Perhaps, a poet's genius lies not in that one grand passage he writes for his muse but the unending ways in which he can describe and appreciate the one he so truly loves. Recently, at a performance at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, one such opus in Maratha king Sahaji’s writings was brought under the limelight. Titled, 'Rare Dance Compositions of King Sahaji of Thanjavur', six compositions penned by the king were chosen, set to music by Madhavi Rajagopalan and choreographed by Nandini Ramani. The Bharatanatyam portion was executed by Revathi Ramachandran, Srekala Bharat, Shobana Bhalachandra and Sushama Ranganathan.
The intention was not only to discover Sahaji, the poet, but also to introduce his writings as potential material for dance because they lend themselves to musicality and abhinaya. The event that also saw the release of a book containing 15 unique pieces authored by the king compiled by Madhavi, began with a multi-media presentation about the king, his territory and his oeuvre. Madhavi explained that Sahaji was a multi-lingual poet who wrote in at least five languages. In his repertoire, one finds 208 padams, among others, dedicated to Tyagesa, who he was devoted to throughout his life.
Set in the customary Nattai, Adi talam, all four dancers began the segment with a Ganapati kavuthuvam. This was followed by a Thodayamangalam in praise of Tyagesa in Ragamalika, which evoked the serpentine form of Sahaji’s muse. Next, was a 'Sallapamudaru,' a format that resembled the varnam, set by Madhavi in Bhairavi, Adi talam, called ‘Karpuradavalanga’ which was rendered by Shobana. Comprising a combination of nritta and abhinaya portions, this piece was also an encomium for Tyagesa, the one who conquered Manmatha.
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Subsequently, for the rest of the evening, Madhavi and Nandini chose four padams. While all four of them appeared to be alike in their mood and theme, they stood testimony to the genius of Sahaji’s writing. The king, in these padams, spoke through the voice of the nayika who is separated from her lord and unable to bear the torment of that distance. The fascination, however, was the poet’s ability to convey this singular idea through four different compositions.
Revathy rendered ‘Sarasadayakara’, a padam wherein the poet, through the nayika’s voice, spoke of the anguish she goes through after being struck by Cupid’s arrows. The performance evoked ideas of viraha and love simultaneously. Aptly composed in Sindhubhairavi, the raga brought out the emotions behind the words.
Srekala performed ‘Varum Dayato’, in Manipravalam, a composition penned in a combination of three languages -Tamil, Telugu and Marathi. In this padam, Sahaji wrote in the voice of yet another nayika who was pained by the separation from her lord. She refuses to sleep unless Siva Sankara appears in front of her. Set in Khamas by Madhavi, this piece too was musically engaging. Srutisagar’s flute hailed Khamas and set the mood for the piece. Srekala’s abhinaya was nuanced and tackled the multi-lingual piece.
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A sombre piece in Nadanamakriya, was next where a grief stricken nayika yearned for Tyagesa. Sushama’s abhinaya enriched the performance. This was yet another play on ‘viraha tapa’ but was different in its nuances. Along with grief, Sahaji articulated desire as a theme in this composition.
The final piece was ‘Shiva Shiva Tumi Kon’ where a khandita nayika suspects a man who she thinks is pretending to be her Tyagesa. She turns him away only to discover later that it is her lord indeed. A perfect end to the viraha series, this piece was rendered by both Revathy and Sushama.
P.S.Narayanaswamy, who presided over the event, said “Speaking purely about the dance segment, I’m reminded of Balasaraswathi’s performance years ago. And about Sahaji, it is absolutely fascinating that he wrote so extensively within a span of 28 years. He has left it to us to spread his word and oeuvre and we must continue to do so.”
“This was a magical evening which brought out the deep lyricism and emotional quality of Sahaji’s writing,” said Dr. Saskia Kersenboom, Bharatanatyam artist, scholar and professor, Department of Theatre Studies, University of Amsterdam.