Kathakali

Kathakali

Kathakali

Kathakali

This is Kathakali, a classical dance form from Kerala. Straddling the shores of the Arabian Sea in India's southwest, Kerala bears more affinity to distant Bengal, than it does to any of the neighboring states, in its lush green landscape and peoples' yearning to offset this lushness with the lightest of colours on their own costumes.

Most temple-related rituals of which Kathakali is one form, are conducted through rich colours. In Kathakali the faces are usually painted with organically derived and organically coloured materials. The white on the face is a paste made out of rice flour, the red is vermilion mixed with turmeric, the black is the soot gathered from the light of an oil lamp. The use of red on the Kathakali dancer's face usually symbolizes evil purposes / evil characters. Saints in Kathakali naturally then, would use more sublime colours. And so on.