It was a dance presentation for a cause, viz. to entertain senior citizens. The elderly at CR Foundation were treated to a string of Saint Annamacharya sankirtanas set Kuchipudi dance.
The artiste Koka Vijayalakshmi and her troupe made a fairly good performance with thoughtful delineation of verses, props in a traditional dance format.
Barring the Dikshitar kriti in Hamsadhwani which is more or less a mandatory opening statement, all other pieces were pre-recorded Annamacharya devotionals that were presented in solo or group as the calling went.
By and large, Vijayalakshmi emerged as a dancer with grace and good abhinaya though the footwork leaves a lot to be desired in terms of classicality. But there was never a moment of frivolous movement either in her or in the group. Solo pieces like Eka dandamu neeku Omkara roopa and Vadivo kantiratare in Nadanamakriya were well executed in terms of both hastha and mukhabhinaya with certain details worked out quite intricately.
For instance, the part of the lyric that carried the line shodashopacharamulu.. Vijayalakshmi gave a graphic description of the gamut of rituals undertaken for the deity in a temple through mudras which was impressive. So too, in the second solo number she enacts the banthi aata as she goes through the lines, muddula mohamu vaadu Though the optimum footwork just about suited the occasion and place, the artiste has the potential for stronger execution which would go a long way to place her on a steady pedestal.
The other group presentations like Vinudo bhagyamu Vishnu katha , Indariki abhayambhuVinuveedhula valise devadevuduGovinda, govinda yani palukare and Pidikita talambrala also had some notable abhinaya, worth a mention. For the Sankarabharanam piece ( Indariki ), the depiction of avatars, especially the Narasimha avatar, where a masked dancer enacts the role, hidden behind four dancers who serve as the pillar from where this deity emerges in full force was a striking piece of artistic creativity. The Rama-Ravana combat and the incidents leading to this were well portrayed too. The processional deity being taken around in the palanquin from the temple was brought out with balance and beauty in Vinuveedhula where the various vahanams used for the Tirumala deity were depicted in detail. The ‘kar taal' strung to the necks of the dancers as also the kolatam sticks made the Govinda, govinda song pleasurable.
The audience were quite taken in with the details of marriage customs enacted during the Srinivasa-Padmavati kalyanam in Pidikita talambralu and moved over to dolayanchala. and then Ksheerabdhikanyakaku neerajanam.. , a fitting finale.
