CHENNAI : Two hours and four thematic compositions. Vinisha Kathiravan, enthralled the audience with her solo performance at Bharatiya Kalachar on a balmy Wednesday evening. The promising dancer, dressed in a cream and pink costume with an andal kondai (a traditional hairdo) and garland, captivated the attention of rasikas through her graceful expressions and aesthetic transformations in characters that she depicted through her dance recitals.
The artiste began her performance with a tribute to goddess Andal by performing to the verses of Nachiyar Thirumozhi. What came next was a 50-minute dance recital of the epic Ramayana. Her next one was to the song titled Brahmam Okate symbolising the oneness of all beings. She wrapped it up with another performance on Andal Vaaranam Aayiram where the goddess visualises her celestial wedding with Lord Vishnu.
A husband-and-wife duo among the crowd was cheerfully applauding throughout the performance. “I’m taken aback by the stamina the young lady has in her to dance for one of the toughest narrations — Ramayana. It is a great task to transform flawlessly from one character to another. For one minute, she was Lord Hanuman and immediately she transformed into Manthara ( the servant who poisons queen Kaikeyi’s mind),” said Shankaran, the husband.
Vinisha, an MBBS student, has been learning dance since age four. She has been under the tutelage of dancer Urmila Sathyanarayanan for ten years now. “I’m grateful to my teacher and parents. My exams got over in December and I immediately had this show to perform.
However, over the time you develop as an artiste and learn to manage priorities,” said Vinisha, who completed her arangetram in 2011. Her first performance for this Margazhi season was at Chennayil Thiruvaiyaru and this one was her last performance for the season.
“My father is my best critic. Before the dance performance, Appa told that I needed to bend more to get the right posture of Manthara. That was the only thing on my mind while enacting her on stage,” said Vinisha.
“I’m reliving my dreams through my daughter. Dance is her passion and her guru’s word means everything to her. Every parent must identify the potential of their children and stand by their decision,” said Vinisha’s mother Sudha Kathiravan.