Elamutti-Purappatu is a secular theatre form prominent in the Kerala state of India. This theatre form has a lot of history attached to it. Elamutti-Purappatu is actually not the least important and perhaps the most interesting from a historical point of view. This is a constant source of entertainment conducted in the houses of Ambalavasis generally on the occasion of certain religious domestic ceremonies. This is one condition as regards the place of acting; the only other condition attached to it is that only Ambalavasis and Nam-Putiris are allowed to take part in the performance.

Performance of Elamutti-Purappatu
The nature of the performance is as follows; a number of people, and generally each of them are a good actor in some particular character; sit round a lighted lamp after dinner. Some sort of musical instrument is sounded and one from amongst the party sings a song which is a riddle and asks another member to answer the riddle. If the person questioned fails to answer, the questioner asks him to act the part of any character with or without proper costume. Immediately, he begins to act what he has been ordered. When his is over, the procedure is repeated and the part that the player is called upon to act varies from that of a drunkard to that of the lovesick Bavaria pleading to Sita; care being always taken to see that each person is called upon to play only that character which he can act almost to perfection.

This is a very simple form of domestic entertainment more of the nature of a farce and must no doubt have been a very interesting source of recreation. The name of the variety is interesting. No woman has got place in the actual conduct of the performance, though any one of the players may well impersonate any woman character; yet the term literally means the appearance of seven maids, or hags, to be more literal. One is almost tempted to remember in this connection the Sapta Kanyakas associated with Saivite shrines on the East coast and the "Seven Vestal Virgins of Borne". This latter part becomes historically interesting, when it is realised that the Romans had one of their colonies at the Muziris of old i.e., the modern Granganore. But the absence of a female actor stands in the way of tracing any connection between the two. Apparently one is forced to suggest a new interpretation of the term to take the term as a debased form of "Elamurti" seven characters, probably suggesting the original number of players.