With the sudden cancellation of veteran dancer Yamini Krishnamoorthy’s performance, the organisers were left with little choice but to put a promising 15-year-old girl Swapnasundari on the stage. This recital, which was a success, heralded her arrival in the field of dance.
Swapnasundari soon proved that she is not someone who can be happy merely with performance opportunities; she began exploring her art to create a distinctive space. Her interest in the many unknown facets of the dance form was further triggered by a devadasi’s performance at a temple in Andhra Pradesh.
“I was mesmerised by this 70-year-old dancer without makeup and singing her lines as she danced.’’ Captivated by the nuances, Swapnasundari decided to research, codify and record for posterity this tradition. She travelled through Andhra Pradesh learning more about the dance tradition of the Kalavanthulu community. With her quest for knowledge combined with a systematic study, she codified all that she had imbibed and gave the art form a new lease of life and a new name — Vilasini Natyam (coined by Dr. Arudra)
Chennai, where Swapna spent her early years, was not just her learning ground in dance and music but also literature. Though her competence in nritta is undeniable, it is her mastery over abhinaya that has won laurels across the globe. The speciality of her abhinaya is Swapna’s ability to come with a variety of sancharis for a single line in a song.
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An erudite scholar and author of well-researched books, she is the convener of the Natya Kala Conference at Krishna Gana Sabha for the second consecutive year. Keeping in mind that Indian performing art traditions have their roots in the shastras and puranas, the conference’s theme this year is ‘The power of Ten’.
Someone who believes in doing things differently, Swapna has requested the participating artists to choose new ‘dasha’ themes such as ‘Dasha-vidha balam’, ‘Dasha durguna’, ‘Dasha-dik, Manmatha dashaavastha and more. With a mix of senior and junior dancers, representing different styles, the conference promises to look at number ten with a fresh perspective.
The line-up includes Parshwanath Upadhye (Bharatnatyam), Deepti Omcherry Bhalla (Mohiniattam), Sohini Debnath (Kathak), Anwesa Mahanta (Sattriya), Swarnamalya Ganesh (Bharatnatyam), Vedantam Ramalinga Shastry (Kuchipudi), Sreelakshmy Govardhan (Kuchipudi) and Rama Vaidhyanathan (Bharatanatyam).
The conference will be held from Dec 26 to 29 at Sri Krishna Gana Sabha