Disciples of Chitra Visveswaran performed a well-choreographed invocation, ‘Gnanadatha Tvaam Vande’, a homage to their own gurus. The Gitopadesha scene stood out for it’s intense display of Krishna as the ultimate guru. These moments of stillness emphasize the need to pause for effect; in group - choreography particularly, the presence of several vibrant dancers on stage at the same time overlooks such things. ‘Navarasa Nayaka’, by the girls from Bangalore, disciples of Padmini Natarajan, was a brief look-see at the nine emotions of love, bravery, compassion, wonder, anger, fear, disgust, laughter and peace through incidents in Lord Shiva’s life. The three sprightly dancers switched roles effortlessly after every episode without blurring the characters or the stories.

Students of Chitra and Muralidharan presented ‘Aadavaney’, a varnam on the sun god, Surya, in Revathi ragam, chathusra jathi, dhruva talam. The formations depicting the sun god were noteworthy, and the girls exhibited good footwork though the jathis were too racy for justice to be done. Baby Kavya was very impressive as the rising sun. The dancers’ posture is something that they need to work on. ‘Shivananda Natyam’ from dancers of Saroja Vaidyanathan’s school, Delhi, was disappointing. Presenting 3 items in the middle of an already lengthy programme was a tactical error. It meant pushing the audience’s patience to the extreme. In spite of having made the journey from Delhi, the dancers had to make do with a lukewarm response. ‘Bo Shambo’ in Revathi ragam, Adi talam was the pick of the three, which included a pushpanjali and a concluding item of the joyful dance of Nataraja.

Swarnamalaya Ganesh brought in a welcome breathe of fresh air with her ‘Journey to the Heavens’. A consummate charmer, she is also blessed with grace and style. The journey to Mt.Kailash where Shiva and Parvathi reside, where four rivers flowing off different faces of the mountain form a Swastika... Instrumental music and modern movements were good ideas in themselves, but the tableau could have been choreographed with better space management and group dynamics. They ended with a swaram in traditional Bharatanatyam; an experiment that shows promise for things to come. Sheejith Krishna, a personable young dancer and teacher from Kalakshetra, along with Kavitha Ramu, presented ‘Iduvum Aduvum’, a study of how God created opposing forces of nature: day and night, man and woman… and how they are actually two sides of the same coin. There was a special introduction by Revathy Sankaran. The group excelled itself in its execution- the high standards of nritta and music; and the effect was proficient. The theme was atypical, but not the expression. The costumes were striking but for the polka dots which were a bit loud. With the resounding audience support, the last dancers were not left bereft of an eager audience. Was the best saved for the last?