Indian actor (1916?2021)
Chemancheri Kunhiraman Nair
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Chemancheri Kunhiraman Nair at an event
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Born
| 26 June 1916
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Died
| 15 March 2021
(2021-03-15)
(aged 104)
[1]
Cheliya, Kozhikode district, Kerala, India
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Nationality
| Indian
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Years active
| 1945?2021
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Known for
| Kathakali
performer and teacher
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Chemancheri Kunhiraman Nair
, also known as
Guru
Chemancheri
(26 June 1916 ? 15 March 2021) was an Indian
Kathakali
actor. He spent over eighty years learning and teaching and performing Kathakali, a major form of
classical Indian dance
.
[2]
The
Government of India
awarded him the fourth highest
civilian honour
,
Padma Shri
in 2017.
[3]
[4]
Personal life
[
edit
]
Kunhiraman Nair was raised in the village of Cheliya, near
Koyilandy
,
Kozhikode district
.
[5]
[4]
His mother died when he was only three years old, and then, at the age of thirteen, he lost his father. He had an early interest in the performances presented by visiting drama troupes, and at the age of fifteen, left his home to begin training at a Kathikali centre, some 25 km away.
[4]
[5]
Later, he came to live in
Kannur
, and at the age of 31, he met his life partner, Janaki. After six years of marriage, the couple lost their first-born child, a girl. Janaki died a year later, leaving Nair to raise their one-year-old son.
[5]
Education
[
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]
Nair received Kathakali training under
Gurus
(teachers/mentors) Karunakara Menon, Ambu Panicker, Katathanad Ramunni Nair and Matasseri Kochugovindan Nair. He studied
Bharatanatyam
under Kalamandalam Madhavan Nair, Salem Rajaratnam Pillai and Balachandra Bhai of
Madras
.
[4]
Within the art of Kathakali, he was attracted to the Kallatikkotan of the Kaplingatan
sampradayam
and came to specialise in it.
[6]
Career and teaching
[
edit
]
After many years as a performer, Nair eventually became a teacher of
Kathakali
.
[7]
Nonetheless, he continued as a stage performer for selected roles including the
Srikrishna
Vesham in Santhanagopalam and several dance-dramas seen in
India
. He also choreographed various dance-dramas.
[6]
He said that the role of
Krishna
is his favorite.
[4]
He established an institution named Bharateeya Natya Kalalayam at Kannur in 1945.
[7]
Beginning in 1947, he served as Principal of the Bharatheeya Natya Kalalayam at
Tellicherry
.
[6]
Later, he established another school, Cheliya Kathakali Vidyalayam, in 1983, in Cheliya.
[7]
In addition to Kathakali, he also supported other dance-drama forms, including Ashtapadi Attam, based on the verses of
Gitagovindam
, by the medieval poet
Jayadeva
. Nair, in collaboration with another dance master,
Guru Gopinath
, formulated
Kerala Natanam
, which is based on Kathakali and
Mohiniyattam
, and became a government-recognised dance form in
Kerala
.
[5]
During the celebrations for his 100th birthday,
actor
and
dancer
Vineeth
, performed a
classical dance
as a tribute to Nair, in the name of ‘Krishnaparvam’.
[8]
Death
[
edit
]
Nair died on 15 March 2021 at his residence at Cheliya village near
Koyilandy
at the age of 104.
[9]
[10]
[11]
[12]
Awards and honours
[
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]
References
[
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]