“Food is a pretty good prism through which to view humanity” - Jonathan Gold, American food and music critic.
Cuisines are not just culinary delights, they are cultural indicators too. Taste and flavour apart, what is served on a plate relates to human emotions. And, emotions define art.
‘Arisi: Rice - Grains of Life’, the multi-disciplinary dance production by the Singapore-based Apsaras Arts, shows how food nourishes the body as well as souls and civilisations. The unifying grain brings together people and cultures across Asia. The unusual narrative depicts paddy fields not merely as agricultural lands but as spaces that signify everyday life, traditions and rituals.
Conceptualised and directed by Aravinth Kumarasamy and choreographed by Mohanapriyan Thavarajah and Prof. I Wayan Dibia, it has dancers from Apsaras Arts sharing the stage with Balinese dancers from the GEOK ensemble and guest dancers from India.
‘Arisi’ is a collaborative dance production. | Photo Credit: Courtesy: Apsaras Arts
“Across Asian cultures, this grain plays a vital role from birth to death. The production is based on two narratives — the cultivation of rice, and its journey from the field to the plate and the rice culture of the region. Not just in India, festivities and rituals in most other Asian countries are incomplete without rice. What better way than a dance production on this significant grain to showcase the artistic heritage of the region,” says Aravinth Kumarasamy.
‘Arisi’, supported by Consulate-General of the Republic of Singapore in Chennai, will have its international premiere in the city. “Since both Balinese dance and Bharatanatyam have their roots in Natyashastra, it was not hard choreographing movements that establish a connect between the dance forms. The collaboration with Bali was logical because it has a strong rice culture too. If you visit any temple in Bali, the priest will give rice instead of vibhuti or kumkum. Interestingly, in the 10th century it is said that rice was exported from Bali since people there had mastered the art of rice cultivation.”
The work features dancers from Apsaras Arts sharing the stage with Balinese dancers from the GEOK ensemble and guest dancers from India | Photo Credit: Courtesy: Apsaras Arts
The music of this production has been created by over 90 Indian and Balinese musicians, apart from a Singapore-Chinese orchestra. Rajkumar Bharati has composed the music while Sai Shravanam arranged and produced it. “It was both fascinating and mystical to create the music for such a work,” says Rajkumar. “While recording the music in Bali, I could hear the birds, feel the breeze from paddy fields, see the reflections of the beautiful temples. It was equally wonderful to work with the Singapore-Chinese orchestra and see ragas merge with their tunes”, adds Sai.
The costumes for ‘Arisi’ are a celebration of Indian and Balinese textile and craft heritage. “The double-knot technique of ikat weaving, which has been used to create the costumes for this production, is practised only in India and Bali,” says Aravinth. According to Mohanapriyan, each costume tells its own story. “For ‘Arisi’, we moved away from silk, generally used in Bharatanatyam, to textured cotton with exquisite embroidery. The aim was to represent the elements through the fabric. We hope to serve a plateful of creative nuances that the audience will relish,” says Mohanapriyan.
Usha Marti Subrahmanyam endowment programme
‘Arisi’ is being presented as part of the annual Usha Marti Subrahmanyam endowment dance programme. Usha, who spent her early years in Chennai, trained in Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi. She moved to the U.S. after marriage and pursued her passion for art history. At a time, when Bharatanatyam was not easily accessible in the U.S., Usha collaborated with ballet exponent Jacques dÁmboise to bring students of the Dhananjayans to Radio City Hall in New York. She also established the first gallery of contemporary Indian art in New York. She coordinated and produced several events featuring eminent Indian dancers and musicians at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The annual endowment programme, instituted in Usha’s memory, celebrates her futuristic vision of art.
