Kavungal Chathunni Panicker

Kavungal Chathunni Panicker (1922-2007) was an Indian classical dancer, known for his proficiency in Kathakali, the traditional dance form of Kerala. He was an exponent of the Kavungal School of Kathakali (Kavungal Kalari), noted for its rigorous training methods and overt physical interpretation of abhinaya. He is known to have brought innovations to the dance form, especially in the decorative movements (kalasam) and his contributions are reported in the development of grammar and costumes for the Kavungal School. A recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1973, Panicker was honored again by the Government of India, in 2006, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.

Biography

Kavungal Chathunni Panicker was born in 1922 in the small hamlet of Thichur, near Vadakkancherry in Thrissur district in the South Indian state of Kerala. He started learning Kathakali in 1933, at the age of eleven, under the tutelage of Sankara Panicker, his uncle, where he stayed for three years and later under Katambur Gopalan Nair. His debut performance was in 1936 at the age of 14. Chathunni Panicker died on 29 November 2007, succumbing to illnesses that dogged him for three months, at a hospital in Erumapetty, near his native village of Thichur, leaving his wife, their two children

Awards and recognitions Chathunni Panicker received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award from the Government of India in 1973. This was followed by the Gujarat State Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and Kerala Kalamandalam Fellowship. The next year, in 2004, he received Kerala State Kathakali Award from the Government of Kerala. Panicker, who is reported to have been presented an amulet and medal by Jawaharlal Nehru, former Prime Minister of India, was included in the Republic Day honours list by the Government of India, in 2006, for the civilian honour of Padma Shri.