BENGALURU: Bringing together the variety of Indian languages on one platform, this Kathak dance performance can be enjoyed in a variety of languages, including Kannada. Rang Manch which will be performed by Shoma Kaikini Singh and Harshvardhan Singh, aims to celebrate traditional art forms and bring to life the ‘surreal’ magic of Indian classical dance and music.
In a conversation with City Express, Shoma said, “The performance is going to be in pure Kathak (Todas, Parans, Tehais), in two Taals (Teentaal and Jhaptaal), and will also explore the diversity of Tandav and Lasya or male and female. There will also be a special ‘abhinay’ (piece), which will be performed to the classical Kannada song, Krishna Ni Begane Baro. This will also merge with a Hindi composition on Lord Krishna; once again bringing out the beauty in diversity of language.”
The performance will be accompanied by live tabla and sarangi, which she says, is rare in Bengaluru, where harmonium and vocals are used most often. The musicians will be travelling from Mumbai for the performance. “They are originally from Banaras,” she said adding that her ‘abhinay’ in Kannada is going to be challenging, since Kathak is supposed to be performed in Hindi or the Brij bhasha or maybe Sanskrit. “Kannada has a different rhyme and rhythm, which is very different from these languages, so that is going to be exciting too,” she added.
Talking about the choreography, she said pure Kathak is not about choreography, but the nuances, swiftness and ‘bols’ of the art form. “Harsh is the ardent shishya of Pandit Birju Maharaj ji. He has learnt under him for decades and his style is an exemplary rendition of Maharaj ji. One needs to witness it to believe it. That magic comes alive in pure Kathak, and no other creative style can replicate that magnificence,” she added.
The duo will be performing together for the first time after their marriage, and are excited to present it to the audience here. Harshvardhan said, “It is always a great experience to dance with Shoma. She knows how to enhance my strengths on stage and even though I must have done hundreds of performances before I met her, she finds a way to surprise me with her ideas and choreography. When we perform together, it feels like our souls unite on stage to create this incredible unison that the audience is able to witness with us.”
But it wasn’t easy to create ‘the unison’ in this choreography. “I have composed a Shiv Paran where I wanted to create the raas and mood of Lord Shiv. It is a pure Kathak piece and it took me two months to set the one-minute piece. Apart from that I will be doing pieces set by my guru, Pandit Birju Maharaj ji, which he might have set decades ago. I will also be presenting pieces that I have set on my own. Each piece has taken me weeks of dedicated practice inspite of my 25 years of training in Kathak. That is the beauty of classical dance,” he added.Enjoy the performance Rang Manch on November 18 at Alliance Française de Bangalore.