When poetry meets dance

Balancing a full-time career and a passion for dance may be a challenge for some, but for renowned Bharatnatyam dancer Kavitha Ramu, it is simply par for the course. The dancing maestro, who also has a full-time career as District Revenue Officer in Tamil Nadu, handles office duties and dance recitals with equal grace. “My mother put me in dancing classes when I was very young and by eight I had fallen in love with Bharatnatyam and was already performing,” says Kavitha. “I pursued both an academic and dance career. Now, I simply keep my recitals on the weekends. It is a little taxing in the peak season during November and December but otherwise it is not that challenging for me.”

With a career that spans over two decades, the dancer has definitely made her mark in the Indian classical dancing scene. She is all set to present an evening of dance and poetry at her dance programme Kadhambam — A Melage of Poetry in the city on July 16.

“Kadhambam is not the flower that blooms in monsoon but rather the Tamil word for a garland of colourful flowers,” she is quick to clarify. “I will be performing to some of my favourite works of Tamil poetry, which will be interspersed with bols and swaras.” Poetry is only one of Kavitha’s inspirations. She looks back to her gurus Neela Krishnamurthy and K.J. Sarasa and the famous danseuse Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam as some of the biggest influences on her dance.

Although a purely classical artist herself, Kavitha is very welcoming of the more contemporary styles of dance. “It is a very healthy practice and a lot of people who would not go for a pure Bharatnatyam performance might go for a contemporary dance performance. The dynamic nature of the dance form ensures that it has a bigger audience. You can also give expression to a wider variety of themes by infusing western and contemporary elements to the original form,” she adds.

Kavitha will be performing on July 16, 7 pm onwards at Little Theatre, NCPA, Nariman Point