{"id":654,"date":"2025-08-06T15:12:55","date_gmt":"2025-08-06T09:42:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/?p=654"},"modified":"2025-08-06T15:14:07","modified_gmt":"2025-08-06T09:44:07","slug":"manganam-rama-pisharody","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/06\/manganam-rama-pisharody\/","title":{"rendered":"Manganam Rama Pisharody"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Manganam Rama Pisharody: A Humble Pillar of Kathakali<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the <strong>Kaliyarangu \u2013 Kottayam Anniversary function of 1980<\/strong>, a moment of crisis turned into a shining example of dedication and talent. The legendary musical maestro <strong>Hyderali<\/strong> was scheduled to perform a grand musical concert. But just as the event was about to begin, it was discovered that the second singer \u2014 responsible for playing the <em>elathaalam<\/em> (a pair of cymbals) \u2014 had not arrived. What could have been a major embarrassment for the organisers transformed into an unforgettable performance, thanks to the timely intervention of a young artist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That young man was none other than <strong>Manganam Rama Pisharody<\/strong>, affectionately known as <strong>Ramanashaan<\/strong>. Known for his exceptional portrayal of female characters in Kathakali, Rama Pisharody rose to the occasion. He not only played the <em>elathaalam<\/em> with mastery but also supported Hyderali as a co-singer, ensuring the program\u2019s success and leaving the audience awestruck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rama Pisharody began his journey in the world of Kathakali at a very young age under the tutelage of <strong>Manganam Krishna Pillai<\/strong>, through the traditional <strong>Gurukula Vidyabhyasam<\/strong>. His versatility allowed him to perform a wide range of roles in Kathakali, but it was in <strong>female characters<\/strong> that his talent truly shone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In addition to acting, he was an accomplished percussionist, proficient in instruments like the <strong>Chenda<\/strong> and <strong>Maddalam<\/strong>. His dedication to the arts led him to establish the <strong>Manganam Sreekalanilayam<\/strong>, an institution devoted to training the next generation in classical arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He shared the stage with legendary Kathakali veterans such as <strong>Kalamandalam Krishnan Nair<\/strong>, <strong>Kalamandalam Karunakaran<\/strong>, and <strong>Kuttan Marar<\/strong>. His leadership qualities and deep knowledge of the art eventually saw him become the <strong>head of Kaliyarangu Kottayam<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This towering figure in Kerala\u2019s cultural scene left us in <strong>1987<\/strong>, but his legacy continues to inspire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In memory of his contributions, <strong>Kottayam Kaliyarangu<\/strong> has been conferring the <strong>&#8220;Manganam Rama Pisharody Award&#8221;<\/strong> for over 25 years, honouring outstanding artists who carry forward the flame of classical tradition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Adding to his artistic lineage, his daughter, the renowned Malayalam poetess <strong>Rema Prasanna Pisharody<\/strong>, continues to enrich Kerala\u2019s literary tradition.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Manganam Rama Pisharody: A Humble Pillar of Kathakali In the Kaliyarangu \u2013 Kottayam Anniversary function of 1980, a moment of crisis turned into a shining example of dedication and talent. The legendary musical maestro Hyderali was scheduled to perform a grand musical concert. But just as the event was about to begin, it was discovered [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":655,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[75,46],"tags":[94],"class_list":["post-654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kottayam","category-legends","tag-legend"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=654"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":656,"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654\/revisions\/656"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/655"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=654"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=654"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/v3.pisharodysamajam.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=654"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}