An evening spent dwelling into the lives of the women, who have been dancing to the beats of the dholki for centuries.
The poise of the navvari sari accentuating the curves, the simplicity of the low bun, the authority of the big red bindi and the glamour of the necklace, earrings, payal and the kamarpatta — the backstage of a Lavani performance has remained unchanged for over 500 years. This, and several other facts is what you will discover with Savitri Medhatul, theatre actor-director and filmmaker, in her talk.
“To be honest, I don’t really know what it is that fascinated me about Lavani — I was very young back then. At that point, I loved looking at these women because they were simply so beautiful and were able to mesmerise a whole room alone.”
The art of Lavani is one of the many foundations of the Maharashtrian culture. Traditionally a combination of song and dance, Lavani is performed to the beats of a dholki. Even today, it is an extremely popular art form in Maharashtra, and its roots can be traced back to 1550, when the Peshwas ruled. Over the years, popular Lavani poets have dealt with varied subject matters in their songs — society, religion, politics, and romance. Erotic in nature, the tamasha is a thrilling encapsulation.
However, Savitri thinks that the way Lavani dancers are portrayed in pop culture is flawed. “These women are the breadwinners of the family — they take care of their family and close relatives, which is easily more than ten people and yet it seems that there are only two possible ways you can portray them. Either the dancer is a weak woman with a sorry past or she is someone who is what you call a vamp — someone after the man’s money and the sole reason for him to go astray.”
Popular Marathi movies such as Ek Hota Vidushak, Pinjara and the comparatively young Natrang confine the portrayal of Lavani dancers within these two categories alone. “Dating back to black and white movies that were based on tamasha, women had the same backstory. In fact, in the movie Pinjara, the Lavani dancer seduces the schoolteacher and becomes the sole reason his downfall, which I believe is a wrong narrative.” This is why Savitri made Lavani her primary subject of study.
“My fascination with the dance form dates to ages ago. And when I completed my post graduation in social communication in 2006, I thought there was no better research subject than this,” Savitri says. A student of Bharatnatyam, Savitri is not only an ardent lover of the dance form, she is simply mesmerised by Lavani. She started off with choosing Lavani as the primary subject for her documentary. To gain a deeper insight into the lives of Lavani dancers, she even stayed back at one of the Sangeet Bari theatres. “When I was staying at Sangeet Bari, I met all these wonderful women who weren’t one bit like how Lavani showed them — they were strong women who were proud of their art form.” Through the years, Savitri spent more and more time researching the art of Lavani and realised that there are innumerable tales that remain untold — tales that she will tell you in the first half of the talk.
“My experiences while researching the subject through all these years are truly unique. In the second half of the evening, Shakuntalabai Nagarkar, doyenne in the field of Lavani, will be delivering a mesmerising performance.”
Out of the many possibilities that can light up your evening, a combination of dance and music is the number one option. Despite the flak it receives, if bits of the 2010 Ajay-Atul hit Wajle ki Bara ring in your ears every once in a while, this is the place to be.
On September 10, 5 pm onwards at Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, 31 A, Rani Baug, Veer Mata Jijbai Bhonsle Udyan, Dr. Ambedkar Rd, Byculla (E)
