When Srikanth dances, he dazzles. There is not a dull moment. His versatility is enhanced by his wife and dance partner Ashwathi, who adds elegance and aesthetics to the presentation. This was evident in their recent performance.
Srikanth hails from the Bhagavata Mela tradition and his tutelage under guru Padma Subrahmanyam has chiselled the nuances of his Bharatanatyam to perfection. Certain sways and movements reminded viewers of this school’s special attributes.
Srikanth and Ashwathi began with a Pushpanjali in Tamil – ‘Paalum Theli Thenum’ by Avvayar, in Nattai.
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The varnam, ‘Saveri hadhanuja santhatham’ by Swati Thirunal in Saveri was refreshingly new, as it is not often handled by contemporary dancers. The special jatis for this piece were composed by the mridangam artist Nagai Sriram.
The sancharis in the earlier part of the varnam depicted anecdotes from Abirama Bhattar’s life, of how he was saved by the goddess when he was about to be punished. The portrayal was impressive. The description of the goddess’s tresses came through beautifully in the charanam.
A couple on stage together has its own charm and Srikanth and Ashwathi shared a nice rapport.
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Ashwathi’s fluid movements blended well with Srikanth’s majestic approach. Since both are strong in nritta, it enhanced the quality of the performance. Their abhinaya skills came through in in the padam ‘Netru Varen Endru’ in Pantuvarali, where Ashwathi laments that her beloved has not turned up, while Srikanth in the Purandaradasar song, ‘Gummana gayathirey’ showed Yashoda reprimanding the mischievous Krishna. The song, in Tilang, was enchantingly portrayed. The concluding item by the couple was a thillana with Sankara Srigiri of Swati Thirunal woven into the format.
Hariprasad’s singing was melodious and Jayashree provided gentle nattuvangam. Nagai Sriram was on the mridangam and Easwar Ramakrishnan played the violin.