Presents

A cultural extravaganza of Indian artistic traditions

SHEIKH RASHID AUDITORIUM, INDIAN HIGH SCHOOL, DUBAI

23 FEBRUARY 2018

A cultural extravaganza of Indian art forms

Nadanam 2018 showcases India's magnificent artistic traditions in the land of dreams, Dubai. Prepare to be enthralled by the sublime performances of India's greatest artistes as they create a spellbinding evening of cultural ecstasy.

Flagging off the show would be the screening of an award-winning documentary on the extraordinary artistic journey of Padma Shri Award winner and Koodiyattom (2000-year-old art form officially recognized by UNESCO) exponent, Kalamandalam Sivan Namboodiri. The extravaganza's scintillating highlight would be the Kuchipudi performance by Malayalam's own consummate actress, Manju Warrier. Witness the graceful danseuse wing her way to heavenly classical music, accompanied by lilting tunes of the musical instruments.

Watch the spectacular duo of India's leading classical percussionist, Padma Shri Mattannoor Sankarankutty Marar, and classical violinist, Sabareesh Prabhaker, bring alive the venue in a breathtaking fusion of the classical and the contemporary. As the curtains come down, your favourite cultural maestros would be felicitated for their remarkable contributions to preserving our artistic traditions.

Nadanam is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to witness the alluring mystique of India's ancient and classical art forms. By providing a platform for these art forms, the next generation will be bequeathed an everlasting legacy celebrating the eminence of India and its rich and vibrant culture.

Presenting Nadanam 2018

Ganapati Vandanam - Prayer to the patron of arts and the deva of intellect and wisdom

Screening of Rajan Karimoola's documentary 'Sivam' - Based on the extraordinary artistic journey of Padma Shri Award Winner, Kalamandalam Sivan Namboodiri

Keli - The Fusion of Chenda and Violin. Chenda by Padma Shri Shankarankutty Marar. Violin by Sabareesh Prabhakar & Immortal Ragga Band

Kuchipudi - Classical Dance Performance by award-winning cine-actress, Manju Warrier

Felicitation Ceremony - Honouring cultural professionals & artistes for their remarkable contributions to Indian artistic traditions

NadanamProgrammes

SHEIKH RASHID AUDITORIUM, INDIAN HIGH SCHOOL, DUBAI23 FEBRUARY 2018, 5.30 to 11.30 pm

Venue & Time

Koodiy

atta

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Koodiyattam - the ritualistic temple theatre tradition from Kerala, India - is officially recognized by UNESCO as a 'Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity' since 2001. Mentioned in Chilappathikaram, the 1500-year-old Tamil classic, the art form has been in existence for nearly 2000 years, making it one of the world's oldest living theater traditions.

The performance art form has been traditionally enacted in sacred theaters, Koothambalam, within the precincts of Kerala's temples. Since 1955, valiant attempts to preserve the art form has been initiated by its proponents, whereby performances have been staged outside temples and thus popularised all over the world.

A stellar combination of ancient Sanskrit theatre classics and elements of Koothu, an early Tamil performing art, Koodiyattam blends sacred rituals and rehearsed elements with creative improvisation. Intricate gestures and amplified face-and-eye movements are complemented with elaborate headdresses and makeup.

Typically, a Koodiyattam performance is enacted in the late evening after conclusion of temple rituals and continues for a few hours, sometimes until dawn before morning rituals commence. In its original avatar, performances lasted several days and staging of a single act has been known to extend upto 41 days.

KoodiyattamKerala's ancient temple art form

A Journey through the Life of a Koodiyattam Maestro

Cinematography & Direction

Rajan KarimoolaProducers

Shyam Sundar Kaipamangalam& Kalamadalam Gopalakrishnan

Script Sajayan Elanad Editor Anand Ramdas Music Arundas SruthilayaArt Damodharan Nambidi Associate Director Vinu V Devan Associate Camera Omprakash Vismaya

Design Rakesh kr

Sivam’ - a documentary directed by Rajan Karimoola - features the extraordinary artistic journey of Padma Shri Award winner, Kalamandalam Sivan Namboodiri. The documentary, which won the prestigious Kalamandalam Award for Best Documentary records interviews of his dance contemporaries and juniors, and also includes conversations with the artiste himself. Besides visuals of his performances, past events of his life and the sensational journey as an artiste have been dramatised.

Sivan Namboodiri, born in 1950, entered the domain of Koodiyattam at the age of fourteen. He was one of the two students of the first batch of Koodiyattam at Kala mandalam. The highlight of Sivan Namboodiri's career came in Paris, when he performed two acts before a UNESCO jury assigned to select art forms for inclusion in UNESCO's Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. The jury subsequently approved the inclusion of Koodiyattam to the elite league of performance art forms.

In 2012, the Government of India awarded him the Padma Shri for his contributions to the art of Koodiyattam. A teacher of repute at the Kerala Kalamandalam, Sivan Namboodiri is also a Visiting Professor at The School of Drama, University of Calicut.

SivamA Journey through the Life of a Koodiyattam MaestroDirected by Rajan Karimoola

Mat

tannoor S

anka

rank

utty

Marar

Padma Shri Mattannoor Sankarankutty Marar The great doyen of Chenda (a traditional Kerala drum), Padma Shri Mattannoor Sankarankutty Marar was born in 1954 into a lineage of privileged percussionists of the Mattannoor temple, near Thalassery, in Kannur district of Kerala. Sankaran started playing chenda by the age of seven with first lessons from his father Kunjikrishnan Marar.

Sankarankutty's talent was recognized early and he joined for lessons in Kathakali chenda at the Gandhi Sevasadanam, Peroor. He underwent rigorous training in thayambaka and Kathakali chenda under Pallassana Chandramannadiar and Sadanam Vasudevan. Also well-versed in Panchari Melam and Panchavadyam, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 2009 and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2012.

An expert in almost all the temple music rituals like Sopanasangeetam, Mattannoor’s performances are fascinating displays, marked by his deft and powerful strokes. Though well versed in traditional school of music, he remains open to experimentation, thus elevating the aesthetics of Kerala's percussion to greater heights.

Padma Shri

Mattannoor Sankarankutty Marar

Manju

Warrie

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Manju Warrier, classical dancer, playback singer and one of the most popular and successful actresses in Malayalam cinema, was born in 1979. In school, Manju showed extraordinary talent in dance and was conferred the Kalathilakam award in the Kerala Youth Festival for two continuous years. Debuting in cinema at the age of 16, Manju's astonishing performances earned her equal billing with her male superstars.

Apart from the National Film Award Special Mention, she has won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress once and Filmfare Award for Best Actress awards 5 times, a record. After a 14-year sabbatical, the Malayali's all-time favourite actress made a comeback with the film 'How Old Are You', which earned her many laurels, including her fifth Filmfare Award for Best Actress in Malayalam.

Manju Warrier has remained a champion of just causes including women empowerment. Her remarkable description of universal beauty as: 'Beauty that comes from character and self-respect, self-belief or beauty that comes from having ideals and principles.' is considered momentous and the dignified voice of a strong and positive woman. She has also authored a book titled 'Sallapam'.

Manju Warrier

Sab

areesh

Prabh

aker

Sabareesh Prabhaker, violinist extraordinaire from India, was born in 1989 into the musical family of the Cherthala sisters (Malayalam drama artists). At the age of five, he was trained in violin by T. M. Abdul Hazeez and began his professional career at the age of twelve. After completing BA in Music (vocal), he passed MA in Violin with first rank from RLV College of Music and Fine Arts. During this period, he was thrice winner of the Inter-university Arts Festival and also won a scholarship for Violin from India's Ministry of Culture.

In 2016, a cover album created by his band 'Immortal Raaga' was recognised by the BBC in the Radio Play category. A musical purist at heart, he has been invited to team up with percussionists Sivamani and Mattannoor Sankarankutty Marar. Though, he has studied the classical form, he vouches for independent music to engage with new audiences.

Inspired by the technical brilliance of A. R. Rahman's repertoire and the genius of Ilaiyaraaja's compositions, Sabareesh Prabhaker has gone on record to say: “More than film songs, we must know about our culture. I am not diluting what the keertanam is. I am conscious of keeping its purity, and only the accompanying style is different.”

Sabareesh Prabhaker

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