Kedaakanal / Kedakanal

Synopsis

Padayani is a cultural art form based in Central Travancore (Kottayam and Pathanamthitta Districts). While Padayani is conducted in several different villages, Kottangal Padayani is uniquely known to follow Chitta Padayani, a version of Padayani developed by the reisdents of the neighbouring villages of Kottangal and Kulathoor with a competitive spirit, passed on from generation to generation, over the course of hundreds of years. The competitive spirit and the involvement of residents has preserved the essence of the art form and its celebration as it was envisioned centuries ago. The very existence of the culture, its history and the devotion with which it is conducted represents our cultural heritage often denied as a historical void by our former colonisers. Kedaakanal explores the history of the art-form, its cultural effect and the ritual itself, unraveling its very existence to be a form of post-colonial resistance.