Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
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Thiruvananthapuram
MUSIC ACADEMY
The long corridor of life
LEELA VENKATARAMAN
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Through various scenes, Aditi Mangaldas’s ‘Uncharted Seas’ explored a mystic theme.
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Photo: V. Ganesan
Intriguing: Aditi Mangal Das Troupe.
Tastefully designed costumes, aesthetic backdrop, elegant Kathak dancers with a delightfully regal bearing, and a competent crew of musicians made Aditi Mangaldas’s ‘Uncharted Seas’ entertaining even when it did not always succeed i
n communicating the message of the journey of life proceeding through unpredictable tomorrows in the eternal quest for that something one rarely finds. Can the mind exist in stillness, the only state where truth reveals itself?
A mystic theme, it has possibilities that Aditi tries to explore. Her choreography took the audience through various scenes, the long corridor of life seen through just one raga, Bageshri.
The intriguing beginning had silence with dark stage and just faces lamp-lit. Then Samirullah Khan’s alap almost assaulted the ears with its loudness. What was needed was a whisper of an alap, gradually assuming its full blown contours.
Meera’s “Darshan jo pyase” was a metaphor for the search and not dedicated to Krishna, for the work forbears from mentioning what or who man yearns for.
“Ramaiya mainto sare Ranga Rate” had Aditi first and then the troupe dancing joyously with various Kathak tukras woven into the musical line. The dancers wove through passages of thaat, gat, Paran, tukras, alternately soft and full of verve suggesting the varied nature of the terrain of life’s search – at times smooth and peaceful like “the dew drop falling upon a leaf in a dream” and at others tossed by the winds of passion and obstacles, its flames enough to burn even wind and sky. Aditi uses interpretative imagery very sparingly. The work pertains mostly to abstract dance suggesting ideas. Excellent dancers, adept at both improvised and structured dance could not be faulted on quality- particularly the female dancers. But the innumerable chakkars and footwork passages became repetitive virtuosity. And the “no fixed points” in life seemed to be carried too far, with even the singer and percussionists constantly switching from one side of the stage to the other. With no raised platform on one side, sitting on the floor adjusting mikes took away from the neatness of presentation. And the work on the whole needs editing.
Aditi’s sudden emoting with English words jarred, as a “Rasa Bhang” sticking out like a sore thumb in this Hindustani frame. Light, fire and smoke effects are loved by audiences. But they should not be carried to the point of seeming gimmicky. Samirullah Khan sings melodiously though in a few places like the start, he can be softer. Yogesh Gangani and Mahaveer Gangani on tabla and Pakhawaj gave commendable support.
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Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
|
