Mulund Fine Arts Society’s three-day ‘Summer Fiesta’ featured a dance performance and two Tamil plays. It was held at the Mahakavi Kalidas Auditorium, Mulund.
A Bharatanatyam performance by Maya G Shivakumar was a last-minute substitute for the musical play ‘Sangeetha Pitamaha Purandaradasa’, as its director P. S. Krishnamoorthy was suddenly taken ill.
The dancer used lesser-known episodes from mythology and languages such as Hindi, Sanskrit, and Kannada. Slotting the Supreme spirit as aadhar and the devotee as the aadhey, she depicted Bhishma and Draupadi, in a different light. Shivakumar’s detailed anchoring and immaculate diction aided in the understanding of the presentation.
A dialogue between Draupadi and Bhishma, where the former concealed in a ghunghat takes the latter’s blessing to be the eternal sumangali , thus binding him to protect her husbands, whom he had vowed to kill. Bhishma knew this guile was part of Krishna’s larger plan.
To highlight bhakti rasa, the dancer portrayed how Hanuman prefered servitude to Rama instead of Moksha and his lifting the mountain to bring the Sanjeevani herb to save Lakshmana. The underlying message was that without bhakta, bhagwan is incomplete, just like without Hanuman, Rama would be incomplete. For the sake of friendship, Krishna became the humble charioteer of Arjuna, ready to serve by cleaning his nail-pointed shoes which, otherwise, would be blasphemy.
Vishwaroopam was delineated beautifully. The Lord chose Yashoda as his mother to bless her with the sight of the universe in his baby mouth.
The dichotomy of ‘anurag’ and the yearning experienced by gopis, the madhurya bhava of Radha, established that there is no separation for anyone, as Krishna is omnipresent. There is oneness in everything. The order of things is God, world and then the self.
The second concept was of dharma and its upkeep. Examples of Bhishma and Drona as symbols of loyalty were depicted. Bhishma pierced all over and lying on the bed of arrows delivers a sermon on the role of a king. Bhishma’s equipoise was highlighted all through.
The story of newly-wed Urmila, the lesser-acknowledged wife of Lakshmana, who stayed back to fulfil her duties as a daughter-in-law was given an interesting and fresh interpretation. She ensured harmony at home, akin to Rama and Bharata, who ensured harmony in the kingdom.
Hanuman setting Lanka ablaze, enhanced by use of strobe lights, made an impact. The sound effect of the dice game was well brought out.
The performance ended with the assertion that right is the foundation of peace. The lines from Upanishads were befitting in the finale.
Neat gestures and footwork and apt abhinaya, were a testimony to the training she received in Sri Rajarajeswari Bharatanatya Kala Mandir under stalwart gurus such as Mahalingam Pillai and Kalyanasundaram.
With sensitivity
‘Deiyvam Thantha Veedu’, a Tamil drama by Bombay Cultural Association was about a couple, who are orphans and adopt a woman from an old age home to provide their little son the affection of a grandmother. Meera as the mother, Yukesh as the little boy, Meenalata, Hari, Pichai (happy-go-lucky old age home members ), Ramki as the son, Sathya as the daughter-in-law, Vijayaraghavan as a well-meaning friend and others in the team, played their roles with sensitivity.
Deivam Thanta Veedu
‘Checkmate’ by Shanmukhananda Theatre group, was staged on the third and final day. It dealt with extramarital affair and infidelity. The protagonist, an affectionate sister, wife, daughter-in-law and mother has brain tumour and is cured after being treated abroad. On her return, she faces the betrayal of her husband, who divorces her for a colleague, who in turn, abandons him for greener pastures. The husband then returns to his wife but she has finally ‘found herself’ and does not need him anymore. Adept at the game of chess, she checkmates him by rejecting him. The role of protagonist Sumati was delineated well by Subhalakshmi, a well- known face in Tamil theatre of Mumbai and an oft-heard voice in advertisements and jingles.
Checkmate
Writer-director Santosh Rajan, who heads the theatre group, played the role of an impartial mother-in-law convincingly. Ramesh as the affectionate brother, Ramki as the self-centred husband, Anirudh as the teenage son torn between parents, Lata as the helpful neighbour, Hari as the concerned uncle, Pichai, Meenalata and Aparna as gossip mongers were effective in their roles.
Technical glitches like an errant microphone was an irritant.
N. Rajgopal, president, Parthasarathy, vice president, P. Satyamurthy and M Sankaran, joint secretaries, of MFAS took turns in felicitating the artistes on the three days.
