The main purpose in organising music concerts dedicated to a particular vaggeyakara is to unravel and propagate rare compositions created by that person so as to enrich the repertoire of the performer as well as the audience. Considering this, a four-day music and dance festival dedicated to Maharaja Swati Tirunal in Irinjalakuda, served the purpose and was a success.
Kasthuri Kamala Deepthi from Visakhapatnam enthralled rasikas with her pliable voice and effortless singing. After the initial Kamboji varnam and ‘Narasimha’ (Aarabhi), she took Nattakurinji for elaboration, followed by the Navaratri kriti ‘Pahi janani santhatham.’ Nayaki unfurled through the kriti ‘Paalayamaam’ in the appropriate tempo. She sung Hamsanandi in detail – the upper octave elaborations, especially, shed light on the beauty of the raga.
Her rendering of the kriti ‘Pahijagadjanani’ and the swara patterns were a testimony of the style inherited from her mentor, Madurai Seshagopalan. A speedy ‘Karunakara’ (Begada) paved the way for the main piece, ‘Sarasijanabha murare’ in Thodi. While essaying the raga she effectively and intelligently attempted Sruthibhedam at Rishabham resulting in raga Mohanam.
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Pappu Gyandev (violin), Peravalli Jayabhaskar (mridangam) and Sreejith (ghatam) were the accompanying artistes. ‘Kalaye’ (Chenchurutti) and ‘Ramachandraprabhu’ (Sindhu Bhairavi) comprised the post thani session.
Sunil Gargyan started with a rarely-heard varnam ‘Chalamela’ in Kamas. A short aalapana of Asaveri was sufficed with a serene ‘Paalaya Madhava.’ The uthsava prabhandam kriti ‘Aaantholika vahane,’ blossomed from Anandabhairavi, was elaborated in a tempo justifying the mood of the raga. An array of swaras decked the speedy ‘Ahahanaivajane’ (Amrithavarshini), after which he elaborated Begada. The kriti rendered was ‘Vandedevadevam’ that corresponds to the paadasevanam of Navavidhabhakthi margam. A brisk ‘Maamava jagadeeswara’ (Saraswathi Manohari) set the stage for an elaborate exposition of Kalyani, which he sang in a systematic manner, encompassing all the grammar of the raga. The vocalist followed it with a neat delineation of the kriti, ‘Adrisudhavara’.
Idappally Ajith (violin), Sumesh Narayanan (mridangam) and Vazhappally Krishnakumar (ghatam) supported the singer. ‘Kaanthanodu’ (Neelambari) and Dhanasree thillana constituted the final phase.
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Krishnakumar regaled the audience with an impressive Mohiniyattam performance. His facial expressions as well as body movements fully brought out the lasya, which is much needed for this dance form. After invocative ‘Ananda Ganapathi’ (Puraneeru), he presented ‘Poonthen nermozhi’ (Anandabhairavi – Padam) in which he portrayed the Poshitha Barthrika nayika. The main piece was ‘Daanisaamajendra’ (Thodi-varnam) through which he explored the nuances of pure dance and acting, by portraying the mental agonies of nayika yearning to meet Lord Padmanabha. The final ‘Aaaj aaye’ (Yamuna Kalyani- Bhajan) showcased the creativity and inquisitiveness of the performer.
Moozhikulam Kaarthik presented a neat Panthuvarali (‘Paripalayasaraseeruha’) and a Sundaranarayana kriti in Reetigowla (‘Hari om Narayana’) in his concert. Kochi Viswanathan delivered a classic Shanmukhapriya (‘Maamava Karunaya’) among other kritis. Kuchipudi by Swarnalatha, Sopana sangeetham by Eloor Biju and Sangeethaaradhana by devotees also lent variety to the festival. The fete was organised by Nadopasana.