Veteran dancer-choreographer Sudharani Raghupathy will be conferred another award tomorrow (Dec 6) -- the Mudhra Award of Excellence. Having crossed many milestones and winning several accolades, the dancer answers some soul-searching questions, a few based on what I’ve overheard some rasikas (including dancers) ask. Excerpts from an interview:
At what age did you start dancing?
I started dancing when I was three-and-a-half, doing short Dasar padams. And later, absorbed its nuances by learning and seeking all the time. I love to read, and it is my interest in books and other related arts such as painting, music, theatre and stagecraft that inspires me to re-look at my dance, or lead me to a new idea.
When did you stop dancing solo? Why?
I stopped dancing solo nearly 18 years ago. It must have been 1996. It was a conscious decision. When I realised that I could not do justice to some movements that I had perfected, I decided to slow down, and retire gracefully.
You started doing group productions after you stopped going solo. Was it to camouflage your inability to dance solo? Or for other reason?
I know many assume that group productions are seen as camouflage for a dancer’s inability or incompetence! Far from it. By the time I had stopped dancing solo, I had already established my school Bharatalaya in 1970. By 1996, the students were ready to showcase their talent! And as organising solos for each one of them was near impossible, I chose to go for group productions. The reason I do cameos in all my productions is because organisers feel my presence will ensure we get a premium slot.
Does it mean audiences will not get to see you as often as they used to?
We must remember that we cannot do “all the wild things” that we once did as kids or as teens. We mature not only physically, but also in our thinking. My energy levels for the stage have come down. I cannot do a two-hour rigorous jatiswaram or a varnam or a thillana. But I can still hold the attention of the audience with my abhinaya. And yes, I can still choreograph!
You have learnt the Martha Graham technique of Modern Dance. How much of it has influenced your dance? Has it diluted the Thanjavur style of Bharatanatyam?
Let me explain. A dancer’s life is like a butterfly -- very brief. So, one has to use it well. The Martha Graham techniques taught me breath control and the exercises necessary for dance. The audience cannot see me panting on stage… the Graham technique is based on Yoga. This helped me in my Bharatanatyam, which has remained pure and classical.
You have often been criticised as ‘standing pretty’ on stage, without really putting any effort or exhausting yourself. What do you have to say in defence of that?
Ariyakkudi Ramanuja Iyengar was known for his classical sangatis, which he sang so effortlessly. How many singers have been, or are capable of reproducing those sangatis effortlessly? Artistry is admired because it looks ‘effortless’ after constant practice.
The present generation of gurus is not trained to be a nattuvanar. Yet, your senior students take your classes...
The best way to learn is to teach. Nattuvanars never used the ‘teach and show’ method; they sat down and explained. But today, as they teach and correct, they learn too.
Whom do you admire and consider pioneers?
Kamala Devi, with whom I interacted for a long period. She made me promise that I would never compromise on the Thanjavur style. Rukmini Devi, whom I admire for her aesthetics and style. Balasaraswathi, whose abhinaya was an artist’s delight!
My guru, vidwan Madurai Krishnan, who taught me all I needed to know and was the pivot on whose music my dance journey’s based. He was also my spiritual guru, and if I was able to infuse spiritualism into my life and dance, it was because of him. And E. Krishna Iyer, with whom I spent many hours discussing and debating on several topics.
Do you feel a sense of achievement when you receive awards?
Every award is a recognition. The small awards that have led to the bigger ones, and I cannot dismiss those and call them small, because they were big at the time I received them! Every award carries with it a sense of responsibility. Every artist likes to be appreciated, and yes, I do feel a sense of achievement.
And Sudharani Raghupathy contiues her artistic journey…
