Kerala II Kathakali by MF Husain

Husain fills the canvas with the theatre of Kathakali, Kerala’s classical dance-drama. Figures emerge in red and black, faces masked, eyes fierce, costumes heavy with ritual. The scene is framed like a stage, yet Husain makes it pulse like living tradition.

Heavy black lines weld the forms together, while oranges, yellows, and reds flare like lamps in performance. The background stays charged, allowing the actors to dominate. Short strokes for headgear, eyes, and hands capture the gestures that define Kathakali’s language.

Malayalam script appears as an ornament near the stage, giving the picture a local voice. For those who cannot read it, the letters still dance as a visual rhythm. Husain presents Kathakali not as a museum piece but as modern spectacle, a drama India shares proudly with the world.

This serigraph is a bridge: a local theatre made visible to global eyes. The painting is both Kerala’s pulse and Husain’s cinema, a reminder that storytelling in India wears many costumes.