| Feature | Description | |---------|-------------| | | A chautisa (also spelled chautisa or chautisa ) is a classical Odia (Oriya) poetic form consisting of 34 verses, each beginning with a successive letter of the Odisha alphabet (A‑Z plus a few extra letters). | | Purpose | Historically used for devotional, didactic, or courtly poetry. The alphabetical constraint forces poets to be inventive with diction, meter, and imagery. | | Meter | Typically written in chaupadi (four‑line stanza) or padyā (single line) meters, often adhering to āryā or shikharini prosody. | | Themes | Ranges from Bhakti (devotion to deities) to nature , philosophy , courtly praise , and social commentary . | | Historical Context | Flourished in the medieval period (13th‑17th c.) under the patronage of Odishan kings and later in the Riti‑Kalā (literary‑art) tradition. | | Key Examples | “Brahma‑Chautisa” by Jagannatha Dasa, “Kali‑Chautisa” by Upendra Bhanja, etc. |
"Kala Kalebara Chautisa" is an Odia poetic composition whose title suggests a chautisa form linked to themes of time, disguise, or artistic play (kala = art/time/black, kalebara = possibly "masked body" or "changing form", chautisa = a 34-verse poetic form). This essay outlines the chautisa form, situates the poem within Odia literary tradition, explores probable themes and stylistic features implied by the title, and notes where a PDF or text might be sought for further study. kala kalebara chautisa pdf