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Entertainment
Dance through filmi lens
THE ANNUAL event of the International Dance Alliance held in association with Narada Gana Sabha, was received well, for the simple reason dancers presented movie melodies of the past. The two-day festival was a mixed fare of Bharatanatyam and light classical dance. While the IDA's aim of offering pure entertainment to viewers was fully justified, most of the participants seemed to have had the experience of tightrope walking.
At a time when traditional Bharatanatyam has undergone a sea change with the regular format almost forgotten such happenings cause anxiety, for they can further dilute the commitment of not only the dancers but also the audience both of whom are crucial for the upkeep of the discipline. With two reputed Bharatanatyam artistes — Revathi Ramachandran and Radhika Surjit — at the helm of affairs, it was only fair to expect them to observe certain norms while defining each annual feature, keeping in mind the need to preserve the basic values of our revered art forms. In the films of the past, Bharatanatyam was introduced at appropriate contexts to enhance the aesthetic values of the scenes. Thus one could not help wondering what the purpose of an attempt like this could be. It amounts to tampering with the dance scene, when Bharatanatyam has already become a matter of mere entertainment and glamour, losing its crucial aspects of purity and spirituality.
"Andraya Paadal-Indraya Aadal" featured twelve groups, presenting popular film songs of yesteryear adapted to their dance choreography. While some groups resorted to their own visualisation of the song sequence, some had taken enormous pains to follow the same choreography as seen in the films. Songs centring round Bharatanatyam seemed to be the main source of inspiration, although a few others had been included to maintain cohesion. The dancers on both days revealed great involvement and enthusiasm. Without the cinematic props the dancers depended on their skills to sustain the show. In this however they had the full support of the audience which revelled in the enchanting melodies written by the veterans of the past, set mostly to Carnatic-based tunes by maestros like R. Sudarsanam, Naushad Ali, Vasant Desai, Ghantasala, S. V. Venkatraman and Viswanathan-Ramamurti to name only a few. The list of playback singers included all-time greats like Amir Khan, M.S. Subbulakshmi, D.K. Pattammal, M.L. Vasanthakumari, Lata Mangeshkar, Shamshad Begum, S.G. Kittappa, T.R. Mahalingam, T.M. Soundararajan, Tiruchi Loganathan, P. Suseela, P. Leela, S. Janaki, M.S. Rajeswari, L.R. Easwari, and Jamunarani, all of whom are fondly remembered for their ever-green contributions over the decades.
Murali of Narada Gana Sabha had provided excellent audio facilities for the whole programme. Stage-décor by C.S. Thomas was aesthetically appealing. On the inaugural day, Padma Subrahmaniam and Nalli Kuppuswamy Chetti were honoured. Radhika's compering (in English) did not quite gel with the main programme. Revathi did a neat job on the second day with her rendition in Tamil, although it would have been better if this task had been handled by the dancers from backstage.
Noteworthy presentations were by Sheila Unnikrishnan of Sri Devi Nrithyalaya (``Lava Kusa" - the name Kusa was printed and announced as Kucha, meaning breast), Hasta School of Usha Srinivasan (dance choreographed by K.N. Dandayudhapani Pillai in the films of the 50s) and Kala Darsana of Jayanthi Subrahmaniam (facets of Krishna).
The festival commenced with a very striking portrayal of the epic Ramayana by the students of Sheila Unnikrishnan who presented "Jagam Pugazhum Punya Kathai" from the film "Lava Kusa." It was a pleasant production with the dancers exhibiting perfect co-ordination. Every aspect of the depiction was conveyed with dignity. There was never a dull moment. The two talented children gave a very impressive performance as Lava and Kusa. It was a joy to watch their enthusiasm and beautiful expressions that came through with so much ease and grace.
Usha Srinivasan, senior disciple of the veteran teacher, K.N. Dandayudhapani Pillai, had taken care to attend to even the minute details of her mentor's choreography, in the three songs, that her students presented. The dance scene from the film "Penn" — ``Bharata Nattukkinai" — with depiction of different forms of dance like Manipuri, etc., was especially beautiful. It was interesting to watch the not so well-known Kuravanji segment from ``Avvayar" (songs by Papanasam Sivan) and the concluding vibrant number, ``Sandu pottu" from Sivagangai Seemai.
Jayanthi Subrahmanyam had chosen some of the most lively songs like "Neela Vanna Kannane" (``Mallika"), Kaatthiruppaan Kamalakannan (``Uthamaputhiran") and `Paarkadal Alaimele (``Raja Desingu"). Her students gave a lively and enjoyable performance of these songs, set to dance by Jayanthi with graceful movements, striving to remain well within the traditional framework. Even the linking musical phrases of the songs revealed meticulous training. Among others, the poetic movements of Gopika Varma and Dasyam group in Mohini Attam (Malayalam film songs), Malarum Ninaivugal (students of Udupi Lakshminarayana and Madhumati Prakash of Natya Manjari) relating a story about the love of a young man for a beautiful girl and their union, ``Awaiting Divine Love" (Padma Murali of Padmalaya and group) depicting the joy and agony of waiting in love, ``Sri Valli" (students of Muralidharan and Chitra) ``Aadalgal Palavidham" (Gayatri Balagurunathan and group) focussing on songs depicting dance, presented with perfect synchronisation, ``Sange Muzhangu" (Shivakumar and students of Kalasamarpana of the Narasimhacharis) dancing to songs on themes of eternal value, like religious discipline, educating the young, freedom from slavery, and women's liberation, etc., "Vizhikku Virundagum Kalaichelvam" by students of Abhinaya Natyalaya of Krishnakumari Narendran and ``Bharathi Kanda Bhaaratam" (students of Bharata Kalanjali of the Dhananjayans) portraying some of the famous patriotic songs, made the evenings reverberate with the joy of soulful music and bountiful appreciation from the audience.
The group that exhibited lack of technique or any expertise was that of Jignyasa Giri, an unfamiliar name on the Chennai dance scene, who presented in Kathak style, songs from the classic movies "Jhanak Jhanak Payal Bhaje" and "Mughal-e-Azam." The dancers made a futile effort to synchronise with the title song of Jhanak Jhanka Payal Bhaje, an outstanding rendition by Khan Saheb Amir Khan. The exquisite poetry of Mughal-e-Azam received a dull treatment with the dancers moving aimlessly showing lack of confidence and proper training.
At the end of it all, it was a matter to ponder, with a tinge of sadness, whether such an exercise (of combining Andraya Paadal and Indraya Aadal) was necessary and what the IDA expected to achieve out of this endeavour.
NANDINI RAMANI
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