Mani Damodara Chakyar Biography 
Mani Damodara Chakyar is a renowned Koodiyattam and Chakyar Koothu artist from Kerala. He is a nephew and disciple of legendary guru Mani Madhava Chakyar and belongs to the Mani Chakyar tradition of both these art forms of Kerala. He learnt both these art forms in the traditional way for more than 30 years under the direct guidance of his uncle, Mani Madhava Chakyar. He also learnt Sanskrit and Natyashastra the similar way. He holds a master’s degree in Sanskrit and has worked as a Sanskrit teacher in his hometown, Kozhikode. He is an exponent of traditional devotional Koothus and Koodiyattams, such as Anguliyanka, Mattavilasa Prahasana, Mantranka and Ezhamanka (seventh act of Ascharyachoodamani).
He was born in the year 1946 in Kozhikode, Malabar region of Kerala. He was a member of his uncle’s Koodiyattam troupe which performed outside Kerala for the first time. The troupe performed at Chennai in the year 1962. In the performance titled, Thoranayudham Koodiyattam, he played the role of Vibhishana while his guru performed as Ravana. Later he has performed as a part of his uncle’s troupe in New Delhi, Banaras, Mumbai, Ujjain and Bhopal. He has also performed in World Sanskrit Conferences at Banaras, Bangalore and Thrissur.
He has performed both as hero and court jester in Kudiyattams such as Swapnavasavadattam, Naganandam and Subhadradhananjayam. When Mani Madhava Chakyar choreographed Kalidas’ first work, Malakagnimitra and also another noted work, Vikramorvaseeyam, the hero’s role was given to none other than his nephew - Mani Damodara Chakyar. It was for the first time in the history of Kudiyattam that both these works have been choreographed. It was staged at Kalidasa Academy, Ujjain under the guidance of his guru. He was the first Koodiyattam student who received scholarship from MHRD New Delhi and has received numerous fellowships later. He received Kerala Sangeet Natak Academy award in 2000 for his contributions to Chakyar Koothu and Koodiyattam.
Published: N/A
Updated: March 13, 2014
