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Krishnan Nair is the first offspring of Kalamandalam. Hailing from North Malabar he learnt the rudimentary lessons of Kathakali under Guru Chandu Panickar at the Varanakkottu Mana near Kannur. Vallathol brought him to Kalamandalam in 1930 where he recieved rigorous training in Kathakali under the titan Pattikkaamthoti Ravunni Menon. As he grew up Krishnan Nair was carried away by the grace and emotive acting of Thakazhi Guru Kunjukkurup who was in Kalamandalam as a favourite performer. Krishnan Nair left Kalamandalam in the early forties and moved to south Kerala. He was soon to become the most popular free-lance artiste in Kathakali. He combined stylized and realistic acting in presenting almost any one of the Kathakali characters. Endowed with an expressive face, elegant appearance and a romantic-cum-humorous approach to characters Krishnan Nair easily became a mega-star in Kathakali. He was more at ease with highly emotional characters like King Nala, Rukmaangada and the major brahmin characters than with technically disciplined characters such as Dhramaputra, Raavana and Narakaasura. Krishnan Nair, who won many titles and honours like Padmashree and Central Sangeet Natak Academy Award, passed away at the age of 78. The latter part of the history of Kathakali in the twentieth century has a lot to comment on the sterling performances of Krishnan Nair and his immense popularity.
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