With an epic story like the Mahabharat to fall back upon, Sadhya’s theatrical piece “Game of Dice” was a good platform for contemporary interpretation of the timeless tale through dance and mime. The major climacteric for the war between the Pandavas and Kauravas warring blood relations, the game of dice offers a vast canvas for analysis from more than one angle. Its relevance transcends time and is itself a testimony of the universality. Dancer-choreographer Santosh Nair’s Sadhya ensemble was able to visualise and bring in its topicality through Mayurbhanj Chhau sprinkled with few contemporary movements and a dash of Kathakali. Despite varied dance styles, “Game of Dice” emerged as a coherent whole to which the audience was able to relate.
Artistic mood
Taking care not to enter into a realm that requires more characters, this dance theatrical chose to present the five Pandavas initially in the typical ‘mask’-faced style of Chhau which they abandon as the story progresses; while the Kaurav brothers were limited to just Duryodhan and Dushasan with a masked Shakuni. The groups encounter each other in vigorous dance and mime set to vilambit with high jumps to mirror the artistic mood of ‘Veer rasa’. While Kaurav brothers donned fiery ochre costume, the Pandavas were in grey and white in keeping with their less inflammable nature. The dance was only to music and percussion. Yudhisthir’s weakness for gaming is the root cause to the chaos descending on both the kingdoms and this was not left unsaid throughout the play. Sans didactics, it laid bare certain facts, weaknesses inherent in human nature that contribute to collapse of a kingdom/society/system. Introducing Draupadi (Swati Shishodia) through shadow-play was an impressive piece of artistry. The barbaric act of dragging her was done rather too realistically for an aesthetic taste but it served to bring the ‘bhibatsa rasa’ into full focus which is what the disrobing is about. Another innovative piece in the disrobing episode was the use of reams of cloth flowing across the stage wherein Dushasan (Sudhir Kumar) is shown biding the husbands of Draupadi too one after the other conveying their status of slavery and helplessness. The absence of Krsna as a character on stage was amply compensated by Yudhisthir’s (Himesh Parcha) expression of humble gratitude for rescuing Draupadi from abject insult. Draupadi and Bhim’s (Rishi Sharma) dance was fascinating in as much as it portrayed the ferocity needed to release the vendetta. The gory scene of Bhim tearing the entrails of Dushasan after a fierce combat came in convincingly with the use of red yarn. The Kathakali dancer was the alter ego to a furious Bhim in the foreground which was a thoughtful piece of innovation. Presented in tow with Sangeet Natak Akademi, the show was staged at Meghdoot amphitheatre
