The organizers’ sought to expand the repertoire and choreographic skills of the young professionals, and therefore dancers from different schools were paired together for a more comprehensive learning. ‘Kavya Bharatham’ can be rated as one of their most successful festivals where music, literature, choreography and dance skills were put to test. At the risk of sounding patronizing, one can say that all the dancers passed the test though at different levels. There was in short, a minimum standard that every presentation possessed. The stage décor by Natanam was a simple, tailor- made banner for each epic hung by the wings- unobtrusive yet precise.

Disappointing Opening

Handicapped by the delay of the inaugural and the resource person Va. Ve. Su’s oratory, Chitra Visweswaran and Vijay Madhavan never quite captured the spirit of Subramanya Bharathi’s mythological treatise ‘Panchali Sapatham.’ The introductory on Bharatiar with props like a black coat and white turban and Madhavan brandishing a gigantic pen was unnecessarily graphic. While exploring the epic through the different aspects of Panchali, as a woman, as a loving wife of Arjuna, as a woman shocked and angry at being pledged on a gaming table …, gave a different perspective to the epic, there was no continuity or gradual build up of events that led to the shaming of Panchali in court. The orchestra was also tentative for the most part; only Sukanya Ravinder with the cymbals seemed in control. While Chitra Visweswaran’s histrionic abilities cannot be denied, the presentation could have been better planned. Music composition by R.Visweswaran was promising, but delivery was ineffective.

Potential Unleashed

If one word could summarise this dramatization, the word would be ‘tasteful.’ Beginning with the costumes, the skill of the dancers and the crisp choreography, the aesthetic beige backdrop, the excellent music composition by Hariprasad, his faultless rendering … Story and song combined in a vivid tapestry of energy and dynamism in ‘Silapadikkaram,’ the dramatic historical saga penned by Elango Adigal staged on Day II. Dancers Srilatha Vinod and Anirudh Vasudevan proved themselves mature artists in their professional handling of the twists in the tale. Love, disillusion, regret, perfidy and anguish were the pillars on which the edifice was created, strong emotions that gave room for much melodrama, but to the credit of these young artists who showed involvement and restraint, the presentation remained loyal to the story without any self-indulgence.

Vinod’s sparkling nritta complemented her striking stature on stage and her convincing portrayals. In the dream sequence when she has just had a premonition of the coming tragedies, she rose to the occasion with just enough pathos and apprehension. As the dancer Madhavi, Vinod turned into a glamorous and sometimes wily woman, confident of her charms. If Madhavi and Kovalan’s duet together in a Khamas thillana was the most exciting nritta passage in the performance, Madhavi’s stoic acceptance of her lover’s subsequent change of heart was the most moving.

Though Vinod was radiant in gorgeous costumes and her frequent dress changes achieved in record time between scenes could not escape attention, the question remains about whether these elaborate changes were really necessary? Her delineation would have been no less successful with a less ambitious wardrobe.

Vasudevan gave a good account of himself for the most part, except for a tendency to be imprecise with his gestures and bhava occasionally; for instance, his confusion after parting with Madhavi was puzzling demonstrating a lack of clarity in the thought process. In contrast, his nritta was faultless, with a dignity that he maintained throughout.

The choreography was a tightly knit cohesion that nevertheless requires some fine tuning. Using the ancient Bhagavatha Mela Natakam tradition, raconteurs introduced the characters and punctuated the narrative thereafter providing continuity. This worked well until the narrative moved back and forth in time leading to some ambiguity, even resulting in the unnecessary duplication of a scene. The choreography was also incongruous when the lovers part- the nritta sequence introduced at that juncture of extreme distress felt inappropriate.

The musical aspect was a delight, the orchestra and the perceptive composer in fine mettle. M.S.Sukhi on the nattuvangam too deserves mention for his involved performance. ‘Silapadikkaram’ finally proved a connoisseurs’ delight.

All the Right Ingredients

The freshest faces in the festival presented Kalidasa’s famous Sanskrit love story ‘Abhignyana Sakuntala.’ They had an ace up their sleeve in the form of the music composition by S.Rajaram, Principal of Kalakshetra that sparkled with melody infusing the dramatization with promise and romance. This immortal literary work being essentially sensual in character, must have been a tough challenge for Lavanya Ananth and Aadith Narayan to adapt without losing focus of the standards of good and respectable Bharatanatyam. In this the duo excelled themselves; they stuck to the norms of traditional dance with renewed purpose to convey the beauty of the legend.

A good understanding between the dancers is the first prerequisite of a joint production and this easiness between Ananth and Narayan was reflected in their confident and straightforward role-play. While both were expressive, Narayan was particularly impressive in his multi-character delineations of Dusyanta, Sage Kanva and Sage Durvasa. In fact, one of the most poignant moments in the dramatization was Kanva’s farewell to Sakuntala, where the surrogate father tries to hide his pain and sorrow. However, the same dignity did not extend to his pure dance movements that lacked enough firmness.

Ananth’s geometry and her clean nritta was a delight to observe, in addition to her complete involvement with the story and the portrayals. Her crisp entry as the narrator was followed by a swift transformation into Sakuntala, a coy young maiden, whose very demeanor and look changed into soft focus. But she seemed inhibited somewhat, she could shed some of her severity on stage.

Vigorous nritta combined with intelligent pacing resulted in an uninterrupted flow of the narrative. Though pockets of exceptional visualization enhanced the storyline, the dancers’ relative inexperience reflected in the overall choreography that was just short of creative. The sensuality did not come through as it ought to have, and in particular the imagery of love play between the protagonists was disappointing. Visualization is a powerful tool, where the same idea can be made to look aesthetic or crude depending on its treatment. Of course, some works just require more sensitivity in their handling and ‘Sakuntala’ is one of them.

The excellent orchestra, spearheaded by Hariprasad with the vocals and Nellai D.Kannan on the mridangam, Bhavani Prasad- veena, Saravanan- flute, Vijayaraghavan- violin, and B.B.Haribabu- nattuvangam, served as the backbone of the artists’ endeavour, even while they drenched the audience with melody.

The dramatization had its lighter moments in the interpretation of the ‘fisherman and his wife’ episode where the dancers adapted effortlessly to the change of tempo. The chemistry between them never in doubt, it was only the stylization that came under scrutiny.

An Unfulfilled Dream...

The only piece of fiction at the ‘Kavya Bharatham’ festival was ‘Manonmaneeyam,’ a Tamil classic penned by Sundaram Pillai based on a novel ‘The Secret Way’ by Lord Lytton.

It is a story of love, albeit a strange kind of love that develops even without the couple meeting… Romance that flowers without physical manifestations… Unfortunately, the romanticism in the story was totally overshadowed by the happenings at the Pandyan and Cheran courts, including political treason and war. By choosing to emphasize the latter over the former, dancers Indira Kadambi and Praveen Kumar robbed themselves of a chance to create a unique dance drama, as the art form thrives on creative interpretations rather than bald facts. In spite of these shortcomings, the presentation was of a high standard in terms of music composition, space visualization and high energy from both the dancers.

Indira Kadambi is a senior Bharatanatyam artist, expressive and full of spirit. Her versatility as a performer saw her at home in a wide variety of roles, as a conniving politician, as a lovelorn young woman, and as an opportunistic young man. But she seems to dilute her standards by introducing an element of drama, which is certainly not aesthetic. And her role of Kutilan proved her tendency to overdo. Praveen Kumar looked decidedly uncomfortable while handling the emotive scenes of Jeevagan and Purushothaman, his inexperience perhaps the reason. His nritta too can do with some improvement in footwork and in his araimandi.

The elaborate orchestra had two excellent singers at the helm, Preethy Mahesh and T.V.Ramprasadh, (the latter was not in form) who steered the programme along admirably. M.S.Sukhi with the cymbals was in control throughout.

In the last scene, Manonmani despairs when her wedding is fixed with the evil Baladevan, and agonizing over her situation she appeals to God; her misery was so palpable, so real, why couldn’t Kadambi give us more of this artistic ability?

Dignity in Sorrow

The 8th century dramatist Bhavabhuti’s is credited with three Sanskrit dramas, Mahaviracarita, Malatimadhava, and Uttararamacarita- the last mentioned adapted into the dance drama format for Kavya Bharatham. In essence, it is a story of the later days of the hero Rama, a tale of sorrow that begins with the banishment of Sita from Ayodhya after they return from exile and ends with their happy reunion twelve years later.

The story opens with Rama and Sita relaxing in the picture gallery when a courtier informs Rama about the rumours concerning Sita. Rama’s shock and grief set the tone for the rest of the drama, where his sensitivity and his suffering on being parted from his beloved left a strong impact on the audience.

Both dancers Sheejith Krishna and C.Manjari had many small roles to play to facilitate the movement of the narrative, like the Vanadevata Vaasanthi, Athreyi, the rivers Tamasa and Murala, Janaka, the young boys Lava and Chandrakethu, celestial dancers, sutradhar and Prithvi, besides the lead roles. Some of this required the distributed pamphlets to keep track of, but the important thing here is that the atmosphere of the play was always maintained. And the frequent character changes were achieved not with elaborate costume changes, but with a creative touch and minimal fuss, that is surely, the hallmark of an innovative artist. For example, the invisible Sita had only a gossamer thin veil to distinguish herself from the regular Sita, the rivers were depicted with blue scarves carried by the dancers, and so on.

The sancharis too were very creative- as Rama laments over his decision to send Sita away in her pregnant state by equating it to strangling a delicate bird… The invisible Sita could communicate so eloquently with only hand gestures or mudras… However, the most poignant scene was when Sita revives Rama, and he is able to feel her presence yet cannot see her because she is invisible. Rama’s despair is so tangible, dignified and heart-breaking at the same time.

The pace started flagging towards the second half, and one was left wondering if all the details were really necessary. But Lava’s meetings soon after with Janaka and later Rama, were so tender that one could not grudge the extra time taken.

The calm voice of Sai Shankar from Kalakshetra was ideally suited for ‘karuna rasa,’ creating a symphony with the excellent orchestra and the dancers that was sheer poetry. There were high expectations on the last day of the festival, both dancers being gifted artists of repute. And they did not disappoint.