“As a child I was definitely blessed to hail from a family of musicians. My mother would take me for all music and dance concerts being held in Chennai. And she would point out to observe the dancer’s movements, features or narrate the stories to me,” says Rathna Kumar, internationally renowned dancer and the founder-director of the Anjali Center for Performing Arts, the first Indian dance school in Texas. “The fact that we were Telugu Brahmins did not restrict our musical genre to Tyagaraja kritis. In fact our play list at home included songs of all genres including Bengali, Oriya and even Urdu. During the initial stages, all of it that I had imbibed was by observation and exposure,” adds Ratna, who attributes her evolution to interaction and inspection.
Although musicseemed closer to her heart, it was dance that she chose. Trained initially in Bharatanatyam under K.J. Sarasa she did her Arangetram in 1956. In Kuchipudi, she came under the tutelage of Vedantam Jagannatha Sharma and Vempati Pedda Satyam. She later learnt from Vempati Chinna Satyam at the Kuchipudi Art Academy in Chennai and went on to do her Arangetram in 1967.
She subsequently moved to the U.S. after her marriage, where she established the Anjali Centre for Performing Arts (1975), the first Indian dance school in Texas and one of the first in the U.S. She has contributed significantly to the practice and promotion of India’s dance forms in North America . She received the Nomination to the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame & Certificate of Appreciation from Texas Governor Rick Perry (2002), The Texas Institute for Arts in Education’s coveted Apple Award (2000), Outstanding Community Service Award (Houston Metropolitan Transit Authority – 2000).
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In India too, she has kept her foothold strong, not missing the Margazhi Festival even for a year. She received the Best Dancer of the Year (The Music Academy, Chennai, India in 2000), the Viswa Kala Bharati (Bharat Kalachar, Chennai in 1999) and in 2011 the Sangeet Natak Academi Award (for Kuchipudi) from the Government of India.
Reflecting on her childhood years she shares, “We worked at an unhurried pace, something children of this generation miss. We had exams but that never meant stopping our extra curricular activities. In fact, I considered it a punishment if I was stopped from attending the dance class. I loved it for the camaraderie it fostered and the values it taught thanks to our teachers.
It was the 14th World Theatre Conference tour that made Rathna realise how much she was connected to dance. “The ice floors during the bitter cold winter months had affected my feet and the doctor told me that I would not be able to function temporarily. I hurrued to Chennai, got myself treated to get back to dancing.”
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Over the years, Rathna has trained over 2,000 students from different ethnic backgrounds. She has been honoured by many organizations, such as the Young Audiences of Houston, Miller Theater Advisory Board, Texas Commission on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and UNESCO’s International Dance Council. Her illustrated book, ‘Adavu,’ is in its third edition, and a sequel, Kuchipudi Adavu is in print.
How does Rathna deal with students from different cultural backgrounds? “I follow the Indian way of teaching; serious drilling of basic steps for at least 2-3 years before moving onto items. A one-hour class may stretch much longer. That’s how I learnt when there was no clock in the room. Class was over not when the time had passed, but when my teacher felt I had learnt enough for the day! On the other hand, I am a teacher who would not hesitate to give a pat on the back to encourage my little ones,” she adds with her charm and poise.
Reminiscing on her gurus, Rathna says, “I try to be as gentle as Saroja Amma. She never sat on a pedestal instead embraced us with her warmth and affection. Master (Vempati Chinna Satyam) on the other hand was a strict disciplinarian and I am deeply inspired by his marvellous choreographic works.”
Amongst the many choreographic works that Rathna treasures, Poornam that was suggested by her sister Seetha Ratnakar. Dedicated to the physically challenged people of the world, the theme stressed on mind over matter. “My sister is a great support to me. She assists me in designing costumes, lights, brochures and on several occasions writing the script for my productions,” informs Rathna.
On her choreography Rathna says, “My audience might not always prefer Indian mythology or history. They relate more to current issues like environment. So when I give them that on a traditional platter, they love it.” Rathna is working on ‘Forest of Fantasy,’ to be premiered at the end of the year.
Late Anil Kumar, Rathna’s husband, was a pillar of support in all her endeavours. “He was so encouraging, I need to keep it going with even more zest and meaning. His demise has sharpened my spiritual instinct,” says the artiste.
So, to go back to the beginning, is Rathna living her mother’s dream. “My mother gave me such brilliant guidance. I am happy that her dream eventually became my life.”