BENGALURU: Dance teacher Narayana Sharma, a role Girish Karnad portrayed in Ananda Bhairavi, is often quoted by many as one of their favourite roles portrayed by Karnad in films. However, not many know the effort that the noted playwright put into it.
In his fifties, Karnad learnt Kuchipudi, a dance art form, in just seven days to prepare himself for the role. Sharma, a brahmin from an orthodox family, is very passionate about Kuchipudi and wants to make his son learn the form. But the son remains uninterested. Sharma then finds a banjaraa girl from a Dalit family and amidst opposition, trains her, moulding her into a famous classical dancer. The highlight of the movie was Karnad’s Kuchipudi performances themselves, with many believing that he was a trained dancer.
“I am a trained dancer and I could not make out that he was not one. I had no clue till I got a chance to act with him in 1989 in Shishunaala Shariffa,” said dancer Sridhar.
On the sets of the movie, Karnad revealed that he was not trained. He went to the shooting venue at west Godavari a few days before the shoot commenced and learnt from Shesham master of Shankarabharanam fame.