At the forefront of movement-based theatre.

Bhairavan Theyyam

THEYYAM TOUR

Theyyam is a centuries old ritual that takes place only in small villages in the northern part of the Indian state of Kerala. Kerala is a land of coconut groves and paddy fields. Despite its prominence as one of India’s most progressive states, it retains its connection with its traditions in a way that few other parts of the world do.

There are over 300 different types of theyyam. Each has its own costume, make-up, dance steps and drum beats. Many involve death-defying feats such as Theechamundi theyyam, where the performer (possessed by god Chamundi) repeatedly throws himself full length on a huge pyre.

The native peoples of Kerala performed a form of theyyam as early as 500AD. In that time, performers took on the role of local gods to bring prosperity to villagers and to eradicate disease. When the Brahminic invaders from the north invaded Kerala in the eighth century, rather than suppress the tribal rituals that they found, they decided to encourage the theyyam performances, which  were gradually modified to incorporate gods from the Hindu scriptures. Hence, theyyam is a cult in which local deities like Veeran and Kuttichattan share the stage with more established figures like Siva and Vishnu.

One theory goes that this merging of local cultures with Sanskrit traditions was a way of avoiding class conflicts in Kerala. The tribals were mostly designated as lower caste and, even today, theyyam performers are from exclusively ex-untouchable castes like Malayan and Vannan. During a performance, however, a low caste performer became God and hence could interact with and have power over the high-ranking priests and leaders of the village. In this way, theyyam represents a complete reversal of the social caste structure.

Theyyam remains one of the world’s last remaining authentic tribal possession cults. Untainted by commercialization, it retains most of the qualities that encouraged its growth over the centuries. Kerala itself is, like the rest of the world, rapidly succumbing to globalization. However, in the villages of the towns of Kannur and Kasaragod, men, women and children still attend all-night theyyam festivals and ask their gods, in the shape of low caste performers, to grant their children a happy birth or to ensure a good result in the state examinations.

More information on theyyam can be found on the site http://www.theyyam.com. If you are interested in sponsoring a tour of theyyam performers throughout the US, please see the Sponsorship link to the left.

Dweeb Productions