“Kathakali” & Virtual Reality: An Experiment

Abstract

Virtual reality (VR) is a computer technology or computer-mediated technology that duplicates the real environment by simulating the user's physical presence and environment in a way that allows the user to interact with it. The current study details a virtual reality experiment conducted to study the immersive virtual experience of Kathakali. The experiment was carried out among 33 participants (general audience) of the Red Beard Festival, a renowned Kathakali performance festival in Kerala. The performances were recorded in Insta 360 camera and projected the visuals in a Head-Mounted Display (HMD). The Virtual Experience Questionnaire (VEQ, v2) developed by Tcha-Tokey et al. (2016) was administered to evaluate the user experiences of Kathakali in virtual reality. The key variables included presence, engagement, immersion, flow, emotion, skill, judgement, experience consequence, and technology adaptation. Statistical analysis suggested nearly half of the participants had prior awareness regarding virtual reality, however, only a few participants had prior virtual experience of Kathakali. The range of scores obtained for engagement and immersion was found to be relatively consistent with the other components. Correlation analysis indicated significant positive and negative associations between various components of immersive virtual experience.  Females were found to have immersed more in skill-based experiences, whereas males were found to have higher judgement and technology adoption. Significant differences were found in judgement, experience consequence, and technology adaptation of the participants hailing from different localities. No significant differences were found in the immersive virtual experience of participants belonging to different age and education groups.