Sometimes a picture triggers a series of images inside you. For me, it was this particular one from R K Menon's 'Performing Arts' set on flickr.
It was a picture of an artist putting on his make-up...getting ready to essay his role. The face looked familiar. The description of the picture assured me that it was the same person whom I was thinking about. It was the picture of the legendary Kalamandalam Gopi Ashan.
It was a picture of an artist putting on his make-up...getting ready to essay his role. The face looked familiar. The description of the picture assured me that it was the same person whom I was thinking about. It was the picture of the legendary Kalamandalam Gopi Ashan.
I was fifteen when I first saw him as the virtuous Karna, the generous warrior. He played the role of the noblest character from the Mahabharata in 'Karna Shapadham' (Karna's Vow). My road to enlightenment on the Indian dance-drama called the Kathakali started that evening, thanks to my paternal grandfather, who took great interest in the art and would risk traveling miles away from home to watch a good performance. It was on his 90th birthday that I saw a live Kathakali performance. Till then it was always on Doordarshan.
Before the performance started Appupan (as I fondly called my grandfather), briefed us on the most popular Kathaklai stories.
One of them being Karna Shapadham, the story of Karna's discoveries before the great Kurukshetra battle. It speaks of his friendship with Duryodhana and the emotional turmoils in his mind on learning that he will be pitted against his own brothers, the Pandavas. The story portrays a distraught Kunti revealing to Karna that he was originally a Kaunteya (Kunti's son)and not Radheya (the charioteer's wife Radha's son). More sorrow lies in store for him on realizing that after all these years of keeping the truth away from him, his mother now values only the lives of his five other brothers but not his and pleads to Karna to spare his brothers in the ensuing Kuruskshetra battle. It is a challenge to portray Karna here as he goes through myriad emotions - pathos, generosity and valor - in a span of a few minutes. And Gopi Ashan did complete justice to the character every time he donned the pachcha (green color - to depict nobility of character).
One of them being Karna Shapadham, the story of Karna's discoveries before the great Kurukshetra battle. It speaks of his friendship with Duryodhana and the emotional turmoils in his mind on learning that he will be pitted against his own brothers, the Pandavas. The story portrays a distraught Kunti revealing to Karna that he was originally a Kaunteya (Kunti's son)and not Radheya (the charioteer's wife Radha's son). More sorrow lies in store for him on realizing that after all these years of keeping the truth away from him, his mother now values only the lives of his five other brothers but not his and pleads to Karna to spare his brothers in the ensuing Kuruskshetra battle. It is a challenge to portray Karna here as he goes through myriad emotions - pathos, generosity and valor - in a span of a few minutes. And Gopi Ashan did complete justice to the character every time he donned the pachcha (green color - to depict nobility of character).
Now after 15 years I get to see the same man, in a picture, still lively and performing, getting ready to rock the stage as the famous Arjuna.
Thanks RK for sharing the pictures.
You can see his pictures here.
Thanks RK for sharing the pictures.
You can see his pictures here.
