Discovering the eye for beauty
"THE ONLY true voyage of discovery is not to go to new places but to have the other eye," said Marcel Proust in ``Remembrance Of Things Past." One realised how true this is during the recently held Natya Sangraham camp for dance teachers organised by Natyarangam (dance wing of the Narada Gana Sabha) in Thennangur from February 25-27.
Thennangur, a small village nestling snugly at about 110 km from Chennai is special, for its association with the name of Swami Haridhos Giri and the temple of Panduranga. Appreciation of beauty, developing and fine-tuning aesthetic qualities is what makes this camp unique. A typical day in the camp begins with yoga sessions conducted this year by the young and energetic Gomatheeswaran.
Dance is visual poetry. However, how does a dancer understand and appreciate the beauty of Sangam literature and modern verse? Prof. Raghuraman had answers ready. His sessions this year clearly established links between Sangam poetry and Natya Sastra. One not only enjoyed the poems but also the art of appreciating them. The beauty of adavus was brought out during the work-out sessions. One could not help admiring the way the sessions were conducted by Prof. C. V. Chandrasekhar. Incidentally, he has been the convenor of the six camps conducted till date.
When senior musician Rama Ravi sang some of the padams and javalis during her sessions in her mellifluous voice, it was an aural treat. In Bharatanatyam, can one forget the beauty of rasa? The finer points of satvika abhinaya clearly brought out by stalwarts like guru-s V. P. Dhananjayan and C. V. Chandrasekhar. Can a Bharatanatyam recital be complete without proper costumes, make-up and props? Artist Nagarajan, well-known painter explained the importance and significance of colours.
Shanta Dhananjayan taught stringing of the bells (salangai) and stringing of the flowers and the participants enjoyed this appreciating the beauty of the act in the process. The best part of the camp, however, is the Garudasevai at the temple when dancers perform in the open Praakaram to the tunes played on the Nagaswaram and this is spontaneity and beauty going hand in hand. Dolothsavam and Kalyana Utsavam are also performed on different days.
The guiding spirit behind the endeavour is R. Krishnaswami, secretary, Narada Gana Sabha, who takes care of each and every participant.
Going back to Marcel Proust again, year after year the camp succeeds in opening the other eye of the participants to discover beauty.
RAJENDRA KUMAR
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