Nine years ago photo artist K.R. Sunil saw a fascinating chavittunadakam performance by a group from Chellanam, a coastal village near Kochi, which stayed true to its original form in 16th century. A form of theatre which originated within the Latin Catholic community of Kerala, chavittunadakam resembles Europe's opera, and features glittering costumes that resemble Greco-Roman style robes, intricate gestures, and rhythmic music. The stories are mostly heroic tales of Christian warrior kings of the Roman Empire.
The performance, involving fisherfolk and daily-wage workers, profoundly affected Sunil. So he became a frequent visitor to their village and homes. He recognised the stark contrast between their roles as royals and the harsh reality of living in extreme poverty, with their houses getting flooded frequently. Sunil observed that these men and women, who do the least damage to nature, unfortunately, bear the maximum brunt of climate change and environmental degradation. "So instead of their royal backdrops, I placed them in front of their own flooded houses," said the photo artist. And that led to his photo series Chavittu Nadakam: Storytellers of the Seashore, which is currently being displayed at Contextual Cosmologies, an art exhWWibition in Thiruvananthapuram, showcasing works of 44 artists from Kerala.
Curated by Anushka Rajendran, Bose Krishnamachari, Premjish Achari and Sujith S.N., the show is being held at the College of Fine Arts Thiruvananthapuram, which was established in 1881. Krishnamachari, the director of Kochi-Muziris Biennale, did the scenography, crafting, and designing for the show that features artworks of various mediums and sizes. Originally conceived as one of Krishnamachari's four projects for Keraleeyam 2023-a festival being organised by the Kerala government to showcase the state's achievements-the show will continue till December 31.
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