Ottamthullal, over the centuries, has a (mostly) single actor, donning a green make-up and wearing colourful costumes (which once prompted Pt Jawaharlal Nehru to once remark that Ottamthullal is "poor man's Kathakali") and reciting the thullal lyrics (dance songs), all the while acting and dancing himself. The art form has of late found practitioners from among women too, and is occasionally staged as a group dance form with each artiste representing a character in the storyplay.