Guru Kunchu Kurup

Who was Guru Kunchu Kurup?

Guru Kunchu Kurup was one of the most famous Kathakali artistes to have born and celebrated in south Kerala, and gained popularity in central and north Kerala as well.

Born in Poypallilkulam family of Thakazhi village of Kuttanad in present-day Alappuzha district, Kurup was initiated into Kathakali at the age of 13 by his own uncles Kochappi Panikker and Rama Panikker. He later joined the famous Kaliyogam of the renowned Mathur Kunhu Pillai Panikker, and subsequently had tutelage under gurus Champakulam Sankara Pillai and Thottam Sankaran Namboodiri. His grooming later under Vechur Ayyappa Kurup paved the way for his entry into the Kochi and Malabar belts.

Kunchu Kurup's marriage with a relative of Palayil Karunakara Menon, a Kathakali exponent living near Palakkad in 1910, cemented his ties with central Kerala. And soon he was made a tutor at the famous Kerala Kalamandalam following an invitation from its co-founder, poet Vallathol Narayana Menon. He later had brief stints as a Kathakali guru in Bangalore and Madras, and later at Chembakassery Natana Kalamandalam in Ambalappuzha, his home territory.