Thiruvathirakali

Understand

Where Thiruvathirakali comes from

Thiruvathirakali (also known as Kaikottikali and Kummikali with slight variations) is a unique group dance of women in Kerala, performed especially on Thiruvathira day in the month of Dhanumas (December-January) and on Onam. The dance is performed by women who observe the Thiruvathira Vradam (a women's religious observance), and is believed to bring a long and auspicious married life and a marriage of choice. The dance is older in form than its earliest documentation: the ceremony of Ettangadi (a special ritual meal eaten the night before) and the dance itself have been performed for centuries in Shiva temples across Kerala. The first Thiruvathira after a girl's marriage is celebrated separately as Poothiruvathira.

How it's practiced

Thiruvathirakali is performed by a small group of women in a circle around a lit nilavilakku (brass lamp), singing devotional songs in praise of Shiva and Parvati while stepping and clapping in coordinated rhythm. One woman acts as the heroine and sings the first line, with the ensemble responding to the same line in call-and-response. The movements are deliberately simple so that even the uninitiated can join in, and the dominant mood of the dance is the lasyabhava — the playful feminine. Costume is the traditional Kerala sari and blouse, with the dasapushkas (ten sacred flowers) collected earlier in the day worn in the hair after the midnight Thiruvathira nakshatram. In ancient times the dance was performed for 28 consecutive days from one Thiruvathira to the next; in some places an 11-day program is still held during Dhanumas.