1")
  • at the Wayback Machine (archived 23 March 2006)
  • Terms UP Malayalam (17 November 2015). "Kunchan Nambiar Biography". YouTube. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2019.

kunchan, nambiar, prominent, malayalam, poet, 18th, century, 1705, 1770, apart, from, being, prolific, poet, nambiar, also, famous, originator, dance, form, thullal, most, works, were, written, thullal, performances, social, criticism, wrapped, humor, hallmark. Kunchan Nambiar was a prominent Malayalam poet of the 18th century 1705 1770 Apart from being a prolific poet Nambiar is also famous as the originator of the dance art form of Thullal most of his works were written for use in Thullal performances Social criticism wrapped in humor is the hallmark of his works Nambiar is one of the foremost comedians in Malayalam Kunjan NambiarKunjan NambiarBorn 1705 05 05 5 May 1705Palakkad Kerala IndiaDied1770Ambalappuzha Kerala IndiaNationalityIndianOccupationPoet Nambiar is believed to have been born at 1 Kalathu Veedu at Killikkurussimangalam in Palakkad district of the south Indian state of Kerala 2 He spent his early childhood at Killikkurussimangalam his boyhood at Kudamaloor and youth at Ambalappuzha and learnt Kalaripayattu and Sanskrit from such masters as Mathoor Panickar Dronaballi Naicker and Nannikod Unni Ravi Kurup before moving to the court of Marthanda Varma of Travancore in 1748 later he served at the court of his successor Dharma Raja 3 By the time he reached the royal court he had already established himself as a poet note 1 the later part of his life it is believed that Nambiar returned to Ambalapuzha where he died in 1770 at the age of 65 reportedly due to rabies Contents 1 Career 2 Honours 3 Extracts from Kunchan Nambiar s poems writings 4 Notes 5 References 6 External linksCareer EditMany of Nambiar s verses have transformed into proverbs in Malayalam 1 ച റ പ പ ക ലങ ങള ല ള ള SHIല മറക ക മ മ ന ഷന ള ള ക ല cheruppa kalangalil ulla sheelam marakkumo maanushanulla kalam Translation How can a man forget habits that he acquired at his young age Closest English equivalent Old habits die hard2 ദ പസ ത ഭ മഹ ശ ചര യ നമ ക ക ക ട ടണ പണ dipastaṃM bhaṃ mahascaryaṃ namukkuṃ kiṭṭaṇaṃ paṇaṃM Translation Your Deepa Stambham A multi layered oil lamp is magnificent and we too want our share of money Closest English equivalent When it is a question of money everyone is of the same religion 3 മ ല ലപ പ മ പ ട ഏറ റ ക ടക ക കല ല ന ഉണ ട ഒര സ രഭ യ mullappumpoṭi eṯṯu kiṭakkuṃ kallinuṃ uṇṭaṃ oru saurabhyaṃ Translation The stone where the pollen of the jasmine flower falls acquires its fragrance Mizhavu used by Kunchan Nambiar at Ambalappuzha Sri Krishna temple Kunchan Nambiar is considered by many as the master of Malayalam satirist poetry 5 and is credited with the popularisation of a performing art known as Ottan Thullal 6 The word thullal means dance jumping but under this name Nambiar developed a new style of verse narration interspersed with occasional background music and dance like swaying movements Popular belief is that Nambiar devised this art form for avenging the ridicule he had to suffer from a Chakyar Koothu performer who chastised Nambiar when he dozed of while accompanying the koothu performance on Mizhavu 7 He used pure Malayalam 8 as opposed to the stylised and Sanskritized Malayalam language of Chakyar Koothu and adopted many elements from Padayani and Kolam Tullal as well as some of the other local folk arts There are three kinds of Tullal distinguished on the basis of the performer s costume and the style of rendering viz Ottan Seethankan and Parayan Dravidian metres are used throughout although there is a quatrain in a Sanskrit metre Kunchan Nambiar is known to have written 64 thullal stories 9 He also developed new metres for example Vaytari metres based on the vocal notation for various talas The language is predominantly Malayalam with a large admixture of colloquial and dialectal forms 10 Honours EditThe Government of Kerala observes Nambiar s birthday 5 May as Kunchan Day 11 A society Kunjan Nambiar Memorial Society has been established by the government overseas the management of various memorials which include Kunjan Nambiar Memorial in Ambalappuzha 5 Kalakathu Bhavanam Nambiar s house in Killikkurussimangalam 12 Kunchan Memorial Library Kunchan Memorial Arts Society and Kunchan Memorial Society 11 Kunchan Smarakam Fort is a fort built by the state government in honour of the poet and the monument houses an institution which promotes teaching of satirist art forms 1 Kunchan Nambiar s body of work is composed of at least 21 Otttan 11 Seethankan and 9 Parayan compositions 3 The most important of Nambiar s Thullals are Syamanthakam Ghoshayathra Kiratham Santhanagopalam Patracharitham Karthaveeryarjunavijayam Bakavadham Kalyana Saugandhikam Hariniswayamvaram Thripuradahanam and Sabha Pravesham Nambiar was critical of the social evils he saw around him and incorporated his satirical views in his compositions even when the main story is from the Hindu Puranas he would introduce digressions and use such occasions to comment on society 3 Extracts from Kunchan Nambiar s poems writings Edit Ambalappuzha Sri Krishna Temple the place where Nambiar is believed to have performed Ottan Thullal for the first time Ravana is speaking to Narada about his own prowess Kartavirya Arjuna Vijayam The kingdom of the Gandhara ruler Has turned into a mere desert The land of the Sinhala King Is now filled with lions and leopards The lord of the Chera people Feeds himself on cheap vegetables The Chola King has nothing to eat Except the maize of low quality The kings of the Kuru house Have nothing but jackfruit seeds The lord of the land of Kashmir Is busy eating cucumbers The ruler of the Champeya land Eats only tubers and broken rice The Konkan prince is about to die Thinking of his wives breasts Another passage from the same work Tributes must be paid from time to time Half the yield should be given to me The whole of pepper yield should be handed over Coconut arecanut mango jackfruit All the trees should be confiscated There will be no place in my country For the pomp of local barons Double the seed crop should be given To me by houseowner The Tamil Brahmins Pattars staying here Should also give one fourth to me The Nayars who stay at home Should take their bows and spears And stay at the residence of Ravana And do whatever chores are assigned Nayars who drink toddy Would be beaten up beware Notes Edit Ulloor S Parameswara Iyer propounded a theory that Kunchan Nambiar and Sanskrit poet Rama Panivada were the same person Panivada means Nambiar in Sanskrit but the argument has not been popularly accepted 4 References Edit a b Kunchan Smarakam Fort Palakkad Kunchan Nambiar Smarakam Fort Palghat Kerala India www kerala tourism org 2 March 2019 Retrieved 2 March 2019 Major poets of Malayalam Literature www keralaculture org 2 March 2019 Retrieved 2 March 2019 a b c prd Kunchan Nambiar 1705 1770 Department of Public Relations Government of Kerala 23 March 2006 Archived from the original on 23 March 2006 Retrieved 2 March 2019 ക ഞ ചന നമ പ യ ര മലയ ളത ത ന റ ഹ സ യസ മ ര ട ട Madhyamam 2 March 2019 Retrieved 2 March 2019 a b Kunchan Nambiar memorial in Ambalappuzha gets facelift Times of India The Times of India Retrieved 2 March 2019 Ottamthullal Dance Forms in Kerala kerala me 2 March 2019 Retrieved 2 March 2019 Kunchan Nambiar Veethi profile veethi com 2 March 2019 Retrieved 2 March 2019 Thullal and Aattakkatha keralaculture org 2 March 2019 Retrieved 2 March 2019 Srikanth Rupa 27 October 2016 The dramatic language of Ottanthullal The Hindu Retrieved 2 March 2019 Biographicon Kalakkaththu Kunchan Nambiar a b Kunjan Nambiar Memorial Society Ambalappuzha amp Killikurissi Mangalam www keralaculture org 2 March 2019 Retrieved 2 March 2019 The Kunchan Nambiar Smarakam Killikkurissimangalam Palakkad Kerala Tourism 2 March 2019 Retrieved 2 March 2019 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kunchan Nambiar Two poems by Nambiar scroll down to Poetry Section 1 Kerala Government site on Kunchan Nambiar at the Wayback Machine archived 23 March 2006 Terms UP Malayalam 17 November 2015 Kunchan Nambiar Biography YouTube Archived from the original on 12 December 2021 Retrieved 2 March 2019 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Kunchan Nambiar amp oldid 1115472723, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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