Visionary poet, dramatist, singer, painter and a deep thinker. That was Rabindranath Tagore. He believed in a world order which was not ‘broken into fragments by narrow domestic walls.’
On his 150th birth anniversary, Sangeet Natak Akademi collaborated with Bangladesh to present a joint celebration titled Rabindra Pranati, from May 7-13.
A representative range of the poet’s works was showcased through dance, song, recitation and theatre at the week-long festival.
Under Kathakavya Abhinaya, Tamanna Rahman of Bangladesh presented ‘Nadhi’ in Manipuri. Innovative story-teller Prerana Srimali’s pieces were selected from the Gitanjali and her fine sense of rhythm and subtle abhinaya were apt for the songs she chose. Her Kathak idiom and the aesthetic beauty of the poet's works merged seamlessly.
The poet has observed, interpreted and explored the various aspects of women with sensitivity. The child bride thinks life is all fun and games, and extends her friendship to her husband. She beckons her playmates to a lively game in ‘Aye Tobe Sahachari Hate Hat Dhori Dhori.’ When she grows from innocence to adolescence, she decks up for a prince who will pass her window and perhaps only glance at her. Unrequited and one-sided, illusory love could not have been penned better.
The story of Srimati, a determined woman who defied the orders of the king to worship Buddha, was the story that Saswati Sen presented with sensitivity, wit and imagination. Purnendu Bhattacharya and Vaswati Sen helped the story to move forward with their recitation.
Koodiyattom dancer Kapila Venu won the hearts of many with her power to emote the love story of two powerful characters from the Mahabharata - Arjun and Chitrangada.
Modern-age dancer Vaibhav Arekar used his knowledge of theatre and Bharatanatyam to explore Tagore's poem ‘Debotar Grash’ interweaving it with poems from ‘The Crescent Moon.’ What he did was a connoisseur’s delight. The last poem 'The End' is a poignant tale of a child who is no more, yet present in all the activities of the mother. Such was the flavour of Vaibhav's presentation that it moved the audience.
Seema Biswas acted out the role of stree in ‘Streer Patra’ in the Katha Kavya segment. Alok Chatterjee displayed his talent in order to bring home the strange happenings in ‘Khudito Pashan.’
Bharatanatyam dancer Priyadarsini Govind explored the idea of two women in love. The beautiful and charming Shyama wins the man she loves by cleverly manipulating a youth who sacrifices his life for her. On the other hand, Lavanya, the heroine of ‘Sesher Kavita’ leaves Amit Ray, with whom she is deeply in love, to marry another. Priyadarsini sailed through, both in abhinaya as well as nritta.
Gireesh Sopanam’s performance was spell-binding. His presentation was rich in imagery and symbolism. The realisation that your pursuit of the eternal ends in you was brought out effectively.
Mohiniyattom artist Gopika Varma was an epitome of grace in her rendition of the twin stories of Ahalya and Kunti from the Mahabharata. She combined the two with the lyric ‘Basonti He Bhubano’. The themes delved into Tagore's perception of the emotions of women.
‘Samudrer Prati’ was performed on the opening day. Samudra or the Ocean is Tagore's perception of the primordial mother with which Odissi dancer Sharmila Biswas identified her experience. In emoting a mother’s bond to her child which is a combination of ferocity and gentleness, Sharmila made use of not only Rabinrdra Sangeet but also Oriya geet to project sensitivity.
Besides the Kathakavyas, there were Sangeetavritti and Nritya Natya. ‘Samanya Khoti’ was performed by the Jago Art Centre of Bangladesh while Bhanusingher Padabali was presented by Sangeet Bhavan, Vishwabharati, Santiniketan.
