Kalamezhuthu

                                           A colourful Ritual Art – Padma Jayaraj

              Undatable and unaging,  kalamezhuthu, is a colourful ritual art. Aboriginal and Dravidian in essence, this is an exclusive art with its own measure and rhythm. Neither miniature nor gigantic in size, the figures in these picturesque designs have the dignity of their own stature and physiognomy. Mysterious yet homely, they take us to dwellings in forests.

             When spells and sorcery were modes of beliefs, gods lived in the super luminous darkness of shrines under giant trees. Ancient homesteads in the tropical Kerala have retained their shrines dedicated to snakes as part of Nature worship. Mother goddess in many temples is still under trees. Ritual worship of the hunter god, Vettekkaran and the tribal god, Sastha is connected with Kalamezhuthu for their traditional form of worship.

        Kalamezhuthu is a ritual connected with drawing on the floor for seasonal festivals in shrines.  Kalam falls under the category of Dhooli chitram (drawings, with coloured powders). Men from certain communities draw Kalam, an elaborate picturesque design. Drawing telltale, stylised figures of gods and demons for temple festivals, is part of the mystical rhythm of our folk traditions.  The carpet-like designs are made of herbal powders. The colours used are white, black, yellow, green and ochre that give a rare vitality with shades of old world magic associated with primitive religions. In Kerala, ritualistic festivals begin from the Malayalam month of Vrihchikam continue through the harvest seasons until the pre- monsoon showers.
 Different Kalams

     Naga kalam for propitiating the serpents is distinct and different from Bhagavathi kalam invoking the Mother Goddess. The worship of the Divine Mother was prevalent from the banks of Nile to the Sindhu  in pre-Vedic times. In kerala, Devi and kali are two aspects of Mother Nature, the creative and the destructive force deeply imprinted in our collective unconscious. The figure of kali with multiple arms, one carrying the bleeding head of a demon evokes primordial fury and fear. The kalams for vettekkaran, the hunter god  and  Sastha, the tribal god illustrate our myths and legends.
 
The rituals