Kathakali: Make-up and Costumes
Known as Chutti, Kathakali make-up is a majestic art in itself requiring the specialty of a trained make-up man called a Chuttikaran. The make-up process is a very lengthy and elaborate one and depending upon the complexity of the character it can take as long as three to four hours. During the span of this time, the make-up man applies the rice paste layer by layer upon the actor’s face and slowly fills in the remaining colors. Meanwhile, the Kathakali artist takes advantage of the time to meditate upon his character, fully immersing himself into the person he will be playing for the upcoming performance. Once the make-up is finished, the artist wraps himself in yards of starched cloth and silk creating a bulbous skirt-like bottom which is so characteristic of Kathakali costumes. In addition, a powder of crushed contappuvu seeds is added to the artist’s eyes giving it a reddish tint and thereby accentuating his bhava or a character’s state of being as revealed through his facial expressions. Later on, other minor accessories are also added such as fangs for actors playing an evil ‘red bearded’ character or a set of long fingernails on the left hand to highlight the visibility of the Kathakali mudras or its extensive gestures-language. Most importantly however is the decorative crown placed upon the artist’s head. The golden headset carved from wood and gleaming with its various jewels and beads represents the valor and the widely ranging natures of the different characters in Kathakali. Lastly, just before entering the stage the actor always remembers his guru- an act of devotion and respect for his lineage of performance. The make-up types in Kathakali fall into six main classes, namely pacha, kathi, thadi, kari, minukku, and theppu and reflect upon the nature of the character or characters it serves. The brilliant colors of Kathakali are borrowed from Kerala’s beautiful landscape. 1. Green (Pacha): are for the heroic, kingly and divine types and also the most refined among male characters is the predominant color of Kerala’s lush forests. Their faces are usually painted a vivid green, their lips a bright coral red, and their eyes and eyebrows outlined with large black markings. A white outer frame sets off the green base, reflecting this type’s basic inner refinement and the stylized mark of Vishnu is painted on forehead with a yellow base and markings of red and black. The most characteristic colors of the outer garments are upper red and lower white skirts. Two side panels highlight the red motif for the lower body. Majority of the characters in this class wear highly jeweled medium size crown. A few wear a special vase-shaped crown with a short tuft of peacock feathers on top. Decorated with silver, this special crown (muti) is worn by Krishna. 2. Knife (Kathi): Kathi is associated with characters that are arrogant and evil, but who also have a streak of nobility. They wear the same make-up as the green (pacha) characters as well as the same crown. The arrogance and evil is illustrated through the upturned red mustache (knife shape popular in Kerala) framed by white rice paste and also have white knobs on the tips of their noses and their foreheads. Duryodhana in Duryodhana Vadham is an example of Kathi. 3. Beard (Thadi): There are three distinctive types in this class: Chuvanna Thadi (red beard), Vella Thadi (white beard) and Karutha Thadi (black beard). These characters are distinguished with a special colored beard that indicates the underlying nature and behavior. Red Beards; borrowed from the red colored soil of the midland Kerala are vicious and vile characters whose faces are painted black on the top half and red on the lower. They have enormous white paper mustaches which extend up to the ears and wear huge circular red crowns. They have larger knobs on their nose and foreheads than the Kathi characters. Dussasana in Duryodhana Vadham is an example of Chuvanna Thadi. The white beard represents a higher, divine type of being. Hanuman, the monkey-man of divine nature, is the main character in this group. His make-up with red, white, and black facial patterns suggests that of an animal. The patch of green on his nose illustrates that he is pious and virtuous. He wears a flurry coat and wide-brimmed head-dress. Borrowed from the black color of the granite rocks in the Kerala highlands, the Black Beards are the character-types of primitive beings: the wild hunters and forest dwellers. Their faces are painted black with red and white patterns. They wear a flower on the tip of their noses, and on their heads they have bucket-shaped black heard dresses with peacock feathers, called Karimuti. 4. Kari (Black): These female characters are the demonesses the most gruesome figures on the Kathakali stage. Their faces are jet black with dotted red and white marking on them. They wear comic false breasts and have the same bucket-shaped head-dresses and black costumes as the black beard characters. 5. Minukku (Radiant) is the color of the golden sand beaches. This class symbolizes gentleness and high spiritual qualities. The female minukku characters are the heroines and male characters are messengers, sages, and Brahmins. The costume is very simple and the face is painted a warm yellow tint hence the term radiant. Costumes for this class are close to the traditional everyday dress in Kerala. 6. Special (Theppu): The final category is a catch-all class which includes approximately eighteen characters from the active repertoire of plays that do not fit in any of the above types. Rowdra Bheema in Duryodhana Vadham falls into this category. References: Zarrilli Phillip B. 2000 ‘Kathakali dance-drama’ Routledge Bolland, David 1980 ‘A guide to Kathakali ‘National Book Trust, New Delhi
