Features: Magazine | Literary Review | Life | Metro Plus | Open Page | Education Plus | Book Review | Business | SciTech | Friday Review | Young World | Property Plus | Quest | Folio |

Style and space

Dancer and choreographer Preethi Athreya loves to experiment. Deepa H Ramakrishnan speaks to the artiste

MODERN MOVEMENTS Preeti Athreya. PHOTO: M. SINGARAVELOU

Many who like Bharatanatyam will tell you that the dance is about dancers in dazzling costumes enacting mythological stories with traditional movements and music.

But dancer Preethi Athreya prefers to define her dancing space with slow movements. "Movement is what defines space, whether you make a circle or a straight line. Movement is a visible aspect of space and space is the hidden aspect of movement," explained the dancer, who recently performed at the Alliance Francaise auditorium in Pondicherry.

In her 45-minute performance titled "Inhabit", dancer-choreographer Preethi Athreya presented three solos built around the idea of the body as the enigma inhabited by the enormity of the present moment. "The body is an organism that amplifies each passing moment and every moment of stillness is displaced by the moving body. Time is arrested, appropriated, celebrated and given back into itself," she added.

"It's an attempt to present the art form in its barest form, sans colourful costumes, jewellery and mythological tales. Yet it is complete. When you slow the body down and start listening to it, everybody is a potential dancer. You learn to feel about the simplest thing about your body like how your foot moves or your face turns. You make those simple moves special."

Having trained under the Dhananjayans, who are known for their innovative approach and cross-cultural productions, and with Padmini Chettur, who has been part of the movement to modernise Indian dance, Preethi is open to new ideas. She sees dance as a secular space.

"I wanted to move out familiar stories to abstract narratives. When you watch a dance about Shiva your mind is conditioned to think of a story that you are familiar with but if you take away the familiarity you allow your mind to think freely. The viewer emotes with the performer rather than understand the dance," says Preethi.

During the performance she was wearing simple and comfortable outfit instead of the traditional attire.

"I don't attach too much importance to the costume and jewellery. For too long women in India have been oppressed by the male notion of beauty — of being charming and seductive, and smiling endearingly. Women have to develop their own concept of beauty," she stresses.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail