Linking dasavataram to the contemporary issues

March 29, 2018 04:07 pm | Updated 04:07 pm IST

‘Bollywood masala’ is the popular nomenclature given to movies that follow stereotypical formula. Of late, a similar pattern is seen in natya nadakams that are produced to address the NRI audience wanting to connect to their roots — the choice of subject (mostly mythology), dancers moving around the stage constantly, a riot of colours and styles in costumes, an exciting musical score, and a few folk elements incorporated for added appeal and long duration to stretch the storyline.

The ten Avatars of Vishnu has been a popular theme both in solo and group presentations across dance styles in India. The latest being ‘Sambhavami Yuge Yuge,’ which was premiered at the Cleveland Aradhana festival last year and was staged at Kalakshetra in Chennai recently. Choreographed by Sangita Iswaran, the musical score is by Lalgudi GJR Krishnan and Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi.

Pushing the boundaries

Sangita Iswaran is a talented Bharatanatyam artiste, who with her creative bent of mind has been constantly exploring and pushing the boundaries of the art form in her search for new expressions and collaborations. This came through in the two solo pieces she performed. Sangita’s abhinaya and facial expressions went down well with the audience — from the angst portrayed in the song ‘Aaiyaho’ to the expression of deep devotion of the characters in the Ramayana such as Ahalya, Sabari and Sarabhangamuni.

As a choreographer, Sangita tried to link the Dasavatars to contemporary issues of the modern times. For instance, exploiting the Earth was connected to Hiranyaksha’s plundering of Bhooma Devi and how like Hiranyakashipu we look for god or happiness everywhere outside and not within ourselves. Though the concept was convincing, the dance sequences that followed didn’t quite communicate the idea, and for the most part followed a standard story-telling format.

The production needs to be refined in terms of movements, costumes and props. The diaphanous fabric used for depicting water is a common idea, but tying it to the wrists and dancing gave the impression of wings. The slipshod way in which the sari was held to depict the pillar in the Prahlada scene, discrepancy in time when the short Vamana disappears and the taller one appears, costumes in gaudy colours are areas that need to be addressed and reworked with care.

The introduction of a folk dance in the Therukoothu style for the Mahabali story seemed contrived (despite a fine performance by Thilagavathi Palani), though it worked well in the Prahlada episode.

The focus of the musical score was instrumental orchestration. A few segments of slow, intense music would have added depth and variety to the compositions. The balancing of sound has to be addressed where the male and female singer came together.

‘Sambhavami Yuge Yuge’ needs to be edited and fine-tuned for a lasting impact.

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