Literature beyond words

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: How nice an idea to pay homage to legendary litterateurs through something beyond words! Significant moments in the works of great Malayalam writers such as Changampuzha Krishna Pillai, Vyloppilli Sreedhara Menon, Pala Narayanan Nair, Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai and Sooranadu Kunjan Pillai are revitalised through projection reliefs and statues erected in various parts of the City. On the sidelines of the ongoing Thiruvananthapuram International Book Fair, the State Institute of Children’s Literature has ventured to try out a  different way of showering veneration on the beloved men of letters.  The venue of the exhibition, the Government Sanskrit College, has projection reliefs with themes carved out of  Changampuzha’s ‘Ramanan’, Vyloppilli’s ‘Sahyante Makan’ and ‘Kakka’, P Keasava Dev’s ‘Odayil Ninnum’ and Thakazhi’s ‘Chemmeen’. Other than these, five more structures are erected at five different points in the city. The story of the damsel and a tiger come alive in front of the College of Fine Arts based on the poem ‘Pennum Puliyum’ by Vyloppilli Sreedhara Menon. The heart-rending moment in Changampuzha’s ‘Vazhakkula’,  where the child screams watching the authorities take away the huge plantain bunch grown on the premises of his home,  is portrayed in the structure raised at Pattom. Karuthamma, the beauty in Thakazhi’s ‘Chemmeen’, is brought to life in a figurine installed at Vellayambalam. A houseboat at East Fort is  a homage to the lines of Pala Narayana Nair in ‘Keralam Valarunnu’, a poem envisioning the development of God’s Own Country.  The heavy tome before the College for Women at Vazhuthacaud pays tribute to Sooranadu Kunjan Pillai, the one who penned the first lexicography in Malayalam. According to Nemom Pushparaj, executive committee member of  the Fair, “this time, the decision was to give nod for artistic structures connecting books and rustic images. Ideas were formulated on this basis.” Suggestions put forward by committee members B Prasad and painter Gopu Pattithara were realised by the team led by artist Hari Peyad. Thermocol and cloth were used for making projection reliefs, says Hari. “To make perfect figures where the  fixtures and adhesives were not visible, the structures were covered with clothes before applying colours,” he says. The team has been choosy in opting the paints applied on the figures. According to Hari, “a mixed combination is used for painting the structure. Enamel that will not fade in sunlight and rain was selected for the exterior to maintain the beauty of the structure.” The  metallic structure of the statues, made with wire mesh and covered with sack and paper is given a fine finish with sponge. It took 20 days of hard work and the effort of 10 employees to complete the figures before the fair was on.