BENGALURU : During Navratri, many little girls dress up as different goddesses. This year, Shekar Rajendran thought of breaking that stereotype by dressing up as not one, but 18 different avatars of Goddess Durga. The city-based dancer has portrayed the goddesses in the same manner in which they are represented in South Indian temples. “When we speak about devis, the first image that comes to mind is the representation of the goddesses in North India. I wanted to highlight some of the goddesses down South too,” says the 38-year-old. Rajendran has portrayed avatars of Goddess Durga, including Kali, Lakshmi, Bhuvaneshwari, Sridevi, Chamundeshwari, Padmavati and Saraswati.
“Many might wonder why I have painted my face black. Most idols in South Indian temples are made of granite. Moreover, I thought it was important to highlight the beauty of the colour black, more so in the present political climate,” he says.
Looking at the detailed costumes, intricate jewellery and elaborate make-up would make one think Rajendran has spent months on this project. But the shoot took only 4-5 days. “While there are images of goddesses on the internet, I didn’t want to use those as a reference because it would inhibit my creativity.
All the goddesses I portray are how I perceive them to be,” says the Bharatnatyam dancer with more than three decades experience. For example, goddess Madurai Meenakshi is known for liking parrots, so Rajendran made sure to dress in a parrot green saree.
While the sarees were borrowed from his mother’s wardrobe, he made sure to tailor the blouses to his fitting. “As a dancer, I don’t trust anyone with the make-up. I did all the make-up myself and got a lot of jewellery to accessorise. Overall, it took 45 minutes to be ready for one get-up,” says Rajendran.
The Navratri series will be published on Sunday on Instagram (@shekarrajendranartfactory). It is a part of a bigger series where Rajendran is portraying other characters like Shah Jahan, Gautam Buddha and Alauddin Khilji. “I want to create a record of a single person portraying multiple characters. I hope to be done with 50 soon,” says Rajendran, adding that he has a Guinness World Record for being a part of a troupe that danced for 100 hours.