Presented here is an excerpt from a Poorakkali performance. The dancers recite the story of Kalayanasougandhika, an eventful chapter from Mahabharata, the great Indian epic. An angry Bhima asks Hanuman: ‘Haven’t you heard of my might?’. Hanuman replies: ‘Where was your might when Dussasana tried to undress publicly your beautiful wife?’

Poorakkali is a ritual art form of Kerala. This dance is performed as a ritual at many temples dedicated to Goddess Devi in the Kannur and Kasaragod districts of the state. Only men do the dance and the performance is around a lighted traditional lamp.