Neena Prasad cast a spell with her Mohiniyattom recital at The Music Academy that started with an appropriate verse from the Taittiriya Upanishad ‘Brahmaanandam Parama Sukham Kevalam Gyanamurtim’. It focussed on that ultimate state of bliss when all dualism disappears, and her performance that evening, like the open skies, evoked an all-pervasive quietude. The verse was followed by Cholkettu, a musical composition set in raga Hamsadhwani and Khanda jati triputa tala, by Changanasseri Madhavan Nampoothiri, also the vocalist for the recital.
The treatment of Swati Tirunal’s composition ‘Shankara Sri Giri’ in Hamsanandi was unique starting with an incident demonstrating the power of Siva’s third eye, based on one of Kerala’s Pauranic tales. Siva in meditation, disturbed by Parvati playfully closing his eyes from the back, opens his third eye, and in the flaming effulgence of its fire, even the Sun recedes into a shadow and the ice on the Himalayas starts melting.
With the projection of the power of silence, a short jati punctuation, “Ghum tat ta ghum tat thai” was followed by the line “Bhasma trinetra gale runda mala……nachat bringi”, the Pallavi line “Shankara Sri Giri Natha” coming later. The impact of the natya visualisation and rendition by Neena was greatly enhanced by the singer with aesthetic interventions on the mridangam (Ramesh Babu), dulcet veena (Murali Krishnan) and edakka (Arun Das).
The climax of the recital came in the form of the Syama Sastri Swarajathi in Bhairavi, which described Goddess Kamakshi, starting with the beauty of her fish-like eyes , met with the dancer’s joyous treatment. The vilamba kalam in which the composition is sung was ideal for the andolika torso sway with the interpretative passages conveyed through hastas and mukhabhinaya. Epithets like ‘Syama Krishna Sahodari’, ‘Shiva Shankari’, ‘Parameshwari’ were eloquently brought out in the movement choreography.
Towards the end was a narrative of Goddess as Meenakshi born in the fire of Yagna and brought up as a valiant warrior with all the martial accomplishments. In traditional off white and gold costume with the top-side knot, Neena’s mesmeric presentation projected Mohiniyattom at its best. The concluding tillana in Tilang set to Roopakam was a composition of Changanasseri Madhavan Nampoothiri.
