Artists revisit their past work, either to give it a relevant interpretation or reproduce the original to introduce it to a new generation of viewers. Choosing the latter path, Dhananjayan’s Bharatakalanjali performed ‘Kaadhal Valli Kanda Murugan,’ which was premièred in 1975, at Rukmini Arangham, Kalakshetra, to commemorate the 108th birth anniversary of Periyasami Thooran, who had penned the story and lyrics.
This tale of Valli, a tribal chieftain’s daughter and her love for Muruga, had little twists added to the narration to sustain audience interest and succeeded in its mission.
The Thiruppugazh, ‘Eru Mayil Eri Vilaiyadu’ was the introductory song for the entry of a group of folk dancers attired in colourful skirts (costume by Shanta Dananjayan), establishing the geographical and cultural milieu of the tribe. Folk dance forms such as Kummi, were woven into the choreography appropriately and the narration held interest because each of the scenes was edited crisply.
Donning the role of a director, C.P. Satyajit, Anusha Natarajan and K. Sarveshan had chosen the appropriate dancers. Vidya Dinakaran as Valli and K. Sarveshan as Murugan were impressive, Sadhashi Bhaskar as Chitrangi conveyed both dignity and humour and with a mischievous glint in his eye, Uttiya Barua played Narada. They enhanced the scenes with their artistry. Sivadas, who showed powerful dance movements, also suited the role of the vedan, but the lack of attention to the draping of his costume was distracting. C.P.Satyajit as an old man scored with a nuanced portrayal.
The musical score by Thuraiyur Rajagopala Sharma and Madurai Sethuraman was potent and used the ragas beautifully. ‘Ponal pogiran’ in Ritigowlai reflected Valli’s emotional state, flowed seamlessly into Nilambari for the dream sequence and Bhoopalam for the break of dawn.
Radha Badri infused life with her rendering along with the male singers, M.K.Rajesh and Shalin Nair. The subtle aesthetic touches on the violin by T.K.Padmanabhan, veena by Jayalakshmi Sekhar, flute by Sujith Naik added to the appeal. Nellai D.Kannan (mridangam), Rijesh (ganjira), Shanta Dhananjayan (nattuvangam), Lakshminarayanan and Durga (tambura) completed the ensemble.
An interesting storyline, appealing musical score and choreography and a group of trained artists are the basic parameters on which the success of a show depends and it is this coordination that worked for this production.
