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Commendable effort
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The artistes, all experts, collaborated well though the programme was unrehearsed. Rupa Srikanth
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Photo: R. Shivaji Rao
Endearing interchange: V.P. Dhananjayan and Shantha Dhananjayan
Who says that only the younger generation is open to experimentation? Senior Bharatanatyam artists V.P.Dhananjayan and Shantha recently proved the sceptics wrong when they presented ‘Manodharma Naatya’ at the Sruti Foundation Award ceremo
ny recently. This programme was unique in the sense that it was abhinaya sans accompaniments.’
The vocalists were concert singers M.S.Rama Ravi and T.V.Ramprasadh, but with a background in dance.
The former as a graduate from Kalakshetra was a dancer herself while the latter is married to one and sings regularly for her recitals. Shantha and Gopu Kiran kept the beat with the cymbals. As a programme, it worked very well. One saw how silence can add depth to abhinaya and how effective bhava-laden music can be on its own.
The artists, all experts, collaborated very well and considering that the programme was unrehearsed, it was a commendable effort. As an experiment too it worked. It was stark but it was not any less effective. One had reservations about the perceived lack of rhythm though. Especially in Bharatiar’s ‘Ethanai kodi inbam’ tuned by Lalgudi Jayaraman in the raga Janasammodhini, the strong nattuvangam totally belied the absence of percussion.
The sharp sounds of the cymbals intruded into one of the best instances of improvisation in recent times in which Guru Dhananjayan details countless times the countless splendours God has created, while maintaining the sthayi of ‘adbutham.’ As a rhythm-driven exposition, it was less effective than it ought to have been. Perhaps the mridangam would have been less harsh after all.
Guru Dhananjayan continued in the devotional mood in ‘Ksheerasagara sayana’ in Devagaandhaari (Adi, Tyagaraja). Fortunately this was not punctured by over whelming rhythm. Guru Shantha’s ‘Balavinave’ in Khambodi raga, Tisra Triputa talam by Kshetragna and ‘Varattum swami’ (Saveri, Kavikunjara Bharati) were mature delineations of nayika bhava where music and dance merged seamlessly into one artistic whole.
Philosophical piece
But the best was a combined effort of the stalwarts, who came together in Bharathiar’s ragamalika (Adi), ‘Thikku theriyaade kattil.’ The interpretation of this philosophical piece was taken at a literal level, with Radha and Krishna as the protagonists.
It was an endearing interchange between the couple that was made more real by the impromptu manner in which they played their parts. Though the music was good, it was ironical that sruti would turn out to be an issue in a Sruti Foundation programme!
While Rama Ravi and her daughter Nandita Ravi provided full bodied accompaniment, Ramprasadh had some issues with his voice when he tried to compromise his pitch. He did revert back to a lower one, but what happened in the finale was that both artists were singing alternately in different pitches in the same song. Even the ‘original’ tamburas provided by Mani and Vaidyanathan could not set right the discord!
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Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
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