Portraying a saint
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The attempt to perform the kritis as a group was a noble effort well rendered.
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IN TUNE Rajeswari Sainath leads her artistes in a graceful rendition. Photo: K. Gajendran
Thyagaraja's Pancharatna kritis through Bharatanatyam is not an entirely novel phenomenon but the effort to handle all the five classical gems at one go as a group choreography (like the ghosti gaanam) is commendable despite the inevitable constraints. The Pancharatnas that are sung to a particular format in the classical music tradition got translated into the dance medium with a well-laid out, rhythmic footwork pattern substituting the swaras in Rajeswari Sainath's and her disciples' rendition.
Set within a rigid framework, austere in form, each kriti was presented with bare minimum frills (like Puranic interpretations), which would tend towards tedious repetition of hackneyed mythological lore making the entire performance too lengthy to relish.
Instead, Rajeswari chose to stage each kriti with a set of dancers (who also did not get repeated) in quick succession, not allowing the audience a single moment of monotony. The Pancharatnas flowed smooth and speedy more on the strength of severe footwork appeal rather than expressive emotion all through. If Kanakana ruchira in Varali scored on abhinaya (Amaram sisters Geetha and Sangeetha looked a bundle of talent and charming looks), Saadinchaney Manasa in Arabhi (solo by Rajeswari Sainath) notched exclusively on footwork while Endaro Mahanubhaavulu (Rajeswari, Smitha Madhav and Vaishnavi Sainath) gained on aesthetics.
Notwithstanding slight synch disparities in group (like in the Purana Purusha lines of the very opening Jagadananda karaka), which calls for longer practice sessions, it must be said to the guru's credit that right from her youngest pupil to her senior most, all those who took to the stage exhibited excellence in execution of pure dance (adavus) whatever be the prototype handed over to them. Little Krithika outdid her seniors in the group in rendering Dudukugala (Gowla) with an exuberance that deserves a hearty applause.
Impressive footwork
Jyothi's expressive eyes gave life to this kriti while the weak wickets were cleverly put in the rear. Sadincheney by Rajeswari Sainath was impressive in footwork with its unique tala (beat) aspects, which took accurate turns within split seconds not losing out on time. For most part, she gave her best in terms of abhinaya as in the gopi vastrapaharana (stealing of gopikas' clothes at the bathing ghat) scene for the lines Gopijana manoradha and in the penultimate Hare Ramachandra Raghukulesha, which oozed bhakti bhava. Her beautifully carved out footwork preceding the verse Sri Venkatesa was well appreciated. The only flaw to this particular kriti was the abhinaya for Sadhinchaney, which took the form of an affirmation of achievement rather than a humble proclamation of spiritual attainment (which is what the lyric is all about).
Yendaro Mahanubhavulu the culminating Pancharatnam (Rajeswari Sainath, Vaishnavi Sainath and Smitha Madhav) concentrated on aesthetic artistry with Smitha lending her gracious edge to the entire kriti both in terms of expression and execution of adavus. Vaishnavi exuded magnetic energy both in this kriti as well as the very first opening piece Maha Ganapatim. The mangalam was a well-thought out revered finale to the Saint Thyagaraja. Pronounced mridangam by Nagai Narayanan was the highlight of the evening. It served to enhance each presentation with the culminating beat paving the way for the next piece to follow. Together with the clarity of the flute by Patanjali, it was acoustics at its finest. Murali Parthasarathi's vocal needed improvement in diction. Ranjani Seshadri on the nattuvangam and C.K. Vijayaraghavan on the violin were at their best as usual. Mridangam vidwan Guru Kaaraikkudi R. Mani's talented touch was invisibly visible at every juncture be it the orchestra, tala or laya (beat and rhythm). The dance concert was the creation of Sruti Laya Kendra Natarajalaya.
RANEE KUMAR
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