Poorakkali

Understand

Where Poorakkali comes from

Poorakkali is a folk-martial-dance of the North Malabar region of Kerala, particularly associated with Payyanur in Kannur district. The form draws directly on the body-training, footwork and choreographic vocabulary of Kalaripayattu — the indigenous martial art of Kerala — and is performed by men (and in modern practice also by women) trained in kalari. A more competitive variant, Marathukali, involves two parties performing against each other and disputing the choreography — disputes of skill rather than hostility. Poorakkali is performed at temple festivals and at community gatherings during the harvest season. The art form was inscribed in the cultural festivals of the Kerala Folklore Academy and the state-level School Kalolsavam.

How it's practiced

Poorakkali is performed by men standing in a circle, each with a drawn sword, performing vigorous martial movements — high kicks, jumps, leaps, low crouches, sword display — in time to the heavy rhythm of the chenda drum. Certain rituals are performed before the dance begins. The choreography draws on the eight southern kalari martial stances (vadivu) and on the footwork sequences of Kalaripayattu. Costume is the traditional warrior's red-and-gold headdress (often the Kathakali-style mukutam), white loin-cloth and ornamental chest-belt. The Marathukali variant adds two competing troupes whose displays are punctuated by learned disputation, in a competitive but non-violent exchange.