ashapnair

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

KOODIYATOM KOPPU

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Koodiyattam owes a lot to this lean, short man. If not for him, the art would have been stripped of its ensemble long back. For, this 62 year-old is the only remaining veteran in the field of costume-making for Koodiyattam.
Raman Kutty, who belongs to Kothavil House in Palakkad, has been engaged in making the ‘koppu’ for Koodiyattam  for the last 22 years. At the Koodiyattam Mahotsavam hosted by Sangeet Natak Akademi and Koodiyattam Kendra at  Vyloppilli Samskrithi Bhavan, that concluded in the city on Sunday, Raman Kutty was a soft presence. He held a small exhibition and demonstration of Koodiyattam costume-making process, which held many in awe of his contribution to the art.  For a long time, Raman Kutty had accompanied and helped his father Kothavil Krishnan Nair with the ‘koppu’-making, all the while engaged in carpentry work too. But after the demise of his father, he realised that it was upon him to keep alive an art and tradition.
The making of  ‘koppu’ involves total dedication and a strict adherence to age-old techniques, he says. The making of the costumes, which include ‘kundalam’, ‘chevippovu’, ‘tholvala’, ‘kadakam’, ‘kaivala’, ‘pozhumbu’, ‘kadisoothram’ and ‘channapuram’ for male dancers and ‘mudi’, ‘udyanam’, ‘kaivala’, ‘tholvala’ and ‘kundalam’ for female dancers, often take a month and more to be completed. They are made using the wood of ‘kumil’ tree.
"The measures, designs and nuances of the ‘koppu’ have been put in records for generations to follow. It is with our family and we follow it with dedication. It is not something that can be changed with changing times because without ‘koppu’,  there is no Koodtiyattam," says Raman Kutty. In fact, it is the same with other art forms too like Kathakali, Chakiarkoothu, Krishnanattam and Ottam Thullal, he adds. And Raman Kutty makes ‘koppu’ for all these art forms.
After the death of his father, Raman Kutty had taught ‘koppu’-making for two years at Kerala Kalamandalam. But shortly thereafter, the course was stopped there, which then made Raman Kutty’s house the only place where one can learn it now. Raman Kutty’s two sons and two of his students are presently being trained in ‘koppu’-making under a scholarship granted by the Sangeet Natak Akademi. It is an effort from the side of the Akademi to keep the art form alive.
So, when there is an arts festival or youth festival, Raman Kutty is much sought after. ‘’We are now busy round the year. There is so much of work that is beyond our capacity. But we take it as there is nobody else,’’ he puts it humbly. Raman Kutty’s two daughters are married and settled and his sons, who accompanied him to the city, are happy that they have chosen a different path.
asha.nair@expressbuzz.com

BARCELONA

Who holds the reins of the city - the Mayor or the MP? The answer holds the future of the Twin City project between Thiruvananthapuram and Barcelona.
Apart from a half-an-hour which was spared for a discussion with the Barcelona counterparts, the CPM-led City Corporation has turned a cold shoulder to the much-hyped twin city pact initiated by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor.
Let alone a healthy discussion, no promises or visions were shared by the two parties during the visit. And no enthusiasm was visible on the part of the Corporation officials. Through its lukewarm response, the CPM-ruled local body has tried to make it clear that the twin city is just a cultural status and nothing more.
The discussion, or rather a question-answer session, between the two parties lasted for less than an hour during the two-day visit of the team. This, when the Barcelona team has submitted a draft proposal to the Corporation to study and arrive at major areas of cooperation.
Though the Corporation tried to wear an amiable look before the guests, the press conference by the Barcelona team on Thursday was proof for that they had received the message.
‘’We will have to match all aspects of both cities’’, a team member said. It underlines the apprehensions that the pact may not prove viable to a city like Thiruvananthapuram.
Corporation officials are of the opinion that the Barcelona team has no idea of the powers vested with the local body or any understanding of its functioning.
But it’s not all about the political divide, it has a lot of policy matters involved, Corporation sources say.
While the proposal is learnt to have put forward a lot of projects where private participation could be used, the Corporation is hand-tied from venturing out into any large-scale private tie-ups.
While even the fate of JNNURM and ADB-funded KSUDP projects, where the Corporation has to chip in just ten percent share, is yet to fall into track, the future of a proposal which is not even funded, that too by an outside local government is bleak.
It may be recalled that the water supply scheme under JNNURM has been entrusted with the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) and the Mass Transport project (under which the Volvo buses were launched) has been handed over to the KSRTC by the Corporation, though it holds the implementation onus of the projects.
If desired too, the Corporation does not own the capacity to conduct a major development in Technopark or a tourist venture at Aakkulam. All that is actually possible through the tie-up is the initiation of a couple of welfare schemes or transfer of technology.
‘’We do not want a team from Barcelona giving us proposals to develop a city square or to clean a canal. Urban planning is beyond our power, it needs coordinated efforts of so many departments. We can only decide on sanitation projects,’’ said a top Corporation official.
asha.nair@expressbuzz.com

ANIMATION

Avatar, the animation epic by James Cameron, happened a decade after the movie was born in Cameron's mind. Back then, Pandora, the  fictional planet or its inhabitants, were not even considered a possibility. But  animation, as always, took several leaps and bounds to make a man's dream come true. That exactly is the charm of this gargantuan industry; it runs on individual creativity .
Animation industry has never looked so promising, and this competitive, too. But there is the sad side of supply not meeting the demand, just because the ‘trained’ are always not the ‘skilled’ .
Unofficial figures would rate a whopping 50,000 students passing out of animation schools in a year in Kerala alone. With animation finding new horizons like TV channels, ads, gaming, education and even space science, it would have meant sure placement. But experts in the industry say there is a dearth of talent when it tails down to real production .
“Animation is a wonderful medium. It has various aspects as an art and aesthetic medium, as an education tool and as an industry but on the academic side, it is being exploited heavily. Numerous academies are sprouting up, promising advanced courses. They, however, do not take into account the creativity of the student. What happens is that these students, once out of these academies, find themselves totally in the dark about their future,” says K D Shybu, operations head, Vismayas Max Animation, Thiruvananthapuram. Viasmayas is owned by actor Mohanlal .
It may be due to the lack of a monitoring system in place to check on the syllabus of animation courses, a screening system to induct students to courses (like you have for professional courses) or the sheer inability of the students to realise that animation needs an-other-kind-of-creativity,  bordering on obsession and undying passion .
“Students must have drawing skills, a clear idea of acting, grasp of politics, extra dose of the understanding of art and aesthetics and not too obsessed with the money-part of it. Otherwise, go for engineering or opt for medicine, but don’t opt for animation,” says Shybu .
Hardwork and creativity have always paid off. Men from the south like Anand P G (Dreamworks), Dilip Varma and Nirmal David (who are with Rhythm and Hues studios) are names to reckon with in the industry. Nirmal and Dilip have been associated with the making of The Golden Compass and Shrek. Anand was a student of College of Fine Arts,
Thiruvananthapuram, before he began his journey. Sureshkumar, another animator from the South, is the man behind the animated images in TV ads, including Strepsils, Amaron  Battery and Docomo.  Vismayas Animation team creates the animated versions for the clip ‘n’ touch greetings for Facebook. Goes to show how in a shrunken world, it is easy to
enter into an international arena provided you are talented .
“Animation has grown into an alternate career option. But some people think learning Maya or any other software would make them be a good animator, which is wrong. This is a creative field and with soaring competition, you must have the ability to create value products,” says Radhakrishnan Nair, CEO of Toonz Academy and former CEO of Technopark .
Which means a student must be focused right from his/her teens if he/she needs to find a footing in this industry. It might mean 24x7 in animation. “It doesn't tire you out. Because if you are at the right place its fun. The ambience in animation just keeps you happy,” says Bibin Krishna, a student at Vismayas Max. Shybu winds it up wonderfully: “You need Rs 10 lakh to start a bakery. You need the same to start an animation academy. But if you see both with the same business eye, then the industry is doomed.” Right!  —asha.nair@expressbuzz.com  

NANUKUTTAN NAIR

THIRUVANATHAPURAM: If there are a thousand families in this city, leading a healthy life and staying out of hospital-beds, then N.Nanukuttan Nair and Saraswathy Bai deserve a big share of brownie points. The couple have not just believed in Nature Cure and shared its curative powers with many, but lived a life that even Mother Nature would be proud of.
The two are almost always together. When we met them at Gandhi Bhavan, Thycaud, they were calling it a day and about to walk the small distance from Gandhi Bhavan to their house. Nanukuttan Nair is the Secretary of the Prakriti Jeevana Samithi under Kerala Gandhi Smaraka Nidhi and Saraswathy an active helpmate. She takes counseling in naturopathy with her spouse, manages an eatery inside the Bhavan which serves only naturopathic food and would bind you to her words in the most subtle way one can imagine.
More than to learn good eating habits and healthy lifestyle, Saraswathy is sought after by many women to have a hassle-free delivery. By now, she can point out atleast a 100 children who have come to this Earth, only because their mothers followed a strict naturopathic regime under Saraswathy’s guidance.
“It’s not easy as it sounds. There are no short cuts. It’s not a treatment, it’s a way of living, close to Nature, that keeps one fit and the way humans were meant to be,’’ she says. Slim, pleasant and soft-spoken, Saraswathy would turn into a strict tutor when she has lives placed on her hands to be made better, says her husband.
Nanukuttan Nair, a native of Kummanam, had become a fellow-traveller of Gandhian ideas as early as his childhood days. He began frequenting Gandhian youth camps when he was just 12 years old. In the 70’s when Gandhi Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram was hosting some of the brilliant minds of India during the times, including Vinoba Bhave and Jayaprakash Narayanan, Nanukuttan Nair shifted his base to Thiruvananthapuram, In 1971 he married Saraswathy who was then a Hindi teacher with Kerala Hindi Prachara Sabha.
Saraswathy was suffering from severe arthritis at that time and Nanukuttan Nair introduced her to nature cure. It was a beginning. “Since then, I have shared what I learned with others,’’  she says. That’s how she’s got a cookery book to her credit (apart from the few translations she has done) that describes how to make ‘sambhar, juices and curries’ with the same flavour and taste but in the purest natural way. The book is available at Gandhi Bhavan.
“Food should be cooked and consumed fresh. There are many items that prakriti jeevanam restrain from using, like coffee, tea, sugar, meat, onion, pepper, green chillies, aluminium utensils and so on. But more than that, a change must engulf our whole being. If you are bad at heart and try to bring in good habits, then it negates the good effects. Food is secondary, virtues count first,’’ Saraswathy shares the secret.
According to her, ripe mangoes and tomatoes are an excellent substitute for tamarind. A ‘chammanthy’ made of mango is high on vitamins, she says. Saraswathy has hosted cookery shows in many television channels, stressing on Naturopathy food.
The biggest hurdle for the couple was not sticking to the principles they believed in, but passing on the faith to their two sons. “They are boys, they can easily go out and fall for bad trends, people used to scare me. But I took extra pain to cook them delicious food, keeping away the bad stuff. They took to yoga andpranayamam which Naturopathy advocates and remain loyal vegetarians,’’ a proud mother beams. Both their sons are now professionals and settled, one of them working abroad. Their childhood practises keep them fit for the fast times, the parents say.
At 70 and 61, the husband-wife duo are not thinking of taking a day off. They organise yoga and meditation classes along with Nature Living courses. Their phones keep ringing asking advices to good living, their counseling continues till the last person is satisfied and leaves and they keep talking about corrective life and positive energy which they hail as the mantra to long and healthy life. They can be contacted at 94470 15635.
asha.nair@expressbuzz.com

ROCK N ROLL

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Rock music has come a long way since Elvis Presley. It has branched out- surf, garage, folk, blues, glam-and has acquired new forms and techniques. But those long flowing locks that dance with the drums, the energy that flows through the strings of the base guitars and the strong vocals, which sometimes go overboard- all these have remained the same. Keeping old times alive.
In this city, far way from the land of Presley or Beatles, rock is on a roll. A silent revolution is on to promote rock music, in all those forms that it exists. A dozen rock bands, mostly born on college campuses, have got together to give it a new life, as Trivandrum Rock Revolution (TRR).
The TRR is only a few months old, but their energy makes up for the lost years. They had their first joint concert at a pub in the city two months back which had the hall filled to the last seat. “It’s re-inventing the Steel,” they say.
When we caught up with them, one evening, they were filled with music which spilled out in their words. “You have performers, you have bands, you have the talent. But where is the platform? That’s what we are trying to create. A space for rock bands in this city and in Kerala,’’ says Vivian, one of the TRR members, who has his own band, Rocksault. The group invited bands from Ernakulam, Kannur and other places to perform at their first venture. “It was an experiment. But the turnout showed that there are many people interested in rock music, if only we provide them with it,” says Ashwin, who belongs to the band Purple Blood.
Vivian, with his long locks, owns the typical rock musician look, which prompted us to ask why long hair is an essential for rock. “Imagine a guy, with his hair cut and cropped, formal clothes on, without any movements on stage, singing rock music. A crowd does not expect us to look like IT professionals. Head-banging is one element that enhances stage presence, it has got to do with the attitude,” says Vivian, seconded by Harikrishnan J. “Rightly said,” says Ganesh, another member of Purple Blood.
The boys add that it’s however not easy to wear the rugged, craggy look without paying a price. “Most parents are against the look. When neighbours tell them your son looks worn-out and odd, they are sure to feel bad. We all had the same experience. But, now they know we are serious about our music,” says Ashwin. While he and Ganesh are students of SCT Pappanamcode, Harikrishnan is a student of Mohandas College of Engineering. The TRR also has E Harikrishnan who is an alumni of SCT and now an employee with Hindustan Latex. Vivian is a full-time musician.
Why is it that rock bands (mostly) have their origin in engineering colleges? “Maybe, we vent out our frustration and burden of studies through music,’’ Ganesh reasons.
The guys are unanimous when they say the city has not yet grown up to the rock culture. “In Bangalore, there are jam rooms where you can rehearse and play. It is sound proof, so you don’t have neighbours yelling to reduce the volume. There is one in Kochi, but it is yet to come in Thiruvananthapuram,’’ Ashwin says. There are cultural fests where rock music is a sure item, but often it is last in the list. “By the time we get on to the stage, it would be midnight. There won’t be listeners. The scene ought to change,’’ says Vivian.
Most of the bands are, however, striving to come up with their own compositions instead of duping the West these days. This is a positive sign, says E Harikrishnan. That a popular band based in Kochi was called to do a song in Prithviraj-starrer ‘Anwar’ tells a lot about the attention the genre is enjoying now, the boys say.
All that the TRR-army is now yearning for is recognition at the common musical programmes. “We need to bring foreign bands and outside (out of Kerala) bands so that there is more exposure for rock music here,’’ Ganesh says.
With an upcoming musical programme in December, the group aims to earn more loyal fans for the venture. More sponsors need to come, so that people like us who have music, not money, to invest can take it forward, Vivian adds.
As we winded up, it was clear why there was so much of adrenaline rush when these guys took the stage. It’s all about giving and taking in rock music. The more we respond, the more willingly they spend their energy.
Want to know more about TRR? Then log onto www.facebook.com/tvmrockrevo. Contact them at 9895089583.
ashanair@expressbuzz.com

TACTILE MAPS

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The visually-challenged teachers in the state would soon grow out of the need for a helping hand to take them around in schools.
The 248 visually-impaired teachers are in the process of developing tactile maps, which provide them the layout of their school environment, enabling easy mobility.
For the first time, the Education Department and the Integrated Education for the Disabled (IED) cell have organised a series of sessions in Thrissur in five batches to listen to the difficulties faced by the visually-challenged teachers and to come up with measures for their empowerment.
The fourth batch of teachers began their session on Friday.
It is at these sessions that the teachers are being given training in developing tactile maps as part of giving them mobility-orientation.
According to officials, mobility orientation gains significance as it provides them more acceptance in the school.
The training for making tactile maps are being given by the IED Resource persons.
Once the school maps are ready, the teachers could go ahead and make tactile maps of places they frequently visit.
Not just tactile maps, the teachers are being given training in making teaching learning materials, manuals and other aids required in classrooms.
“It is the first time that we are giving serious thoughts in the direction of empowerment of visually-challenged teachers.
For them, it is the acceptance they expect.
That’s why we want them to be part of every classroom activity that general teachers do,” said R Rajan, Deputy Director (IED).
Ironically, a group of teachers from here, who reached Thrissur for the sessions in the Trivandrum- Nilambur Road Rajya Rani Express had to face a bitter experience as the Railway officials failed to open the door (that opens to the platform) of the coach no 5 they were travelling.
R Rajan, who was leading them, said that eight of them were women teachers.
According to him, they were told that the keys to the door were missing and the visually-challenged teachers had to alight on the rail tracks and walk to the destination.
“While it shows that the society is not fully aware of the barrier-free requirements of the visually-impaired, it also pointed out that why we should be more mobility-oriented,” a visually- challenged teacher in the group said.
Meanwhile, the IED cell is thinking of proposing large printed books for the visually- impaired teachers as majority of them have low-vision and are not totally blind.
The need to develop a talking software in Malayalam on different subjects for teachers has come up during the empowerment sessions.

SAAJAN'S HOUSE

‘Visala’ has every ingredient that goes into the making of a dream home. But when architect P B Sajan built the house, naming it after his mother, he wanted it to be a model for the entire state. Mocking at the conventional style that reeks of luxury, but severs all ties with Nature, this experimental house from Costford has its place booked among the rare and true eco-friendly, green houses in the state.
Sajan, who helms the affairs at Costford, the organisation that promotes Master Architect Laurie Baker’s architectural theories, blended his personal and professional tastes well enough to come up with a model for green building in the outskirts of the city.
So, at ‘Visala’, you see bamboo, casuarina poles and coconut tree trunks holding a house built in mud, covering 2,700 square feet, using recycled and renewable items. That too, at just Rs 750 per square feet covering the labour expenses, electrification and water connection charges.
Perched atop a hill a few kilometres from Powdikonam, the house was Costford’s presentation at the recently-concluded Green Building Congress at Hyderabad and won much appreciation.
‘’Many buildings, just by using solar panels or planting indoor plants, claim to be green buildings. But we at Costford wanted to convey the message that a green building should use materials close to Nature, bring down carbon emission and most importantly breathe for itself,’’ says Sajan. His wife Shailaja Nair, associate professor at the College of Engineering, Trivandrum, also shares his views.
Compared to conventional construction, the use of steel, cement and Msand, among other items, has been less than half. Since the raw materials were not transported from faraway places and only included locally available items, that brought down much diesel cost too.
The main roofing materials - bamboo and casuarina poles - were treated using a mix of borax and boric acid, a formula developed by Costford. Sajan trained the labourers in treating the material and putting it up as the roofing items, for which initially they had raised much doubts.
‘’Many people are concerned that mud, bamboo and casuarina are a dangerous mixture that could put a house in danger regarding its strength. But at a hilly place, where winds are strong, experts say it has a strength ten times more of what is required. We also opted for a four-storeyed building since the general conception is that such green concepts which are also cost-effective only applies to small buildings,’’ says Sajan.
The house has reused doors and windows sourced from demolished ancestral structures. For the staircase, wood of the mango tree has been used while the pillars of the car shed are treated coconut tree trunks.
The other highlights remain the rainwater harvesting facility, solar panels, bio-waste plant, plenty of open spaces (a mini courtyard reserved for creepers alone) and of course the scenic landscape outside for free.
‘’A research study once published in the World Watch paper had said that 35 per cent of the world’s carbon emissions are contributed by the building sector. I think it’s time we think about the next generation and leave something for them to build their dreams upon. And going green in its true sense is the only hope,’’ Sajan says.
‘Visala’ has been attracting many architecture students and green lovers ever since Sajan completed it six months back.
The family and the architects at Costford are hopeful that the experimental home would be replicated in many places soon.

ashapnair

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

KOODIYATOM KOPPU

Costumes, his ‘monopoly’

BARCELONA

Twin City project seeing red

ANIMATION

Animation industry looks promising

NANUKUTTAN NAIR

Good green life

ROCK N ROLL

Rock is on a roll

TACTILE MAPS

Visually-Impaired teachers given training

SAAJAN'S HOUSE

A truly eco-friendly, green home that’s a model for Kerala