CHENNAI: Pallavi Krishnan, a leading Mohiniyattam exponent known for her tremendous efforts in promoting and preserving the traditional dancing style, performed at the Soorya Festival on Sunday.
The dance was based on Shivangi, a fragment from Kalidasa’s Kumarasambhavam.
She began the recital with a ‘cholkettu’ composed by Vayalar Rajendran. “The story is based on the love story between Parvathy and Shiva. Scenes from the Parvathi’s ‘tapas’ to achieve Shiva as her husband and the embodiment of Shiva-Parvathy were included. I have given more importance to ‘bhavas’,” said Pallavi.
Pallavi initially got trained in bharatanatyam, mohiniyattam and kathakali under Kalamandalam Sankaranarayanan. She finished her graduation in dance (kathakali) from Santiniketan (Viswa Bharathi University). Later, she did her post graduation in mohiniyattam from Kerala Kalamandalam. She continued her studies under Bharati Shivaji and Kalamandalam Sugandhi. Unlike other artists, she performs ‘adavu’ (technique) and ‘abhinaya’ (facial expression) with ease and perfection.
While sharing her experience with Express, she said she fell in love with Kerala. “I’m a Bengali settled in Kerala. The training we get in Kerala is unique and a bit rigid compared to the liberal ambience of Shantiniketan. All through my childhood, I had a passion for dance and there was not much of an opportunity to learn any other art forms than kathak at my place,” said Pallavi.
Apart from solo performances, she loves doing group choreography. Her choreographies include ‘Ritu Ranga’ which was a Kerala-Bengali fusion. She chose Rabindra Sangeeth and Sopanam music of Kerala as the music for Kalidasa’s ‘Ritusamhar’. ‘Salabhanjika’ is a twist to the Ahalyamoksham: Legend of the Ramayana and based on a short story by C P Unnikrishnan.
She is a recipient of several honours including Kerala State Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and Sushree award of the Vichar-March, Kolkata.