SRI KRISHNA GANA SABHA
Blend of classical and folk
RUPA SRIKANTH
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Padma became the character, never getting out of the korathi's skin.
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Photo: Shaju John.
JAUNTY: Padma Subrahmanyam.
Padma Subrahmanyam's dance theatre style is like an all-in-one concoction of classical music, classical dance, traditional themes and drama. And most often there is humour too, of the tongue-in-cheek kind that is cleverly woven into the fabric of the story. Though purists might dismiss this genre and entertainment seekers might think it too classical, the truth lies somewhere in between.
It is the warmth of Padma's portrayals, the musicality of her movements along with the melodic strength of her orchestra and the depth of her knowledge that have ensured a large following at every programme.
Kuravanji is a category of dance drama that combines both the classical and folk styles. The lyrics and music of `Viraalimalai Kuravanji' dates back to more than 200 years and was discovered by the late Shyamala Balakrishnan during her research on the folk arts.
This unedited version came to the fore in its abridged form in the 1980s when it was taken to the Festival of India in the USSR. with Padma, Sudharani Raghupathy and Chitra Visweswaran in the lead roles. Padma's orchestra was as involved as the performers themselves that evening. Spearheading the effort was B.Kannan (veena and kanjira), with the youngest, the seven-year-old Shyamakrishnan on the mini dholak, and included Vidya Kalyanaraman and Radhika (both vocal), K.S.Sudhaman (mridangam), Sujatha Mohan (nattuvangam), T.S.Babu (violin) and C.P.Venkatesan (flute).
The excitement was palpable as the preliminaries with the kattiyakaran, performed with vigour by Vineeth, were done with and the characters of Rajamohini and Suradavalli, played by Nandita Prabhu and Gayathri Kannan, had set the stage.
When finally, Padma made her entry as the korathi with her characteristically jaunty gait and impish grin, she was greeted with thunderous applause. She kept the audience with her throughout, though in this production, not much was asked of her. The movement choreography was minimal and her role as the rustic and naοve korathi was child's play. But her eminence lay in the fact that she did not have to pretend; she became the character. And through all the hilarity that followed, Padma never got out of the korathi's skin.
There was also an air of spontaneity in the characterisations. A fallen anklet on stage became an object of curiosity for the korathi and instructions given to the orchestra by Suradavalli became a play of words behind the korathi's back...
In a similar encounter, the korathi washes her hands and sprinkles water all over the mridangist who gamely ducks to avoid the shower... The exceptional chemistry between Suradavalli and the korathi added spice to the banter between them. The roles of Rajamohini and the Singan, played again by Vineet, were also well delineated, but one felt that the two young women could have taken their nritta a little more seriously.
What is acceptable from a veteran artiste cannot be the standard for the younger lot to emulate. The other students of Nrityodaya who took part were: Swathi, Aparna, Neeraja, Francoise and Laurence.
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