CHENNAI: Being a great fan of carnatic music and classical dances then, and a critic of both for at least over a few decades now, I would like to highlight certain trends I have been observing.
With a variety of kutcheris and dance recitals lined up this season, one can look forward to the usual patronage to the fine arts that has been extending for ages, providing one an opportunity to evaluate the state of contemporary arts in the cultural arena. This Margazhi season will bring in a pool of talent to the audience, including senior artistes like Nithyashree Mahadevan, Sudha Raghunathan, TM Krishna, AKC Natarajan, Sanjay Subramaniam, Bombay Jayashree, besides Lalgudi GJR Krishnan-Vijayalakshmi, Trichur Brothers, Priya Sisters, Mambalam sisters, Malladi brothers and Sikkil Gurucharan among others.
We will be witnessing danseuse Anitha Guha’s revealing mastery on choreography, Sailaja’s delicate balance and quick rhythmic style of footwork, and dancers Balagurunathan and Gayathri’s adept skills.
However, this season, we will be missing Mandolin Srinivas, music maestro Nedunuri Krishnamurthy and noted vocalist Jayalakshmi of Radha Jayalakshmi duo.
Sabhas need to be complimented for inviting artistes of competence from all over India, to fulfill the aesthetic aspirations and cultural needs of music lovers. But I feel it will be good if artistes are introduced to audiences before the commencement of recitals.
The kutcheri season is an opportunity for several youngsters — both in music and dance — like Abishek Raghuram, Mahanadi Shobhana, Madurai TNS Krishna, S R Veeraraghavan, Nisha Rajagopal and many others, who understand that the world of culture is highly competitive and success is possible only through sheer determination, hard work and dedication.
In the previous Margazhi festivals, the audiences were exposed to quality music which was ably delivered by vidwans. Though the present day artistes have a stronghold in the theoretical side of arts, they need to experiment more, in a creative way, to carve a niche for themselves and be on par with yesteryear doyens.