Dancing couple, Srikanth and Aswathy, caught people’s attention in the 2004-05 Season. Srikanth was a known soloist by then, with his Bhagavata Mela background and his Bharatanrityam training under eminent researcher Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam.
They burst onto the dance scene with their well-rehearsed and visualised nritta using the stage space innovatively, going beyond the ‘solo into two’ custom. Srikanth’s acting skills added to the package. The duo gradually got into teaching, travelling, choreographing for other groups and performing with a group of like-minded dancers by the name of Parashah. In the last couple of years, they seem to have made a come-back as a dancing couple.
They have not lost their edge; the nritta is graceful, well-timed with crisp finishes. Srikanth has expanded his horizon, the use of stage space is bolder — he is using the back of the stage as well, with bigger spaces between the dancers, suggestive of the solo format. The diagonals remain but are not so prominent. The lighting is sophisticated with the addition of wing lights and LEDs.
Slow to fast tempo
A sloka on the dancing Ganesha from Balarama Bharatham (Jog) commenced with a slow description of the elephant-headed god, accompanied by a haunting beat (Nagai Sriram). Suddenly the piece transitioned into a faster speed to accommodate the dancing Ganesha. The speed continued into the Anjali (Neethimathi, Adi, K. Hariprasad). This is how Srikanth springs surprises that are not complicated but simple.
The rhythmic-melodic Gambhiranattai padavarnam (Adi, Dr. K. Balamuralikrishna) was well-crafted with a good balance between bhava in the form of storytelling (Kali bestowing enlightenment on Kalidasa, Abirami saving Subramanya Iyer’s life by throwing her earrings that brightened a new moon night) and the drama in nritta. The second theermanam (Nagai Sriram) was in tisra nadai, with pauses in six matras ‘thakadinathaa’ followed by nritta during the rest of the time cycle, repeated many times over like a refrain.
The post-charana jathi had only khanda adavus fitted into the chatura tala, while the arudis in the charana swaras mirrored the apparent tisra of the charana, ‘ Shive Shive Shive..’ ending dramatically as a muzhu mandi on the floor.
Jayashri Ramanathan's nattuvangam was firm yet subtle. Melodically the varnam lived up to its potential with K.Hariprasad (vocal) and Kalaiarasan (violin)’s contributions.
The dancers went on to delineate the padam ‘Aduvum Solluvaal’ (Saurashtram, Adi, Subbarama Iyer) and the Purandaradasa pada, ‘Maneyolagaado’ (Nalinakanti, Adi). The former by Aswathy was convincing, the latter by Srikanth was full of wit, as is his wont, and quicksilver role switches.
Krishna’s father Nanda (the composer is not specific as to which parent, clarifies Srikanth) tries to discipline the child and commands him not to leave the house, promising him butter, jewellery, etc if he obeys. The reaction of a thinking Krishna, contemplating his father’s offer, and the reluctant-to-accept-defeat Nanda’s admonition to Yashoda when the child eventually escapes (‘Your child has gone… I will go back to graze the cattle, you look after your son!) were prized moments.
The finale was a bright, rhythmic affair (dhrupad as thillana, Purvi, Rupaka, Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar).
