For theatre artists in India, Adishakti near Auroville has served as a springboard of ideas, a place to strengthen their technique and craft. The theatre group’s Source of Performance Energy workshops for actors has honed participants in a performance methodology developed by Adishakti which focuses on the ‘physical, vocal and psychological expression’ of an actor through exercises in breath, emotion, rhythm, centres and voice. On the other hand, the Master Classes have given theatre practitioners an opportunity to connect with exponents in scriptwriting, cinematography, lights, costume and other fields.
For most though, just spending time in the Adishakti campus which the late Veenapani Chawla founded, is reason enough to be energised, and draw from the immense legacy she has left behind. Thus, bringing their art to Adishakti for most is nothing short of homage.
With many theatre groups expressing interest in performing here, the team at Adishakti decided to host a month-long festival, ‘Remembering Veenapani’ coinciding with her birth anniversary on April 5.
The festival held in association with travel company The Blue Yonder featured a diversity of performances, which included a Bharatanatyam performance by Ashwini Pawar Karthikeyan, a multimedia presentation by author Sathya Saran on SD Burman, a jazz concert by Kirtana Krishna, Therukoothu and folk drama by Arulmigu Sri Iyyappan Nataka Mandram, Evgeny Shvartz’s The Dragon by Mumbai-based The Drama School, Under The Mangosteen Tree by Chennai-based Perch, and music concerts by Bengaluru-based Thaalavattam and Thrissur-based Oorali.
The festival concluded on Tuesday with a performance by theatre artist Daniel Bye from the U.K. “The festival is essentially a tribute to Veenapani. Quite a few groups had asked us about performing here, and so we put this together for her birth anniversary,” said Vinay Kumar, one of the senior most artists at Adishakti. The team has plans to follow up with performances on the campus in May.
Rajiv Krishnan, director of Under The Mangosteen Tree, which presented a collection of stories by Malayalam writer Vaikom Muhammad Basheer, said, “Veenapani had expressed interest in having the play here at Adishakti. While we would have liked to have brought it here while she was here, it is particularly appropriate to have the play at this festival, as Adishakti has a strong connect with Kerala.”
“There has been a good response to the festival. Almost all the artists who performed here have done it free of cost. As the festival was organised on weekends, it did not interrupt our regular rehearsals and training,” said Nimmy Raphael, artist at Adishakti.
