Visitors to her rented abode in Muthyalanagar near Mathikere are in for a surprise. There are no chairs and you must be prepared to get floored! Having sorted out the seating issues, it was talk time with Kathak and Bharatanatyam exponent, Jayanthi M Eshwarputhi. “I had to choose between my father and my guru. It was a tough decision for me to make. But, I was clear in my mind. I chose my guru,” Jayanthi said with eyes wide open and a sense of purpose flashing all over her face.
As we broke the ice and got into a comfortable conversation zone, Jayanthi took a solo down memory lane. “Ours was an orthodox, middle class Brahmin family and I was 8th among 10 children. We grew up in Rajajinagar. My father loved listening to classical music and mother loved dance. I began learning dance when I was in 8th standard with Janardhana Sharma being my first guru. Later, I became the disciple of Kalamandalam Usha Datar. My gurus are my Gods and they matter to me the most. Learning dance is like a tapasya - the journey never ends and the learning is forever.”
Jayanthi’s devotion to dance and her dedication to her gurus grew by the day. “My parents had problems with me returning late after dance sessions. At the age of 21, I was relatively a known solo dancer in town. But back home, my father and mother made it clear that they did not want me to pursue further. Most days I came back only at 10 pm and that was an issue. They were angry. Even my brothers and sisters too felt that I am on a wrong path completely. Finally I was just a guest at home,” Jayanthi said, probably hiding her emotions.
Her family took the fight out of the house and it reached her guru. The verdict was clear and her parents had huge reservations with her dancing. “To support my needs I worked as a typist with a meager salary of ` 300 in 1987. I even worked as a receptionist and finally decided to join the Valley School as a dance teacher in 1989. I remember that evening when I left home, just carrying my clothes and my anklets. I knew I had to dance to survive. I knew if I stop dancing, I shall be dead,” she said.
During this period, Jayanthi changed her guru and started training under a new teacher, Narmada.
After leaving the Valley School in 1994, late Protima Bedi’s Nrityagram was Jayanthi’s next stop. The gurukul-style of learning was tailor-made to her likes. “But, Protima said there was no vacancy for a Bharatanatyam dancer and gave me an option to take up Kathak instead. My guru was Kumudini Lakhia. She lived in Ahmedabad and came to Nrityagram only once in six months. Whatever she taught me, I used to practice for nine hours every day. This was the perfect place that I was looking for. Just dance, dance and dance without any worries in life. But, my guru stopped coming and I decided to follow her to Ahmedabad -- my next destination,” says Jayanthi. According to her, at Nrityagram, she felt that her talent was not fully recognised by the administration.
Shuttling between her paying guest accommodation and guru’s residence, Jayanthi had some tough time in Ahmedabad, until she met the Kathak legend Pandit Birju Maharaj, at a workshop.
“It was my dream to meet him and honestly my heartbeat went up. I requested him to make me his disciple and he asked me whether I need 'readymade breakfast' or a 'full meal'. I told him that I was only looking for a 'full meal' and he asked me to join him in Delhi. I came back to Bangalore and realised I don’t have a house to stay having parted ways with my family. I stayed with a friend for few days and finally boarded a train to Delhi. I had mixed feelings in my mind,” Jayanthi said.
On a chilling winter morning, Jayanthi landed up in Delhi to join her new-found guru. “Everything I learned in 33 years had to be undone. I started again from scratch and for close to two years he never talked to me much. Not even any eye contact during the dance sessions. One fine day, he suddenly asked me to come to the front and dance. Being with Maharaj is not just about dance, it’s about life as well. He loved rasam and I used to make it regularly,” Jayanthi said, offering tea made by her student and Kannada actress Bhavana.
Delhi turned out to be lucky for Jayanthi and she began travelling all over the globe. According to her, constant support from Maharaj came handy. “I went to Norway, UK, USA, Korea, China and many other countries giving performances. In 2002, I started teaching Bharata-natyam. Life in Delhi was bit difficult all alone and the teaching sessions gifted me new friends. During this period I came to know that my father was ailing. I was told that he regretted for not supporting me. In 2010, he had a stroke and I decided to pack my bags and be with him in Bangalore. I was happy that I had the opportunity to take care of my father and never even once thought about what my family did to me,” says Jayanthi, who also learned Kalaripayattu to enhance her dance knowledge.
After her father’s death in 2011, Jayanthi stayed with her mother for a year and finally moved to her current rented accommodation, near Mathikere. When asked about the road ahead after endless trials and turbulence, Jayanthi said that she is ready to face anything that life has to offer her. “I was born to be a dancer and it’s in my blood. Perhaps, my family didn’t see it, but no regrets. No complaints. No hard feelings, either. If some people failed to see it, I am glad that all my gurus saw it and stood by me. They trained me and they blessed me. Life will go on, as long as I have the energy to dance. And, I know I will dance for ever,” she said.