In the Tulu seasonal system, the month of Aati generally falls in the months of July and August. Tulu Nadu will be in a very difficult condition during this month of Aati, due to heavy rain with thunder and lightning, agriculture and plowing works can not be done properly. There was a shortage of food grains due to improper agricultural work and there was a situation where people had to spend days fasting. Apart from
this, the spread of diseases by various insects and worms is also more common during this time. Therefore, inside the beyond, it became taken into consideration as the month of poverty and turned into known as shoonya masa. It is also a month devoted to the memory of ancestors. In the month of Aati, no kind of Bhoota worship, Tambila, Pooja are done and it is believed that the deities worshipped by the Tulu
people will travel above Ghatta. Ati Kalanja is the one who comes when people are worried about who is there to save us from hardships at this time.
Aati Kalanja is a divine spirit that comes to protect Tuluvas from difficulties. It is believed that once upon a time in Tulunad, a disease called Mandemari started spreading widely in the month of Aati, then Nagabermer created Atikalanja to protect the people from the disease. A person from the Nalike community wore disguise as Aati Kalanja visits every house in his village and dances to the beats of Tembere & pāḍdana (folk song) in front of the house. In the Belthangady region, the Mera community people wear the disguise of Aati Kalanja and perform.In Kasaragod district aati kalanja is conducted by ‘KopāLa’ community.
Aati Kalanja is believed to be a power in the form of a boy who can remove hardships. House to house visit of Aati Kalanja begins on the day of Poove (the day preceding the full moon day) and finishes at the end of that month.
Costume is called duttaito in Tulu language. Ati Kalanja’s costumes differ regionally. Usually the disguise of Ati Kalanja is like this: In one hand he holds an umbrella made from the leaves of a species of palm tree called paNe and in the other a bamboo stick, around the neck he wears an ornament known as puNDai in Tulu. On the back and on the chest he wears tassels made of split pieces of tender palm leaves, this is called chavari in Tulu. He ties an entity to their waist named ‘siri/tiri’ which is made up of tender leaves of coconut tree, cut horizontally as narrow strips. He wears an ornament called Kainaage to wrists. A yellow orpiment (aradaLa) is applied to the face with black, white and red dots on it. a white horizontally Thilaka is drawn and a red dot on the forehead is also applied. He also wears a saffron colored beard and moustache. He ties his hair as a knot above the head and a cap made up of the spathe of an areca nut branch is placed above the head, this cap is decorated with Kepula flower, this hat is called muDale in Tulu. A kind of crown-like ornament worn on the forehead or head is sometimes worn instead of the muDale, this crown is called tarepaTTo in Tulu. The dancer wears a red colored dress which is called Challano in Tulu, this dress has drawings of the Sun and the moon at the back. In Front of ears, he wears ornaments which are called kebimaNi in Tulu. This ornament resembles the structure of the ears. He wears jingling bells to his leg.
As mentioned earlier, Aati Kalanja’s costume varies regionally. In the Sullia region, Aati Kalanja wears a mask made up of the spathe of an areca nut branch. In the Belthangady region, Two Atikalanja dancers visit houses, their bodies are applied with clay and wear a crown made of flowers on her head.
Dance of Aati Kalanja:
Dance of Aati Kalanja takes place in the courtyard of the house. Aati Kalanja is accompanied by a man who plays the tembere and sings paddana to dance the Kalanja.
kaḷeṃje kaḷeṃjenō kaḷeṃje
erena maganō kaḷeṃje
māyāṃtarasu mage kaḷeṃje
amme bermerō kaḷeṃjag
appe māṃkāḷī
Ati Kalanjana Paḍdana provides information about Kalanjana. As he sings paddana and starts playing the Tembere, Kalanja rotates the umbrella in his hand and starts dancing with the stick in his other hand. At the end of the dance, he stops by
knocking the tembere loudly twice or thrice, saying, “Take all the evils and diseases of animals, humans, dogs, cats, chickens and cattle and throw them in the sea of the west”.
After the dance is over, a member of the house brings Kurdi water prepared by mixing lime and turmeric powder, rice, paddy, cucumber, coconut, tamarind, pepper, jaggery seed, betel leaves, areca nuts, charcoal and turmeric in a winnowing pan. All the ingredients brought in the tadpe are put by the person who played Tembere in his sack. A flat metallic plate (Harivaana) is filled with Kurdi water and a burning wick soaked in oil is placed at its front-edge, then waving of plate in circumambulation in front of (Aarati) Kalanja is done. After Aarati is over, half of the Kurdi water filled in the plate is put on the feet of Kalanja and the remaining half is spilled to the outward path of the house when Kalanja returns. In some places, Aati Kalanja takes a tree branch, bunch of bananas or any plant with him on his return, it is believed that by doing this Kalanja will take away all diseases.
Some lines from Aati Kalanjana Padda are given here.
- kaḍeṁje kaḍeṁjenō kaḍeṁje
- kaḍeṁje kaḍeṁjenō kaḍeṁje
- Āṭiḍú puṭṭoṁḍe kaḍeñje sōṇoḍú balattoṁde
- nāgabermere sāpoḍú kaḍaṁje puṭṭoṁḍe
- keṁci gaḍḍa nā kaḍaṁje kesari gaḍḍa nā
- ūrugú jattoṃde kaḍāmje mārin kaḷevoṃḍe
- kaḍaṁje kaḍaṁje kaḍaṁje nā
- sōṇa muppadina kaḍaṁja magaḷe illāṇḍā
- āṭi muppadina kaḍaṁja māmi illāṇḍā
- pani pani barsog kaḍaṁjag pannetatrāṇḍa
- kaḍeṁje kaḍeṁje nā kaḍeṁje
- kaḍeṁje kaḍeṁje nā kaḍeṁje
Author: Mithun D | Published on: 2 Oct, 2022