Nandini began to learn Bharatanatyam when she was five under dancer Rajeswari Sainath. Recently, she gave a performance organised by Natya Swara at Lamakaan.
This was her second show after her recent Arangetram. The venue's cemented high raised stage and the rocky backdrop might suit theatre, but not classical dance.
Since, it is an open air small stage, one could understand the inconvenience a bare footed dancer would have experienced. Fortunately Nandini's show was limited to a mere four numbers, including a long varnam that needed brisk foot work.
All the compositions presented by 14-year-old Nandini were pre-recorded to the music lent by different vocalists.
Choreography was by Rajeswari Sainath. What we experienced was her perfection and time sense suiting the mechanical sound out put. Considering this as an extra test for the young dancer, one has to compliment her sense for rhythm.
There is space for expressive Aabhinaya parts, especially in Tamil varnam, Kamakshi Thaye' in Valaji set to Aditalam, composed by the late Radhakrishnan. The composition was rendered by Alleppy Lakshmi. She spent considerable time on the expansion of bhava portraying various benevolent acts of deity Kamakshi appearing in various forms bearing different names like Kamakshi, Annapoorna, Meenakshi, Abhirami and Kali. These abhinaya bits were interspersed with jatis ending with perfect teermanams .
Nandini opened her show with Ganesha Sthuti' paying obeisance to Vinayaka. It is a composition by Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna - Pari Pari Nee paadame' in Hamsadhwani. It was O.S. Arun who rendered the song. The sahitya content was well translated by the dancer into abhinaya .
After Meera Bhajan Krishnakaro' , a pure abhinaya piece in praise of Krishna was presented by Nandini with the needed inputs like expression of Bhakti and also her love for Krishna. This was rendered by Alleppy Lakshmi.
The Bharatanatyam performance ended with a t Tillana of Rajkumar Bharati in a rare raga Surya.
