The nila campus was the third venue of kalamandalam since it’s inception in 1930. 5 years after its establishment, the facility at Ambalapuram (former venue), grew to be in sufficient to support the quickly expanding kalamandalam. Therefore sri Vallathol and sri Mukunda Raja decided to re-locate kalamandalam to a much larger facility. Vallathol identified a densely wooded patch of land along the banks of the river Nila. After tireless fundraising campaigns, discussions with the Cochin government, the 6 acre grove was handed over to kalamandalam. The old dilapidated building that existed in the property were not habitable. Once again Vallathol and Mukunda Raja embarked on a fund raising journey. With the money so collected the old buildings were renovated and temporary kalaries constructed with mud walls and thatched roofs. In 1935 kalamandalam was relocated to the new venue near the river Nila. For three years the students and teachers of kalamandalam lived in the makeshift buildings and in 1937, on the 8th anniversary of kalamandalam’s inception and the occasion of Vallathol’s 60th anniversary the new building was inaugurated.
To this day the same building exists, at the Nila campus (as it is called now), but has been converted into the centre for Master’s degree and doctoral studies. The lush and serene ambience still continues to provide the quietness and solitude, ideal for nourishing art and thought, just like in the days of Vallathol.
There are 3 kalaries in the campus, a portrait gallery and across the road is the Vallathol museum. In June 2007, kalamandalam was declared a deemed university. Since then, the old campus of the institution bordering the river Nila came alive. In the Nila campus, post-graduate program and M.Phil in three art disciplines viz. Kathakali, Kutiyattam and Mohiniyattam are in full swing.
Students of the graduate and post – graduate programs are often included in the performance troupes of kalamandalam. This gives the talented ones opportunities to hone their skills in the respective art forms.
Located along the banks of the River Nila, just two kilometres from the main campus, stands the Nila Campus, the old campus of Kalamandalam, still carrying the spirit of Vallathol Narayana Menon’s dream. It is here that post-graduate and PhD students continue their advanced studies in Kathakali, Kutiyattam, Mohiniyattam, Carnatic Music, and Kathakali Chenda.
Designed in accordance with the concepts of Vastuvidya (the traditional system of Kerala architecture), the campus merges seamlessly with its natural surroundings, offering the same peaceful atmosphere that once inspired Vallathol himself. Eight kalaris (classrooms) stand here, each a testament to the traditional sustainable building practices of Kerala. The campus also houses Kalamandalam’s first outdoor performance stage, and an indoor theatre-cum-seminar hall, both of which hold memories of illustrious performances by the maestros of yore.
Overlooking the Nila is the Vallathol Samadhi, the final resting place of the great poet and his wife, the visionary who made the Kerala Kalamandalam a reality and his lifelong companion.
