Fascinated by the mystique
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Shree Bharatalaya and Colgate University present ``The Tale Of Puhar," on December 6 at the Narada Gana Sabha Hall. CHITRA MAHESH talks to the key players.
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Sudharani and Skelton at a discussion with students.
THE TREND is for people to head westward to enhance education or other skills. But often the secrets of a mystic orient or the wisdom of the Indian psyche attract a select few. And they enjoy the experience. Like, for instance, these students from the Colgate University, Hamilton, New York, who are now in Chennai learning the various Indian classical arts and dances. And shepherding them is the 80-plus Prof. William Skelton, conductor and scholar of music and an authority on the Indian experience! Prof. Skelton and all his wards are at Sree Bharatalaya one afternoon as rehearsals are going on for the mega collaborative venture, Silappadigaram to be premiered on December 6 at the Narada Gana Sabha. The students participate along with those of Sree Bharatalaya and Kovalan to be played by Vijay, a second generation Indian American (for whom this is not the first visit India). Aishwarya Ananth will play bride Kannagi. Priya Murle will don the role of Kannagi, who burnt Madurai. Sudharani plays Kavunthi Adigal, the Jain saint.
Talking to William Skelton one discovers yet again how passion for something keeps one young in mind and spirit. It was 33years ago that with Sudharani Raghupathy he founded Shree Bharatalaya. How did this venture come about? ``Well we have been in this kind of joint efforts for a number of years now. Sudharani and I," begins Skelton. It goes back to when we did Sita Kalyanam years ago at the Music Academy. We did it with my troupe and it was okay. I've always wanted to do something jointly with these people knowing fully well that we don't come out as trained Bharatanatyam dancers. But we are enthusiasts and some are very quick. I would liken it to a symphony orchestra. I can teach somebody to go into a symphony orchestra and play a triangle and play it at the right time and be part of the symphony without necessarily having to play everything that the violin plays. That is how we decided on Silapadhikaram.
Why Silappadigaram?
``Frankly ever since the Woman's Movement started many years ago I always wondered why the epics with the man? Why not women? There is a strong Jain element in it and then I liked the fact that this was a devout proper woman who did everything in the world that she was supposed to have done and yet fate kind of dealt her a mean hand. But in the final analysis where she attained kind of a mystique it was very appealing. Madurai Krishnan has done the music and I had also worked a bit on this with artistes like S. Ramanathan. I read every possible translation. A lot of other things evolved as it went along."
How have you approached this production? Any new elements? How are you combining the traditional and the modern?
It has takes place in several nice ways. One is that you are going to see many white feet dancing. Together with Indians and in some cases you might even have trouble identifying which is which. This young lady (one of Sudharani's students) is working with a boy who is a non-dancer, he is a good musician. When you see him on stage you won't believe that he has been learning dance for only a month and a half. He is going to be a showstopper. We have a little Corps de ballet, which works together with five of our people and five of Sudharani's people. There will be an English narration at points enhancing the story and a little Western band playing a fanfare will announce the opening. We have two almost Japanese like stage hands, two girl dancers running around setting stages dressed in black and the students are making batik sets costumes, banners with Mahavira because of the Jain element.
What else are they going through other than the production?
They are studying philosophy with the great teacher Dr. R. Balasubramaniam, batik, Tamil with K. S. Balasubramaniam at the Kuppuswamy Shastri Institute, flute with Ramani, veena with Rajalakshmi, mridangam with Govind, violin with Thiagarajan. Over and above this they maintain a journal and also study some of the best Indians writing in English.
Are all of them going through every thing or do they get to choose?
Surprisingly most are going through everything, though Colgate says you need to have only four courses.
We want to learn that is all. Most take five or six different things. Some also do yoga and Kalari.
They don't have a lot of free time and this is intense — learn as much as you can.
And this adds to their credits in the course?
Oh yes! This is a full credit course.
What happens when they get back?
It's beautiful. You would love to see it. They get so angry with the way they have learnt before... He trails off looking into the distance which may perhaps have Skelton even celebrate his 100 years in India doing things he loves, being with students for whom a whole new world has opened up and proving that age has nothing to do with creativity and a thirst for knowledge.
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