By Narasimhan Vijayaraghavan
This piece is born of a ‘challenge’ thrown by a mischievous friend. “You write on whatever takes your fancy. Law, literature, cricket, politics, music et al. You mused on Margazhi music and on Ramjannabhoomi Temple.I throw a ‘challenge’ to you to write a piece on a solo dance performance, while being the ignoramus you are, on all things Bharathanatyam”.
It so happened that there was this dance performance on 24th Jan,2024 at 17.00 hrs, under the auspices of Tyaga Brahma Gana Sabha, at Vani Mahal, T Nagar, Chennai. Never once to duck a chance to write, one wrote.
While compiling or musing on Margazhi music, one was tempted to transgress into dance too, as Chennai Margazhi season encompasses dance too. One refrained to go to print, as music’ musings were on the anecdotal plane. Flowing in British English may do the trick. But dance would be tricky even to a compulsive muser. Yet, what one wrote, came in handy to fill this ‘challenging’ space.
Bharatanatyam, a classical dance form of India, is not merely a sequence of elegant movements and mesmerizing expressions. It is a living tapestry woven with threads of history, spirituality, and the essence of Indian culture. For centuries, this dance has served as a potent medium for storytelling, evoking emotions, and transmitting the rich heritage of India from generation to generation.
The roots of Bharatanatyam can be traced back to the ancient temple sculptures and frescos of South India. Its theoretical framework stems from the Natya Shastra, a 2nd-century treatise on performing arts, attributed to the sage Bharata Muni. This text meticulously details the different aspects of dance, including its spiritual significance, technical nuances, and expressive potential.
Bharatanatyam is a dance of contrasts. It seamlessly blends the fire of powerful adavus (footwork) with the grace of sinuous movements of the hands and torso. The intricate footwork, punctuated by rhythmic stomps and glides ( I love this Nadia Commaneci like gymnastics’ patterns) tells tales of divine beings and earthly creatures. The expressive eyes and mudras (hand gestures) paint vivid pictures, narrating epics and conveying emotions, from love and devotion to anger and sorrow (not difficult to fathom even by dunces).
The repertoire of Bharatanatyam is as diverse as the Indian landscape itself. From the devotional pieces invoking Hindu deities to the playful alarippus (invocatory dance) and the vibrant thillana (culminating piece), each item showcases a unique facet of Indian culture. (Heard it a thousand times to literally memorise it, with ease).
Carnatic music, with its soulful melodies and rhythmic beats, serves as the lifeblood of the dance, further accentuating its storytelling prowess.In the face of rapid modernization, globalization and social media skews and hypes, Bharatanatyam stands as a resilient symbol of India’s heritage.
I refrain from indulging more, lest I am accused of plagiarism, which I am never in need of.
The young law student, a madly passionate dancer ( I know) eased into Mallari which is a rhythmic passage of solkattu (wordless syllables) set to a specific raga (melody) and tala (rhythm) (I have been told this so many times that it is now ‘Jack & Jill’, even for me).
It is a traditional part of Bharatanatyam. Mallari is usually performed at the beginning of a Bharatanatyam performance, as a way to invoke the gods and goddesses and to prepare the dancer and the audience for the dance to come. (This much I know, from years of filling a seat, most times, By Orders).
Then, it was time for ‘Mathey Malayathe’ Varnam. It is a varnam composed by the great Carnatic musician, Harikesanallur Mutthuswami Bhagavathar. It is a beautiful and lyrical composition that is often performed in dance recitals. ( Excuse me, I have seen, heard enjoyed it multiple times by multiple artistes from Bharatha Natayalaya itself, an academy founded by Kalaimamani Roja Kannan in 1987, to which the solo dancer belongs).
After a fourteen year Vanvas like gurukula training, she had to delight the ‘sparse’ audience (friends and family who religiously reciprocate, by unfailingly attending the respective children’s performances. You can almost count and identify the same set of 50/60 among them, who hail each other with familiarity, as if a mutual admiration society. Typically, I go solo, you see).
Then, multi-faceted Lakshminarayanan Bhuvaneshwari, a fellow dancer, announced ( her diction, delivery and eclectic phrases were on song and dance) that the artiste would tap into a Padam and a Thillana to conclude. If I go beyond and comment on them, as if all knowing, I am likely to flounder, beyond what I may have already. There is a limit to my remit. Even Art.142 of the Constitution of India meant to do ‘complete justice’, has its limits.
I had a sneak peek to come to know, from a variant of eavesdropping, as it were, to hear and read that the dancer’s Guru Roja Kannan on the Nattuvaangam, Vidhushi Radha Badri, the singer, Vidwans R Kalaiarasan on the violin and Nellai D Kannan on Mirudangam, were ‘all praise for the dancer’s solo recital for displaying confidence, maturity and prowess, beyond her years, in gained dexterity from dedicated training’.
Sensibly, I end the ‘challenge’ there.
If I say more, I may spoil the ‘challenge’, for I may be ‘displaying’ my ‘mature’ ignorance and total lack of ‘prowess’ in knowing the nuances,in all things Dance!
(Disclaimer : The solo dancer – Ranganayaki Vijayaraghavan- is my younger daughter. So, meet this ‘challenge’ with loads of salt & pepper too)