Three classical dance forms were presented on three days in succession in Thrissur recently. Janhabi Behera opened her Odissi recital with Dhaye subarna varna... , an invocation to goddess Durga. Composed in Charukesi and Ek tali of 14 mantras, the dancer delineated the striking features of the goddess, explaining how she is an epitome of female energy.
In celebration
Varshavisara... , the celebration of the advent of the rainy season, followed. The dark clouds are portrayed as mad elephants and also as an emperor marching to the drumming of the thunder, fluttering the banner of lightning, in the choreography of Aruna Mohanty, the dancer’s Guru.
Odissi by Janhabi Behera
The piece was set in Madhyamavati by Guru Ramahari Das. Ramate Yamuna pulina bane..., culled from the 15th Ashtapathi, narrated the pangs of separation of Radha who complains to her sakhi that Krishna was spending time with another girl, while she was left alone.
Janhabi’s skilful depiction of the antics of Krishna was performed with the dancer sitting on the floor, in the piece composed in Misra Pilu. She wound up with the Madhurashtaka... , a popular Krishna stothram in Sanskrit beginning with Adharam madhuram... . The dancer treated the audience to an overdose of ‘madhuram’ as described in the composition.
Various anecdotes such as ‘Kaliya marddana’, stealing of butter, and more appeared in the sancharis. Deepti Parol enthralled the audience with an energetic Bharatanatyam recital on the second day. Natyanjali , her opening number, was an invocation to Ganesha, Saraswathy, Brahma, Vishnu, Maheswara, the gurus and the audience.
Tribute to MS
The piece de resistance of the 90-minute recital was Swati’s Bhavayami Raghu Ramam... . Deepti explained that she included this number in her repertoire as it was popularised by M.S. Subbulakshmi, whose birth centenary was being celebrated by the organisers. Choreographed by Deepti’s gurus, the Dhananjayans, it was a mixture of dance and abhinaya.
Rendered in a slow tempo, the dancer delineated the first charanam in Saveri at length. This was followed by a sequence of complex jatis in which her footwork was brilliant. Representation of the various characters in Ramayana in the subsequent charanams in ragamalika portrayed the dexterity of the dancer in evoking varied rasas.
Ambujam Krishna’s composition Adinaye Kanna... in Mohanakalyani received an eloquent narration by Deepti. The piece gave the dancer ample opportunities to improvise. Composed in Adi, the number, in a relatively faster pace, was especially enjoyable as it occurred after the ‘heavy’ Bhavayami . Thillana in Behag and khanta eka was the concluding number.
Kuchipudi by Payal Ramchandani
The finale of the programme was Kuchipudi by Payal Ramachandrani. Oothukadu Venkata Kavi’s composition Madhava panchakam... in praise of Krishna, and the poet’s description of the incomparable beauty of Krishna found expressions through Payal’s presentation, replete with jatis and adavus.
Two popular abhinaya-oriented pieces followed thereafter —Marathi poet Rangeswar’s Rusali Radha... and the javali, Samayamide ra ra... of Patnam Subramania Iyer. Rusali Radha... portrays the nayika incensed over Krishna’s romantic overtures with the gopikas, leaving her alone. The dancer opened the narration with a vivid description of Nature rejoicing in the romance of the couple. But the very same Nature seemed to be unaffected by the spat between the two. Payal’s choreography succeeded in depicting this contrast. Misra Yaman, the raga in which the composition was tuned, was effective in creating the ambience.
Samayamide ra ra...’s interpretation by the dancer was slightly different from that of the composer. The nayika is ‘parakeeyaa’, someone who invites her lover, once her husband has left home for a long journey. While the composer’s nayaka was Lord Venkatesa, the dancer took the freedom to bring down the divine love to a mundane level.
The traditional Tarangam in Mohanam and Adi followed. The concluding number was Purandaradasa’s Aarathi... , in which the composer exhorts women to do aarthi for Vishnu. It was essentially a depiction of the 10 incarnations of Vishnu, notable as each appeared to merge with the next smoothly. The music set to Suruti and Tisra chapu was pleasing.
The performances were part of the birth centenary celebrations of M.S. Subbulakshmi by the north Kerala chapter of SPIC MACAY, in collaboration with Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and Atma Foundation, Thrissur.
