A Bharatanatyam weave of threads spun by 2 Indian visionaries

Comparison between Mahatma Gandhi, the apostle of Satyagraha, non violence and rejection of consumerist culture with an aesthete like Rukmini Devi,acknowledged as the high priestess of India’s post 1930 cultural renaissance, seems rather far fetched. And yet both in their respective spheres were karma yogis.

At first glance, comparison between Mahatma Gandhi, the apostle of Satyagraha, non violence and rejection of consumerist culture with an aesthete like Rukmini Devi, acknowledged as the high priestess of India's post 1930 cultural renaissance, seems rather far fetched. And yet both in their respective spheres were karma Yogis, who worked all their lives for causes dear to them without desiring the loaves of office, Rukmini Devi turning down the offer to be the President of India (she was nominated) for she felt that her work demanding all her time and energy was at Kalakshetra. Deep spirituality pervaded the philosophies of both Mahatma Gandhi and Rukmini Devi - Gandhiji's political vision of non violence and cultural inclusivity sprang from deep rooted spirituality, and Rukmini Devi’s belief was that art sans spirituality had no meaning.

Coinciding with the Mahatma’s 150 years (to be observed all over the country for two years), that a leading art institution like Kalakshetra should spin a Bharatanatyam weave round a theme like “Shanti Sutra” is propitious. To open the eyes of the youth of today being brought up amidst a lot of lip service paid by many sections of people to a museumised Gandhi, revisiting the legacy of  his superb mind which helped shape our nationhood, with icons like Rukmini Devi inspired by his thinking, in  other avenues of art and education, is welcome. Particularly so today when the moral fibre of people in all walks of life seems to be weakening. For Kalakshetra too, subjected to its governance churnings, this theme as its first big production with the new Director Revati Ramachandran having just taken over augurs well.

The Delhi premiere at Abhimanch Theatre of NSD, seemed to attract a modest gathering on the opening day. With Cultural Affairs Ministry support, Revati Ramachandran's concept and artistic direction with art activist V.R. Devika as the resource person provided the foundation. Vocalist Sai Sankar of Kalakshetra composed the music, with dance choreography contributed by several senior staff members.

Apart from Sarva Dharma Saman-waya (regarding all regions as equal), aspects like Swadeshi, the Charkha and Spinning Wheel and Khadi as a means of liberating the Indian from the British colonizer's Manchester cloth snuffing out our weavers' bread earning, Ahimsa, both strongly supported with Rukmini Devi's  bill in parliament for prevention of cruelty to animals initiated in 1953, (passed in the sixties). Her approach to Education, inclusive of Art awareness and multi disciplinary training in arts and crafts, is followed in Kalakshetra.

Strong scaffolding for  the production came from the large troupe of over thirty exquisitely finished  Bharatanatyam- trained dancers, moving with the discipline and coordination instilled through years of rigorous practice, along with the matching quality of the music, by artists for years associated  with  Kalakshetra. The performance narrative largely comprised abstract dance, brief episodic segments elaborating certain points where representational dance in a dance -drama pattern takes over as in the scene where the boastful King  (sarcastic mention of a gold mosquito net to ward off the mosquitoes in Swarga!) is drily told by the saint (munivar) that his dharma is the only possession the dead person takes with him.  Soliloquies in a declamatory fashion by the artistes themselves, elaborating on Rukmini Devi's statements or belief introduced an element of theatre.

 'Aaduraatai' the refrain song epitomizing the country's warp and weft  through  the weave of Khadi through the charkha and spinning wheel, captured very imaginatively in the dance choreography an enmeshing through movements with dancers in horizontal and vertical lines. Rukmini Devi introduced Handloom weaving as one of the main functions of Kalakshetra, the Kalkshetra designs made world famous and coveted even today with the patterns of the "Rudraksham, Kuyil kan, Gopuram."   

The pinnal or plaiting movements with strips of cloth hung from the ceiling spun by dancers movements into various patterns, made for eye catching choreographic geometry. To reaffirm the supremacy of Dharma  (righteousness) was Gandhi the Saviour with his undreamed of moral fibre - and to adorn life with art aesthetics of a sensitive artistic eye, came Rukmini Devi as Saraswati incarnate.

Full of vibrant joy and immediacy, each song ushered in a different tone with not a dull moment. If "Dandalu, Dandalu" evoked a zippy rural flavour with the cow and bullock images, the Tulsi Ramayan segment saw the Rama/Guha episode enacted, and songs like "Vaishnava Janato", "Bharata Desha Hithaya" and "Bhajore Bhaiyya" brought in the nationalistic patriotic flavour . From the Atharvaveda, to Vamakkal Kavignar, to Tulsidas, to Sant Kabir to Swami Dayanand Saraswati the production dipped into poetry from many languages. As for the melodious singing by Sai, and Hariprasad ragas likeNattai,Hamsadhwani,Bilahari,Senjurutti,Maand, Sindhu Bhairavi ( Harprasad's evocative vocal support here)  Bhimpalasi, Durbari Kanada and finally (and metaphorically) Desh,  flowed.

A commendable effort! What the production urgently needs is some drastic editing, to trim it. While the quality of performance could not be faulted, the last half hour drags, with the episodic portions, and segments built round patriotic songs, and even Swami Dayanand Saraswati's song too long drawn. Since the work rests on live music, the entire group of artists can put their  heads together to work out the editing.

REMEMBERING WITH GRATITUDE

The other dance gesture of homage was LalitArpan, the annual event organized by Kathak artist Shovana Narayan, under the aegis of her institution Asavari.  In memory of her late Mother, the greatest influence on her artistic life, apart from her Gurus like Pandit Birju Maharaj, LalitArpan every year takes on a different programme.

As customary, the start at the well filled Stein auditorium, was honouring those selected for the LalitArpan award - Pandit Birju Maharaj, Ustad Iqbal Ahmed Khan the Hindustani classical vocal artist and Akla Raghuvamshi the art curator and writer. Shovana's student Mrinalini, entered with all the right social graces greeting all and thanking her Guru. Her invocation to Goddess Durga alternated fleeting glimpses of the powerful and the gracious qualities of the Devi. The dancer was at her best in the Pancham Savari nritta in 15 matras - the footwork clarity even in the drut laya, as also in the brief parhant impressive. After the Ganesh Kavit and the bandish demonstrating ball play, the nritta finale unfortunately got botched, thanks to Mahaveer Gangani the Pakhawaj player who missing the ending of the bandish and avartan played on after the dancer had stopped. The abhinaya aspect of the young dancer however needs to evolve. The narrative based on the Ramayana, required more of the 'Paurusha' aspect of mascue
power in the bearing of Rama and also in the Swayamvara glimpses and differences in the bearing of Sita and Mandodari. And the music with vocalist Madhav Prasad overdid the special effects becoming more theatre than dance. Abhinaya requires a degree of classical restraint in the music. Shallu Jindal's Kuchipudi comprised well tried items from the repertoire with her training under Gurus Raja/Radha Reddy. Particularly impressive was the singer Amrita singing  the one line , like an endless refrain (one of the most demanding tasks for a vocalist) not allowing the raga or verbal clarity of sahitya to flag.

With Tanjavur Kesavan for mridangam support, Meenu Sunder Rao for nattuvangam, and with melodious flute (Rajat Prasanna) and violin (Sridhar) the musical support left little to be desired. The next item "sason ki mala.." is part of the efforts by Shallu's Guru to introduce ghazals and other poetry in Urdu and Hindi set to Kuchipudi movements, for communicating with  predominantly north Indian audiences. Blended with this was a Hazrat Amir Khusru couplet and the ending "Shyam bane hai Radhika, Radha Bani re Shyam" evoking "the bhakti/sringar flavour of many compositions. But I failed to detect the Meera Bhajan in it, mentioned by the artist. While cleverly set, and well sung by Neha the singer, for me the Kuchipudi flavour does get diminished in these compositions.

Ragini Madan, Shovana's disciple, living and working in London, and continuing with her Kathak needs to be applauded. Performing in the capital after a twelve year gap, her nritta while correct, lacked sparkle. But she triumphed in the Mythili Sharan Gupt poetry as abhinaya in Yashodhara - "Sakhi ve mujhe kehkar jaate" - Buddha's wife Yashodhara bemoaning the fact of the husband leaving her in the stealth of darkness, not realizing that she, if taken into confidence, would have sent him off with a tilak on his forehead for the success of his mission. Ragini's involved presentation moved the audience. Shovana's Lithuanian disciple Doloneena Vilnius  was the highlight of the festival , her Dhamar tala nritta and bold "Durgayai namah" invocation with thata having Durga reminiscent freezes, with her footwork having a good mix of rhythmic syllables combined in silent and accented patterns showing command over the Kathak form. The concluding interpretative item, interwove poetry of Mahadevi Varma "mei Neerabhari du
kh …." and a Lithuanian poet Oni Baaliukone "Tarp Kitke"-  from different parts of the world expressing the same theme of life being largely full of sorrow, though through this, one sees moments which give happiness. Like an intoxicated bee caught in a sticky spider web, I dream of loaded sunsets seen only from inside amidst the silent knowledge that the only certainty in life is death says Oni Baaliukone. Similar is the tone of Mahadevi Varma's poem, where a bird in flight  or raindrops falling bring a feel of joy in a life otherwise full of pain. What amazed, was the sensitivity and refined expressional ability of Doloneena. With an aesthetic costume which flowed with the movements of her body and felt singing by Madhav, her recital had a fulfilling quality in brevity.

The writer is an eminent dance critic