CHENNAI: The myth of beautiful celestial beings and apsaras dancing has given shape to the Devadasi, who sing and dance to please the Gods,” said Rupa Gopal as she presented her short documentary, The Devadasi - A Different Woman. The banquet hall at the Savera Hotel was filled with admirers of the fine arts, waiting for the film to begin. Members of the Duchess Club and students of Bharatanatyam at Kalakshetra were among the audience. Gopal narrated the history of the Devadasis, their origin and their dedication towards worshipping the Gods in the film. They would dance in front of deities during religious gatherings and would also serve the priests at the temple.
“It was a lifestyle choice that required complete devotion and discipline,” said Gopal. Her documentary went on to explain how the Devadasi women were set apart in society. “They wore a dhoti-like garment along with a blouse, which was very different from the regular saris that women adorned,” she said. The documentary went on to sketch the evolution of Devadasis from temple performers to courtesans of the kings. “When society began treating kings like Gods, the Devadasis too, worshipped them like one,” she said. Despite being well-respected in the court and temple, the Devadasis eventually began entertaining the higher castes in society too. “As time passed, many girls were forced to adopt the Devadasi way of life. They became servers to priests, kings and rich merchants,” she said. She spoke of various Devadasis who continued to pursue their art even after the Devadasi Abolition Act of 1947.
Many like Balamani, who was born into a devadasi family, decided to pass on their knowledge of the art to the generations to come. The end of the documentary was followed by a Bharatanatyam performance by Mumbai-based dancer Vaibhav Arekar. He explained that the art of the Devadasis eventually transpired into Bharatanatayam. “The same covers all aspects of human emotion. You have lust, anger, greed, love, disgust and shame, all delivered through body language and expressions,” said Arekar who started a trust in 2009, called Sankhya, for Bharatnatayam dancers to keep the art alive. On behalf of Savera Hotels, Nina Reddy, joint managing director contributed `50,000 to Sankhya. “The connection between dance and music is the connect the dancer has with the emotion with which the poet has written the piece,” he said during an interactive session with Gopal. He believes that dance has no age. “As long as my body can take the strain, I will continue to dance,” he said. Predicting his retirement at the age of 60, he said, “I will have a final retirement performance before stepping off the stage. Although, I will still continue to perform a few good piece s t h a t I admire.”