Three days and six events of dance, music and audio visual presentation — it was a comprehensive fare hosted by Fine Arts Society, Chembur, to pay homage to Tyagaraja on his 250th Jayanti.
‘Thyagabrahma Loka Charitam,’ a dance drama was presented by B. Bhanumati, artistic director of Nrithyakala Mandiram, Bengaluru. Episodes from Tyagaraja’s life were strung together in a cohesive structure.
Bhanumati as Tyagaraja and Sheela Chandrasekhar as wife presented the episodes in a well-coordinated manner.
Devraj’s portrayal as the wicked, paralysed brother was laudable. The song ‘Entharo..’ offered more scope for synchronised footwork and innovative patterns as Sheela Chandrasekhar did the nattuvangam.
The costume was pleasing, bright and beautiful against the shimmering white background.
Songs such as ‘Nidhi Chaala,’ ‘Kanu Kontini,’ ‘Rama Bhakti,’ ‘Brocheva,’ ‘Sobillu,’ ‘Telisi Rama,’ ‘Bala Kanakamaya’ and ‘Pavanaja’ (mangalam) resonated well with the audience.
A full-fledged orchestra — D.S. Srivatsa (vocal), N. Narayanaswamy (mridangam), Kartik Sathvalli (flute), Prasanna (rthythm pad, ganjira and morsing) and Mumbai Saipriya Vishwanathan (veena) — added vibrancy to the dance performance.
The morning session on May 20 had two brief concerts back to back. Accompanied by disciple Dharini Veeraraghavan (vocal support), R. Madhavan (violin) and Rohit Prasad (mridangam), Radha Namboodiri started off with Padavini in Salagabhairavi. Raga Kalyani delineated next was majestic, firm and fast in progression. Dharini proved her mettle in a brief alapana. ‘Rama Nivadu’ was a delight in swara configurations.
A pristine Begada alapana was equally matched by the violinist and ‘Lokavana Chatura’ was wholesome with the subtle support of mridangam beats. The ever popular ‘Nee Dayaraada’ (Vasantabhairavi) and ‘Emani vegintune’ (Husseini) were rendered well.
Wide repertoire
The second half featured the vocal concert of Rajalakshmi Balasubramaniam accompanied by her daughter-disciple Jayanthi Suresh on the vocal, Shivakumar Anantharaman on the violin and Prasad Balan on the mridangam. ‘Evarikai’ in Devamanohari, ‘Saraseeruha Nayane’ in Amritavarshini and ‘Vinave’ in Vivardini were pace-setters. A well-etched alapana of Kapi by the singer and an equally detailed version by Shivakumar followed by ‘Mee Valla’ was a rich dose.
Thodi nuances were well-brought out in ‘Emanimaata.’ ‘Lavanya Rama’ in Rudrapriya, ‘Nee chithamu’ in Vijayavasantham and ‘Nadupai’ in Madhyamavati completed the fare.
Vocal concert by Neela Ramgopal included both rare and familiar kritis. The veteran was supported by her disciple Sindhu Shashikanth, endowed with a dulcet voice. R. Madhavan on the violin and Rajesh Srinivasan on the mridangam gave excellent support.
The line-up included a sloka and ‘Ninne bhajana’ in Nattai, ‘Tappagane’ in Suddha Bangala, ‘Anyayamu seyakura’ in Kapi (outstanding alapana, well-matched on the violin), ‘Toli janmamuna’ in Bilahari and ‘Endundi vedalitivo’ in Durbar. A detailed ‘Enduko Nimanasu’ in Kalyani with a vibrant niraval had a lingering effect. An RTP in Bahudari, with a brief alapana a delightful thaanam and embellished pallavi fulfilled the rasikas’ appetite. ‘Srirama’ in Yadukula Khambodi, ‘Shobane’ in Pantuvarali and ‘Gandhamu puyyaruga’ in Punnagavarali added cheer.
Janaki Ramakrishnan, president, FAS, felicitated the three veteran artistes. Audio Visual presentation by SriramV. was both informative and entertaining. Side-lining myth and miracle, he talked of the ‘Life of Tyagaraja’ using facts and figures and witty interpolations holding audience in rapt attention.
New ragas
Sriram attributed the lamenting undertone in Tyagaraja’s works to the troubled times he lived in. The influence of Bhadrachala Ramadas, Purandaradasa and Marathi Natya Sangeet on his works was conveyed.
Multi-media Neela Ramgopal, Bhanumati’s group, Priya Sisters and Rajalakshmi Balasubramaniam
The visual segment had clippings from the movie ‘Tyagayya,’ singing of Ariyakudi, M.L. Vasantakumari, Balamurali Krishna, images of Tiruvaiyaru, deity Tyagesa, the Thanjavur palace and more.
Sriram concluded with the observation that Tyagaraja treated women less equally and it was ironical that the rebuilding of his Samadhi, the continuance of the Aradhana and women participation in congregational singing since 1941 were made possible by the financial efforts of Bangalore Nagarathnamma, a devadasi.
The evening event was the Carnatic vocal concert by the Priya sisters — Shanmukhapriya and Haripriya — accompanied by V.V. Srinivasa Rao on the violin, Sai Giridhar on the mridangam and B.S. Purushottaman on the ganjira.
‘Nidhi Chaala Sukhama’ in Kalyani; a well-delineated RTP in Mohanam and ‘Muruga Muruga’ in Saveri, were noteworthy presentations.
