It was an incidental programme that brought together artistes Roja Kannan, Priya Murale, N Srikanth and Aswathy Srikanth. This collaboration resulted in a long association.
While Roja Kannan, a disciple of Adyar Lakshman, belongs to the Kalakshetra School and Priya to the Thanjavur School (trained by Sudha Rani Raghupathy), Srikanth and Aswathy are from the Vazhvoor school of the dance. However, despite the differences in the styles, the artistes’ works as a group, Parashah, have been an alchemy that not just portrays the beauty of the various styles but also brings them together as one.
Roja Kannan says, “It was in 2002 that the dance wing of Narada Gana Sabha called Natyarangam brought us together for a programme, celebrating the works of Bharathiyar at his residence in Triplicane. It was titled Bharatha Samudhaya Vazhagave and was well received. They immediately gave us a full-length theme and we did a full-length show in 2003, February. After that we regularly got opportunities for that production.”
The show’s success eventually led to many other collaborations and the group realised that there was an unexplored realm that represented the myriad styles of dance as one. She adds that while they collaborate, they do not compromise on the uniqueness of each of the banis.
Banis are the different styles of bharathanatyam. Earlier art flourished in the villages and each of them had a set of guidelines for it. Each village — Pandanalur and Vazhvoor—had a unique element. The styles were propagated by the devadasis who dedicated their lives to the art and the temples.
“It is a kind of guideline and this is the way we approach. Everything is structured. There is fluidity still and artistes have a way to get around it. Take for instance paduka, which is based on Dr Padma Subrahmanyam’s research on the natyasastra. Her basic unit of dance is karanas, while adavus are our basic grammar,” adds Priya.
However, the artistes say that today these lines have blurred and it is not just the influence of other banis, but also there are elements of inspirations from other types of dance.
“The modern trend is that dancers are exposed to other banis and no one wants to promote only their style. The academic approach came a little later. It is no longer rigid. Apart from influences of one bani on another, there are external influences of Kuchipudi and Mohiniattam, apart from Kalari.In fact, the influences of Western dance is so much that it becomes important for an artiste to cover the stage. But that doesn’t mean physically. My guru Sudharani Raghupathy would say there are as many styles as dancers. If you do not add your style to your performance, it is just an imitation. It ceases to be art,” adds Priya.
The artistes also insist on the importance of chemistry within a team. “There is no ego among us. Roja is the most senior and I am the youngest. We have a very good bonding and it reflects on the stage. There will be three different styles but they will be unique as one piece,” adds Aswathy.
Aswathy’s husband and her guru N Srikanth, who hails from a family of bhagavathamela artistes, says, “We were flexible but at the same time we have kept up the uniqueness of our banis.” From programmes for old age homes, tsunami relief camps and outreach programmes, Parashah has travelled places. Another popular production by the group is the Ardhanareeswarar Kuravanji (based on classical and folk elements), the only Kuravanji to have been written by a woman.
“We have reached a stage where we want to give back to society. We have had the shares of good reviews for our works. We were convinced that dance is medium of communication, entertainment, apart from giving positive feeling,” says Roja.