Kaathilola??? Nalla Thaali!!!!

Kaathilola???

Nalla Thaali!!!!

This was a dialogue I heard in childhood narrated by my Malayalam teacher while teaching us about Ottam Thullal, a renowned art form of Kerala. Ottum Thullal was devised overnight by the great Kunjan Nambiar in an attempt to give a fitting reply to his friend /teacher Chakiar who made fun of Nambiar while enacting Chakiar Koothu, an art form which was famous in those times. In Chakiar Koothu they had the license to make fun of the audience and even the king through their slokas.

Kunjan Nambiar called his new art form Ottam Thullal and used poems in simple Malayalam words to convey his satirical thoughts and ideas. “Ottam Thullal” when translated would mean ‘Running Jumping’. The performer sings the poems himself on stage and enacts them too. There’s a lot of energy required to enact it which is also imbibed into the audience. The performer makes use of every opportunity to satirize the society and his audience.

My mother told me these four lines which she said is oft repeated in Thullal,

“Ottam thullalil palathum parayum

Athu kondaarkkum paribhavamaruthu

Angine paribhavam undaayaal thanne

Ividoru chukkum varuvanilla”

It means,

“In thullal many unpleasant things may be said.

No one should feel offended by those comments.

Even if you feel offended, no one is going to care

And nothing is going to happen here about it.”

Sounds callous but when someone is made fun of, it is amusing for others in the audience.

Once, Kunjan Nambiar was on a morning stroll with his learned friend. They happened to confront the queen and her maid who were going to take bath in the temple tank with Thaali leaves in hand.

[Thaali is a plant whose leaves when crushed, give a thick juice which is a good shampoo for the hair. There were lots of Thaali plants in our backyard when I was small and I loved to eat its berries which turn a deep purple when ripe. Hibiscus leaves are also used as Thaali.]

Kunjan Nambiar seeing the beautiful damsels looked at his friend and said loudly, 

“Kaathil Ola” [Studs in the ears]

The friend immediately reciprocated “Nalla Thaali” [Good shampoo].

The unsuspecting queen and her maid thought that the scholars were in a frivolous mood in the morning and had commented upon their beautiful ear studs and shampoo in hand. They quietly went ahead.

Kunjan Nambiar and his friend must have had a good laugh behind them for what Kunjan Nambiar asked in Sanskrit was,

“Kaa Athi Lola?”, meaning “Who is the pretty one?”

And the friend’s reply was “Nallath Aali”, “The maid is better.”