The highlight of a five-day long National Cultural Festival at Rappadi Open Air Auditorium, Palakkad were two Carnatic recitals by V.R. Dileep Kumar and A. Kanyakumari.
Dileep, a purist with impeccable manodharma, enchanted rasikas with rendition of kritis that blended lakshya and lakshana. The artiste began the concert with ‘Om Gan Ganapataye Namo Namah’, which was rich in innovative swara segments.
Rasikas were then treated to a rare ‘Aadi Parasakthi’ in Abhogi, a composition written by Vayalar Ramavarma and tuned by Cherthala Gopalan Nair. His concentration on the sahitya in the piece emphasised the spirit of the song. ‘Karnataka devagandhari’ followed the strict grammar of Carnatic music, while a neatly executed and well-enunciated Dikshitar kriti ‘Panchasath Peeta Roopini’ showcased his padanthara. Swati’s ‘Gopalaka pahimam’ set in the right kalapramana, was a prelude to his favourite raga – Brindavana Saranga, the centre piece for the evening.
The artiste was supported brilliantly by N. Sampath on the violin, Kallekulangara Unnikrishnan on the mridangam and Mangad Pramod on the ghatam. The tani was rich in laya. Dileep wound up the concert with Purandara Dasa’s ‘Govardhana giridhara’ in Darbari kanada.
Violin maestro A. Kanyakumari treated rasikas to pure and pristine notes on the fourth day of the fete. ‘Vathapi Ganapathi’, Dikshitar’s kriti in Hamsadhwani, had sprightly kalpanaswaras. Tyagaraja’s ‘Sogasu chooda tarama’ in Kannada gowla was followed by Syama Sastri’s evergreen ‘Kamakshi amba’ in Bhairavi, set in Misra chapu tala.
A lilting composition of Papanasam Sivan, ‘Paratpara Parameshwara’ in Vachaspati led to the highlight of the concert, a glorious Abheri that was marked with bhava-laden intonations. Tygaraja’s ‘Nagumomu ganaleni’ was embellished with spirited ragamalika swara segments that consisted of Valachi, Revathy, Hindolam, Kapi, Ranjani and Shubhapantuvarali.
The violinist was supported by K.V. Prasad on the mridangam and Vaikom Gopalakrishnan on the ghatam. Kanyakumari’s disciple Sajive provided violin support. Prasad and Gopalakrishnan mesmerised the audience with their intricate laya patterns in the tani. The recital came to a close with devout numbers such as ‘Krishna nee begane’ (Yamunakalyani) and ‘Brahmam okate’ in Bouli.
The festival was organised by Gowri Creations.
