3. Dr. Rajesh Komath

Abstract 03: Dr. Rajesh Komath

Ethnographic I

Dancing Theyyam in north Malabar, Kerala

This paper will narrate the experiential note of Theyyam dance done by the researcher/performer in its traditional sacred space of Kavus in north Malabar. It will delineate the theyyam, and its meaning in the context of its veneration in a specific Kavu called Mandamullathil, near Thalassary in Kannur district. The researcher/performer was traditionally entitled to perform the theyyam as a ritual and as his castes’ service in the village social structure. Thus, doing this ritual is obligatory. Apart from already available literature on theyyam in varied disciplinary angles, this paper tries to approach this dance/ritual/performance/cult/ or festival by delving into an auto-ethnographic method, which explains not only its socio-cultural dimension but also the self, family, society and its norms and obligations, dominant and subordinate relations within this space through a life sketch of the performer who happened to be done the roles of dancing theyyam. This type of narratives has significance as it is not completely about ‘others’ which generally ethnographers do in writing culture. This has taken care of following three aspects in writing i.e. a) the researcher is the complete member of social world he/she studies. b) the researcher’s active presence in the text he/she produces. c) Researcher should be able to understand the social processes and be able to come with an argument. With an intimate understanding of the object of study, it could unearth socio-cultural and emotional aspects of the Theyyam dance in Kavus and bring forth its labour of preliminary rites and roles in the family of theyyakkaran. The changes it has undergone in terms of its devotees, nature of patronages and its time-space determined pressures will be addressed in this narrative of the self in relation to others. Thus, it depicts a picture of a subaltern performers and their journey as a group to one Kavus to another, for dancing theyyam until its season end in April.