An Inward Journey
Malavika Sarukkai
In March 2012, Padma Shri Malvika Sarukkai will complete 40 years of her career in dance—and with a repertoire that is vast, varied and vivacious, her dance has acquired an identity of its own; it is personal, passionate and path-breaking. “I think I was a rebel,” she says, “Very early on in my career, almost 25 years ago, I realised that the Margam (a traditional course of items performed in a Bharatanatyam concert) didn’t answer many of my questions. I also felt that in my journey of dance, I couldn’t only stay within the gamut of love songs, for instance. I couldn’t swim in the limiting pool of emotions the Margam offered me; I needed to feel the ocean.”
Swimming in the sea has manifested itself in a sensitive journey that continues to be shaped and driven by interesting, insightful ideas and concepts that find expression in movements that are steeped in technique and body work. Fortunately, over the years, as a thinking dancer, Malavika has also impacted audiences and raised their cerebral bar. “Today, audiences are looking for presentations and productions,” she says, talking specifically of the four different repertoires — Mohana Krishna, Darshan, Maname Brindavaname and Sakthi Shakthimaan — she will present this Margazhi in Chennai.
In her artistic dance space, Maname Brindavaname, her work-in-progress (that will be presented on December 23 at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mylapore, as part of Kartik Fine Arts’ Mad and Divine, a three-day dance conference and performance event being curated by Anita Ratnam) is slowly emerging. A spiritually infused piece based on Andal’s passionate poetry, this approximately 80-minute presentation is really about a “journey from the structure of a temple to the abandon of a forest, from iconography to omnipresence, from the outer to the inner, from the form to the formless...”.
Singing in Dance
Alarmel Valli
Today, at noon, at Sathyam Cinemas (in Chennai) Lasya Kavya, a 75-minute-long film on acclaimed dancer, Alarmel Valli will unfold. For dancers and its connoisseurs, the film will, like its director Sankalp Meshram says, present the “freshness, dynamism and contemporary quality of a classical form like Bharatanatyam. In the persona of Alarmel Valli, one finds that amalgam of tradition fusing with modernity, to produce art of exhilarating beauty”. A project that began in November last year and acquired momentum in June this year, Lasya Kavya also arrives at a time in the “busiest phases” of this renowned dancer and choreographer’s life.
“For me, honestly, dance has been about a celebration of life,” she says, “If you are the kind who can lose yourself when you perform, dance is like a prayer with your entire being.” In her world, the traditional form of Bharatanatyam is not only a language of self-expression but also one that sparkles with spiritualism. Research and rigour are at the core of creation. “When an idea gets planted in my head, I like to let it grow,” she says, “For all my choreographic works, I usually like to read for three weeks before I embark on the process of creation.”
This season, Valli will represent Krishna—the Intimate and the Infinite among other repertoires. The text for this work is a hand-picked selection of verses from the many wonderful texts on Krishna. “I was intrigued by the dichotomy of Krishna himself; on the one hand, he is the intimate baby Krishna, and on the other, the all-pervading supreme being.”
Scent of the Earth, yet another creation, will find an evolved expression this year — a n invocation celebrating Prakriti (nature), the kinetic, creative energy of the Divine, embodied as Nature. Weaving together strands of ancient, medieval and modern poetry in Sanskrit and Tamil, from the works of Kalidasa and Bharatiyar and from the Atharva Veda, this composition evokes the interdependence of all creation.
This year, Valli will also present the first Javali she learnt from her music teacher, the well-known T Muktha. “I think my love for music and the way I respond to it have only deepened over the years,” she says. No wonder, she is known as an exponent who has turned the traditional grammar of Bharatanatyam into “personal dance poetry”.
Crafting Pieces
Urmila Satyanarayana
Twenty-five years after her Arangetram at Chennai’s prestigious Music Academy, Urmila Satyanarayana had the unique opportunity to perform on the very same day two years ago. “It was a beautiful coincidence,” she says.
This year, Urmila, who started Natya Sankalpa, a dance school 16 years ago, is creating new, fresh and unique items within the traditional Margam. The high point of these creations, needless to say, is the Varnam (central piece) set in Ashtaragamalika (eight ragams) and in praise of Devi. “I started learning it almost 20 years ago from my third guru, Dr K J Sarasa. Somehow, I never got through learning it; the second time we began work on it, it didn’t materialise. So, this year, I decided to break the jinx. It is largely inspired by what little I learnt from my teacher but I have made it my own.”
In many ways, this has been a year of choreography for Urmila. Her solo production, Panchali Sabadam, has now bloomed into a group performance — “18 of my students and I will share stage space” — and will find expression this season. She is also stringing together a three-day festival — Narada Natya Vizha — that was launched last year to mark 15 years of Natya Sankalpa, between January 27 and 29, 2012.
Medley in the Margam
Srinidhi Chidambaram
Last year, about six months leading up to the Margazhi season, Dr Srinidhi Chidambaram wondered about the possibility of creating a traditional Margam on Chennai. “As dancers, we are constantly celebrating either Benares, Madurai or Kanchipuram,” Srinidhi says with a smile, “So I thought, why not Chennai? After all, it is the city I identify most with.” That thought triggered a full-fledged performance that showcased not only a fresh take on a city—“I veered away from making the piece a religious pilgrimage of sorts”—but also one that sparkled with a sense of relevance. In addition to a large piece on Mylapore, there was an exclusive item on the Cooum.
As a solo dancer who has consciously stayed within the Margam format even for her choreographic work — "somehow that structure suits me the best” — Srinidhi has consistently attempted to push the creative envelope through presentations that strike a chord with the audience. This year, Daasharathi is occupying her mind space. A celebration of Rama Bhakti, the Margam comes alive in bhakti and its various manifestations. Drawing inspiration from her own love for Carnatic music — “I have studied under Suguna Purushotthaman” — and saint Sri Thyagaraja’s kritis in particular, the musical layering for this rendering is an interesting blend of some of the most emotional and evocative kritis. The presentation also includes two Padams, one of which has been penned by Sujata Vijayaraghavan and is a contemporary creation. “It is a pleading of sorts to Lord Rama to redeem us from the mindless communalism that we have all become a part of,” Srinidhi says.
There’s a mild excitement to present Daasharathi in the two venues that she is slated to perform this season. It’s also got to do with the fact that she has, since age five, been associated with this festival. Her debut performance, she vaguely recalls, was sometime in the year 1975. “It was the
golden jubilee year of the Music Academy,” she says, “I appeared as Krishna with my first guru, Smt Kamala.”
Revisiting the Repertoire
Priyadarshini Govind
In May, as part of the Sangeet Natak Akademi’s commemoration of the 150th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore in Delhi, Priyadarshini Govind presented Shyama and Shesher Kobita. It was a creation crafted with adherence to both the form and finesse of Bharatanatyam, but its essence was the complexity, irony and intricate dimensions of Tagore’s poetry and prose. “I read the stories of Shyama and Lavanya, interacted with a whole host of scholars who have researched Tagore, planned the music with a Rabindra Sangeet musician, Sasha Goshal and had Rajkumar Bharathi brilliantly arrange the music in a way that kept the Rabindra Sangeet intact without compromising the grammar of Bharatanatyam.”
In January, for a special show at the Music Academy, the dancer, acclaimed in the world of Bharatanatyam and celebrated for her Abhinaya (art of expression) will present this creation in Chennai. On January 12, for a special show for a festival called Panchayagya, Priyadarshini, who was presented the prestigious Nritya Choodamani award, will present Brahma Yagya.
In the context of Bharatanatyam, Priyadarshini has explored and experimented within the repertoire (Margam) format. “I think Margam really gives me variety,” she says, “I try and introduce interesting concepts in individual pieces.” This year, for instance, she will present Madhurashtakam in a Varnam format. Jatis have been introduced into the rendering to suit the Bharatanatyam grammar. “The idea for the piece really came from Dr Y G Parthasarathy,” she says.”