Kathak traces its origins to the Kathakas, the story-telling bards of yore. They even find mention in texts as old as the Mahabharata. When Kathak maestro Pandit Rajendra Kumar Gangani’s gunghroos speak, they recount the hoary tradition of the Jaipur gharana, to which he belongs to.
A seventh generation scion of the lineage, Rajendra today wears the roles of Guru, performer, choreographer, composer and musician, with equal dedication and dignity.
“My forefathers in this tradition were all dancers and musicians who contributed richly to the heritage,” he says, talking of the history of the Jaipur gharana. “Over the centuries, under different regimes in our land, there have been attempts at distorting and destroying the art form. But we have strived to protect and preserve it in its purity and pass it down the generations. We stand by not just the gharana, but the parampara as a whole.”
Rajendra Gangani’s guru was his father, the renowned Pt. Kundanlal Gangani, who was a brilliant musician as well. He is credited with having replenished the repertoire in the style, with his unique compositions and new techniques in footwork.
Rajendra graduated from Kathak Kendra, Delhi, in 1984, around the same time as the demise of his father. With the torch passed down to him, he embarked on his journey with his goals clearly in sight – keeping the tradition vibrant and maintaining the fine balance between purity and innovation.
Rajendra Gangani is all for creative innovation, without which the art would become stagnant, he says. And besides, there is the demand for something new with each passing generation. However, it should not be at the expense of style or purity. “The innovation can be in the form of a new idea or a socially relevant theme, expressed through the traditional medium of Kathak, which does have the means and methods to communicate it,” he emphasises. Whatever be the theme, it should be one that can be expressed through the language of Kathak, and not aimed at creating quick publicity or for novelty’s sake.
“For instance, one may think of adapting a Shakespearean drama to Kathak. But it may simply not comply with the Kathak style. To say that the experiment is successful, one has to see it if survives. Very often, contemporary is temporary,” he says with a laugh.
Nature, concern for environment, moods, intricacies of rhythms and so on are some of the themes that have been treated to Rajendra’s creative choreography. The daily lives and activities of the people of his home state, Rajasthan, have been the subject of one of his presentations – Jhalak, meaning glimpses. A widely applauded performance was his jugalbandi with table maestro Zakir Hussain, underscoring his exquisite footwork and command over rhythm and bol.
Rajendra has also performed jugalbandis with all classical dance forms of India, and flamenco and tap dance from the West. ‘Layangikam’, his choreography bringing together many dance forms, invokes the inherent rhythms in the body.
Over the years, what trends has he noticed?
“Some time ago, cinematic dance and Bollywood numbers were thought of as Kathak. Thankfully, now, wherever I have travelled over the world, Kathak seems to have earned its rightful recognition as a classical dance of India.” Does he face any challenge in taking it forward or preserving the tradition? “Sadly culture and dance seem to have been taken over by event managers. In the stage shows that they organise, classical dance has no place. Exhibitionist gyrations cannot pass off as dance,” he asserts. “And this is where a forum like Soorya plays such a significant role. The service it does by providing a platform for pure art forms cannot be undermined.”
These days, Pt. Rajendra Gangani places greater importance on his role as a Guru – to pass on the tradition to the future generation. The many workshops that he conducts in different parts of the world, state this sense of purpose.
Speaking of his experience at a 10-day workshop in Thiruvananthapuram, he says that he sees definite talent in some of the participants and an increased appreciation of Kathak. However, he also notices the lack of a guru- shishya parampara in Kerala. Students seem to learn different forms with a view to taking part in competitions and performances on TV and stage shows. Panditji’s advice to aspiring dancers would be to concentrate on a single dance form. “If not, you will find traces of other forms in your dancing. It is like speaking Hindi with a Malayalam accent or Tamil with a North-Indian accent!”
All in the family
* Fifty-five year old Rajendra Gangani has been training since the age of four.
* The Gangani family is based in Delhi. They migrated from Rajasthan in the 60s.
* The extended Gangani family has around 100 members spread over the country and abroad. All of them are adept at either Kathak, music or percussion (pakhawaj). The performers include brothers, uncles, cousins and so on. Thus the accompanying musicians are also made up of the family members.
* Brothers Fateh Singh Gangani, Yogesh Gangani and Ashish Gangani are recognised percussionists. Harish Gangani (brother) is a prominent Kathak dancer. Rajendra's son Sanjeet Gangani has also taken to Kathak.
* Nayanika, his niece, is perhaps the youngest entrant and the first female dancer in the family. Rajendra’s disciples include Swati Sinha, Sharmishtha Mukherjee, Monisa Nayak, Harish Gangani, Dheerendra Tiwari, Piyush and Preeti Chuhan and Deepti Gupta.
* His major productions include Layangikam, Jhalak, Vedna (on global warming) and Nritya Rupa (rhythm and movement).
Accolades galore
Pt. Rajendra Gangani has taken part in Festivals of India in several countries. Among the many awards and fellowships that he has won are Shastriya Natya Shiromani, Sangeet Raj and the prestigious Sangeet Natak Academy Award that he received in 2003 from the then President of India Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.
Jaipur Gharana
The Jaipur gharana ourished under the Kachchwaha kings of Rajput. Bhanuji is credited to be founder of this school. Layakari or expertise in rhythmic work, spiritual content in the nritya, and kavit or the stylised recitation of lyrics along with percussion, are all important features of the Jaipur gharana.
Flamenco
Parallels are often drawn between the Spanish Flamenco and Kathak. While the accent is on the foot in Flamenco, Kathak is multi-dimensional with strong aspects of laya and bhava. Rajendra Gangani opines that the similarity can be traced to their common origin in Rajasthan from where the gypsies, considered the original Flamenco dancers, migrated to parts of Europe.
