At 15, she entered the stage with a nervous heart and at 40, she rules the entire expanse of it with her inimitable grace and an effortless élan. Many who still remember her arangetram or mancha prabesh back in 1991 had rightly gauged the promising sparks she showcased then and predicted her graph of steady growth to the present date. Bharatanatyam dancer Madhuboni Chatterjee recently celebrated her long journey of 25 years in the world of classical dance with a tapestry of aesthetically choreographed pieces at Kolkata’s G.D. Birla Sabhaghar under the auspices of Jahnavi Centre for Performing Arts.
A focused view of her performance will clearly notify her exhibition as a pure testimony of practiced elegance with powerful abhinaya (acting) being the keystone of her USP. Her strong expressions, her ability to emote each and every word of the rendered lyrics and her confident footwork with a sense of poise and balance easily draw in audiences to her enchanting presentation within a closed space.
Accompanied by a bevy of distinguished artistes like Kalamandalam V.R.Venkit on the nattuvangam (musical instrument in the form of a set of cymbals), Kalamandalam Rajesh Menon on vocals, the mridangam played by S. Surya Sekharan, flautist T. Champak on the wind instrument and Sukhomoy Bhattacharya on sitar, the dance recital came alive through a series of handpicked tales from Hindu mythology and the great epics of timeless appeal.
She began her deliberations with an ode to Lord Ganesha followed with a devotional overture on Lord Rama to impress the discerning spectators in the dark gallery. But after the well-rehearsed opening act, what stood out in her complete display of style and figurative forms is the Dashavatar (disambiguation) as portrayed in renowned Sanskrit poet-lyricist Jayadeva’s magnum opus composition — the epic-verse of Gita Govinda. For instance, Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha, Vamana, Parashurama, Rama, Krishna, Gautama Buddha and Kalki.
Another glittering jewel in her shining crown for the evening was Navaras Nayaki, one of the earliest creations from her laudable repertoire, self-conceptualised, essayed and choreographed in the 90s. The rendition unveiled an array of nine human emotions immortalised through nine cult-heroines culled from our rich cultural treasure-trove. For example, meeting of the Mithila princess Sita with Ayodhya prince Ram in shringar (love, attractiveness) ras, the introduction of a warrior in Manipuri princess Chitrangada as veer (heroic mood) ras, mother Yashoda’s viewing of the whole universe or ‘vishwaroop darshan’ inside a mud-smeared gaping mouth of bal gopal (child version of Lord Krishna) in Gokul as adbhut (wonder, amazement) ras, Mandodari’s (wife of the ten-headed demon King of Lanka, Ravana) show of pity and sympathetic sulking for the estranged and abducted Sita’s distress through karunya (compassion, tragedy) ras, Pandavas’ better-half Draupadi’s mockery of a blindly bedazzled Kaurava prince Duryodhana within the confines of a bizarrely built palace of Indraprastha as hasya (laughter, mirthful comedy) ras, Radha’s risk to step outdoors on a scary stormy night to fulfil a secret assignation with her paramour Krishna in bhayanak (horror, terror) ras, mother Kunti’s glance at the ghastly monstrous woman Hidimba (to be later married to her second son Bhima) in a forest as vibhatsa (disgust, aversion) ras, a vindictive Kannagi’s roudra ( fury) ras to avenge the unfair killing of her husband and last but not the least, the prince of Kapilavastu Buddha’s spouse Yashodhara’s reconciliation to her fate with her final sacrifice and surrender comes in the mould of shanta (peace or tranquility) ras. Sourced from the sacred tomes of the Puranas, these nine women protagonists were carefully strung with a common thread of pain, passion, joy and sorrow which appears so relevant in today’s context.
Trained under the aegis of eminent Guru Thankamani Kutti and Kalanidhi Narayan plus further groomed under the inspirational guidance of Alarmel Valli, Madhuboni has always endeavoured to chart out new directions via the classical route of Bharatanatyam. Having scripted and choreographed several items on esteemed platforms all over the country including India International Centre, Sangeet Natak Academy and Dover Lane Music Conference, Madhuboni has been able to carve her own signature niche in the sphere of performing arts. Among her notable interpretations is Tagore’s immortal classic Raktakarobi (Red Oleanders) in a dance-theatre format. The play is symbolic, written by the Nobel Laureate bard in 1925 and is acclaimed as one of his best literary gems. The drama is bestowed with poignant undercurrents, depicting the conflict between machine and the free human spirit. Madhuboni’s choreographic work on the Bengali original was invited by Central Government’s cultural wing — Indian Council for Cultural Relations — to represent India at an international conference held on Tagore Literature at the Dhaka National Museum in 2011.
