Talking Hands of Travancore

Talking Hands of Travancore (1981) is a short Soviet animated film you can watch online on iFILM. Directed by Vladimir Pekar and narrated by Innokenty Smoktunovsky, it runs nine minutes.

Kathakali is a form of dance that developed centuries ago along the southwest coast of India, in the kingdom of Travancore. The art is built entirely on gesture — every position of the hands, every shift of the eyes, carries precise meaning. The film traces that language without overexplaining it, letting the movement do the talking. Watch Talking Hands of Travancore (1981) online on iFILM.