Being the inimitable Balasaraswati’s prime disciple is not only about an intense and all-encompassing training, it is about an emotion and an experience that describes Nandini Ramani’s dance journey and her unique perception of the art form.
Nandini was barely five, when her association with Balamma began. It was not just a guru-sishya bond, but a relationship that extended far beyond the classroom rigours. “She was a giver when it came to both art and affection. We (sister Priyamvada and myself) were more family than students. The teaching was not restricted by time. There were days when we would spend hours in Balamma’s company talking about various things. There was discipline but the learning was unfettered. She insisted on giving free flow to one’s imagination and establish a personal connect with the art. That should be the essence of learning,” says Nandini.
She feels blessed about the artistic and academic legacy bequeathed to her by the greats who shaped her destiny — her father, renowned Sanskrit scholar, Dr. V. Raghavan, the legendary dancer T. Balasaraswati along with nattuvanar K. Ganesan, Prof. B. Krishnamurthy and vidushi T. Mukta.
A torchbearer of the Bala sampradayam , Nandini is a dancer true to the tradition of her Guru. She is an accomplished singer, well-versed in Sanskrit with a keen interest in Sanskrit theatre, a fine dance critic and writer. She has also held several offices of importance in her long career and is still active in the cultural field. She has played the role of a mentor to several dancers and has taken up the cause of dancers and musicians on several occasions.
Nandini’s sister Priyamvada was Bala’s first disciple and later, when the Music Academy invited Balamma to begin her dance classes at its hallowed premises, Nandini also became her disciple.
After a few initial classes, K.Ganesan, son of Kandappa Pillai (Bala’s guru), continued with the lessons. “For a few years, we were taught only adavus and then the hastas,” says Nandini, and adds, “Only after five or six years we were taught an alarippu (tisram) and the other pieces of the repertoire. In the varnam, we were taught the second half with swaras and later five jathis of the poorvangam. The training, a gradual process, then moved to abhinaya, with Balamma helping us imbibe appropriate expressions and hand gestures. Balasaraswati is known the world over as the ‘queen of abhinaya’, but not many are aware of the strong foundation she had in the basic grammar and technique of the art form.”
Nandini Ramani with Balasaraswati during her arangetram
The speciality of Bala style was laya suddham, musicality, appropriateness of adavus and mudras, and spontaneity of visualisation. “The abhinaya technique of Bala has unique features — for instance, constant walking back and forth while gesticulating to stress the importance of laya orientation interwoven into the dancing, repeating twice the interpretations with straight meaning of the first lines of the pallavi, anupallavi and charanam so that the word and its meanings are conveyed to the lay and the learned with propriety, creating a better understanding of the content; limited friezes and poses are executed only at essential contexts.”
According to Nandini, though Balamma never spoke at length about the different aspects of dance, she would share some nuggets that the eager students would be waiting to pick up. “Much of the learning actually happened through constant observation and not dialogue.”
Talking about the beauty of Balamma’s dance performances and how she won the world with her stage presence, Nandini points out that she took the audience along with her. She believed that there was no difference between art and life. She would say the viewers should have a part to play by being given some space for imagination. A reason why she emphasised on the importance of suggestiveness. This quality made her a supreme artiste.”
Balasaraswati
Music was an integral part of Balamma’s dance and it is reiterated by the fact that she is the only dance exponent to receive the coveted Sangita Kalanidhi. As a disciple, Nandini too had a strong foundation in music, learning the art from B. Krishnamoorthy and T. Mukta, apart from Balasaraswati herself. “Besides songs, Balamma loved slokas and her diction was flawless. She insisted on knowing the meaning of the lyrics and pronunciation. The training did not stop at the guru’s house. “Once we were back home, my musicologist-father would point out the nuances in Bala’s storytelling. For instance, he once drew our attention to Bala’s abhinaya depicting Siva taking upadesa from Subramanya. ‘Did you notice that she removed the moon and Ganga from his locks? She did it to underline that here, Siva is a disciple not the Lord of Kailasa,’ he pointed out,” recalls Nandini.
As much as she learnt from the Guru, she imbibed a lot from her father, especially a flair for languages and writing. A recipient of Padma Bhushan and Sahitya Akademi Award and also the secretary of the Music Academy, Dr. Raghavan has 120 books and over a thousand articles to his credit.
Having grown up on his writings, Nandini also took to the pen, putting on hold her performing career. “What better way to express your artistic thoughts and experiences. Words can connect eras and cultures. I was delighted when The Hindu gave me an opportunity to write and for 15 years I enjoyed being a dance correspondent and critic. I cherished the opportunity since it was a wonderful way to perceive other dance styles and foster my Guru’s bani.”
It was also her father who opened her mind to the world of Sanskrit texts. Today, she continues to produce and direct Sanskrit plays, under the banner of Samskrita Ranga, founded by her father. An episode from the 13-part series ‘Kalathai Venravar’ on Bala, telecast on Doordarshan was scripted and conceived by Nandini.
A recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar for ‘Overall Contribution to Performing Arts’, and several other awards, the latest being ‘Natya Padmam’ from Brahma Gana Sabha, Nandini has held positions of importance in many organisations, including the Music Academy and was on the executive board of the Sangeet Natak Akademi. She is currently a member of the general council of ICCR.
Home is where art is! Nandini’s nritya parampara is being carried forward by daughter Sushama and grand daughter, Sukeerti, who for two consecutive years won the first prize in the school-level competition organised by ABHAI (Association of Bharatanatyam Artistes of India).
Nandini was also instrumental in celebrating the centenary year of legendary vocalist T. Mukta and is all set to do the same for her venerable idol T. Balasaraswati on Feb 9 and 10 (See page 12).
Generation Next
“I remember as a child visiting Balamma’s house and playing in the courtyard. The artistic ambience left a deep impression on my mind,” says Sushama Ranganathan. Sushama was the last student K. Ganesan taught. “He was a caring guru, who made learning interesting. He let me learn at my pace and without fear. I now realise the vast treasure he has passed on to me.” Sushama recalls watching performances sitting on her grandfather’s lap or sitting behind the orchestra during her mother’s dance recitals. “I lost out on opportunities because my mother was part of important cultural organistions. It was then that I shifted my attention to theatre and began doing Sanskrit plays. This has helped me evolve as an artiste and teacher.
Exceptional Orchestra
Nattuvangam - Kandappa, Kanchipuram Ellappa, K. Ganesan, Ramaiah.
Mridangam - Kuppuswamy Mudaliar of Kanchipuram, Govindasamy (he played for Bala’s arangetram at Kanchipuram Amanakshi Amman temple), his son, G. Ekambaram
Vocal - T. Jayammal, Kanchipuram C.P. Gnanasundaram (Naina Pillai lineage), Narasimhalu (AIR).
Sarojini -Leela Sekhar, both daughters of Manju Bhashini, and Mythili Nageswaran, who sang padams. Kamudi M.S. Ramadas, a disciple of Tiruppamburam Swaminatha Pillai and T.Vishwanathan’s guru, also sang.
Clarionet - N. Radhakrishna Naidu.
Bala’s brothers Vishwa and Ranga often accompanied her.
