Koodam's Act. Move. Repeat.

5th May 2023, Show By Koodam, at Honey Kids, Salem

A professionally choreographed, no pompous minimalistic show, showcased some amazing talents both by the kids and the theater team ‘Koodam’. Meticulously planned plays, were executed earnestly by the children. Their enthusiasm reflected in the joyous celebrations of the audience.

The three-week theatre summer camp with kids of varied age group, took the audience by surprise.Their perfection and ease in bringing life to the characters, in such short period of time was unbelievable. The audience were more private, mostly friends and families of the performers. It was a merry evening to watch the plays, amidst the proud parents and the grandparents.

The founder of the theatre group ‘Koodam’, Kamatchi Kaleeswaran https://www.linkedin.com/in/kamatchi-kaleeswaran-338a4751, had interestingly scheduled three beautiful plays. The one hour show had plays from three different genres. The ‘Elves and the shoemaker’ was performed by the tweens, under age 10. ‘Build the wall’ in English, and the Tamil play ‘Kottavi Raja’ that translates ‘The yawning King’, were both performed by the teens.

The aesthetic of converting the foyer of an old building with pillars on both sides, into a stage, gave a new dimension to the milieu. A great way to suspend our disbelief, as the meaning of the theatre group’s name, Koodam in Tamil, ironically means ‘Hall’. The audience were seated in ‘open-air’ outside the old house, facing the veranda. A breezy evening outside the veranda, ‘Thinnai’ in Tamil, took me to my childhood days. I was subconsciously revisiting those fond memories of my visits to my granny’s house- those endless fights during the game sessions and the never-ending laughter, on the ‘Thinnai’ with our cousins, lingered in my ears.

‘The Elves and the Shoemakers’, a Christmas tale, must have reminded the audiences of their school. Majority of the Salem parents are sure to have attended either of the two Christian institutions of the town, before the mushrooming of corporate central board schools. An evening filled with Christmas carol was blissful. Inquisitiveness in children, made them explore all possible emotions that they exhibited in their reactions. It was a delightful watch. The performers were one way or the other familiar, as I either knew their parents or their grandparents. But my eyes were constantly searching for a petite little kid, with chubby cheek and huge bumblebee eyes, with short hair, my darling daughter from her Golden Gates school days. Oh gosh, she isn’t a kid anymore, I sighed. For the first time I felt dejected, that she was a doctor with a PhD in Cancer Genetics.

‘Build the wall’ was a commendable choice. The four actors were phenomenal. Their involvement and understanding of the story’s crux, was evident in their dialogue deliveries. The teens, did bring out the essence of the play. Building walls are the first physical forms of discrimination, in a world that spews hatred.

‘Kottavi’ Raja was a paly from the digital library, story weaver, https://storyweaver.org.in/. It was yet another beautiful presentation in the comedy genre, reminding the Birbal series. The children’s performance was mind blowing. A comedy play, to work on stage, requires enthusiasm from the performers, so it would translate in the audience’s applause. The team nailed it. The body language, the expressions and the voice modulation of all the actors were spot on.

Special mention for the Dramatics tutor at Koodam, Nethra Chandrasekar. Her commitment in bonding with the kids, to bring the best in them did wonders on stage. Her sibling bond with the teens and the tweens, were heart-warming to see. A yoga instructor herself, owning a yoga studio, Yogit, seems to have given the right tweaks, in the postures of the little ones.

Kudos to Kamtchi Kaleeshwaran of ‘Koodam’ for cultivating ‘Theatre’ interest in kids of Salem, a city known for its contribution to the world of Indian Cinema. The birth pace of The Modern-Theaters. The production house established Late MGR, as an ‘action hero’ in its Manthiri Kumari, in 1950, which was directed by Ellis R Duncan.

I take liberty in sharing couple of work from the archives of one of the online course coordinator of ‘Film and Television Institute, India, Mr. Karan Bali’s for our theatre enthusiasts in Salem.