Natyanjali-s galore A spreading movement
- NANDINI RAMANI
Natyanjali, the tradition of concentrated expression of devotion to the Lord of Natya, through dance on the occasion
of ‘Maha Sivaratri’ particularly inside the temple complex, was revived in Chidambaram in the early 1980s. It has
gradually spread to many centres where ancient and important Siva temples are located, many with a ‘swayambhu lingam’
as the main deity. It seems each year, some new centre is joining the endeavour of organising a festival.
Perur (near Coimbatore), Kumbakonam, Tanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapatnam, Mayiladuturai aka Mayavaram,
Tiruvanaikaval, Tiruvaiyaru – the list goes on. The additions this year are Pandanainallur and Sengalipuram.
This multiplier effect has had a multi-dimensional impact: revival of the traditional linkage of the art form with
the temple, renewal of cultural activity in smaller towns and villages, opportunities to witness performances by
reputed stars otherwise unaffordable, the scope for wider participation benefiting local talent and those not in
the 'mainstream'.
Random Grace – an interesting experiment
- SAPNA RANGASWAMY
Baroda was buzzing with movements. Fulbright scholar and dancer Janet Lilly, an associate professor of the
university of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and here to study Indian dance, conducted a Modern Dance workshop for
dancers and non-dancers. She spoke about the history of Modern Dance and Post Modern dance. She taught
Martha Graham's contraction and release, Humphrey's fall and recovery, and Cunningham's use of legs in
ballet techniques with a strong emphasis on the upper body in modern dance methods. She also demonstrated
her teacher Bill T. Jones’ movements which are lyrical and abstract. She also explained creative choreography
and how to create designs out of dance with the help of gestures and poses.
Janet choreographed Random Grace, an eight-minute dance piece for the city-based participants and invited
everybody’s ideas and incorporated them in her choreography. Random Grace is about creating beautiful patterns
and designs out of a motif. The dancers were given a phrase – 'In this big universe, how small I am' –
to choreograph in their own Indian classical dance style and it was amazing to see twelve dancers dancing the
same phrase in different ways in different styles. It was like twelve colours out of a crayon box. The audience
got to see Bharatanatyam, Kathak and Kuchipudi all at the same time and of course some movements of Modern
Dance, that was well received by Baroda’s intellectual audience who always look for something new. Random
Grace created an abstract painting on the stage. Some felt it was chaotic, with too many movements. There was
lack of coordination between the dancers, but as Janet says, "Nothing is perfect in the world and we are allowed
to make mistakes." The dancers need to put in a little more but Janet’s idea of choreography was quite brilliant.
Random Grace was premiered at Baroda.
COVER STORY
Tradition, transition and transformation
- S. JANAKI
What happens when a traditional art form is moved out of its context and projected on the urban proscenium before a
suave audience not much in tune with its roots? Should it retain its robust and down to earth regional flavour or
should it be "refined" and enabled to acquire a sophisticated sheen to cater to the tastes of national and
international audiences? How much and what kind of change is permissible in an art form to prevent it from losing
its identity? Who decides and who accepts? I am reminded of the seminar on 'Tradition, Transition and Transformation'
in Kuchipudi organised last year by Saila Sudha on the eve of its 20th anniversary in Chennai. It was the first
Kuchipudi seminar held in Chennai, probably in Tamil Nadu. All these questions which plague the rasika came to the
fore as we listened to the deliberations and watched the presentations at the two-day confest. The questions continue
to bother you.
The seminar did not directly address the above questions but the structure of the proceedings helped to highlight
them. The inaugural session had the dignitaries and the convenor Sailaja (founder-director Saila Sudha)
explaining evolving traditions, the history of Kuchipudi, and the role of pioneers like Siddhendra Yogi,
Vedantam Lakshminarayana Sastry, Vempati Chinna Satyam and trendsetters like Yamini Krishnamurti (keynote speaker).
Yamini said, "The three 'Ts' – tradition, transition and transformation – are integral to the creative arts, but
one needs a lot of courage to bring about transformation." You concur as almost all the classical dance forms have
gone through a phase of "reconstruction" (if we can call it that) necessitated by circumstances. The reconstruction
has generally been brought about by a group of authoritative individuals which may have included practitioners,
teachers, scholars, writers and patrons of the art. "For any art form, transition continues to happen, enriching
the art, making it attractive for contemporary audiences," said Yamini. Vijayanthi Kashi put forth the view that
changes were brought about in the performing arts through the imagination of great guru-s, their ability to
shape presentations to current audiences without diluting the basic tenets.
Hailing from Jharkhand (previously part of Bihar) in eastern India, Jayant Kastuar has equipped himself with
artistic, academic and administrative skills, to rise to the coveted post of secretary of the apex agency for
the performing arts in the country – the central Sangeet Natak Akademi (SNA) in Delhi.
His brilliant academic record at St. Stephens, Delhi, his probing mind and passion for the arts made him opt for
service in the central Sangeet Natak Akademi even while in his twenties. He has since proved to be a dynamic
arts administrator. A well known disciple of the Kathak maestro Durga Lal of the Jaipur gharana, he has also served
as director of Kathak Kendra.
Jayant Kastuar joined the dance department of the Akademi in 1984, and became deputy secretary, dance before
being appointed secretary in 1999.
Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai, honoured this artist cum art administrator with the prestigious title of
Nritya Choodamani during the December 'season'. Pracheen Kala Kendra, Chandigarh conferred on him the title of
Nritya Siromani. Some excerpts from S. JANAKI’s recent conversation with JAYANT KASTUAR.
T. Balasaraswati, the Bharatanatyam virtuoso and T. Viswanathan, the enchanting Carnatic flautist, have left
indelible impressions on their arts. Though they were independently successful in two different performing art
forms, they were similar in their style of expression. This unique style has to be credited to the music of
their grandmother, the legendary Veena Dhanammal.
We cannot pay a tribute to Balasaraswati or Viswanathan without honouring Dhanammal. She was a legendary artist,
whose passion for her veena created ethereal music that deeply affected her children and grandchildren, permeating
their chosen arts. Thus did the sensuous and expressive Dhanammal school of art evolve.
B. Rajam Iyer was a well known Carnatic musician and scholar. Born on 1st July 1922, he had the good fortune, when he
was only 15 years old, to be accepted as a disciple by Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar. His musical talents were shaped
by Ariyakudi's influence. He provided musical accompaniment for his guru for many years. Another strong strand of
the musical wealth acquired by Rajam Iyer was the corpus of Muthuswami Dikshitar’s kriti-s which he learnt from
none other than T.L. Venkatarama Iyer, an expert on the subject.
Developing a keen interest in the theoretical and lakshana aspects of Carnatic music, Rajam Iyer served as Professor
of Musicology in the Tamil Nadu Government College of Music from 1966 to 1981, and Principal of the Teacher's College
of Music, affiliated to the Music Academy, from 1983 till his voluntary retirement. He was a co-editor of the Tamil
version of Subbarama Dikshitar's Sangeeta Sampradaya Pradarsini published by the Music Academy. An outstanding
teacher, he undertook many lecture tours and conducted workshops in the U.K., U.S.A., and Canada. He also served
as Valentine Visiting Professor at Amherst University in Massachussets, U.S.A. for the spring semester.
K.S. KALIDAS, mridanga vidwan and connoisseur of classical music,
a keen follower of the young musicians brigade for a number of years,
has offered to contribute to the Young Talent and Generation Next columns in Sruti.
J.B. Sruthi Sagar
Twenty year old flautist Sruthi Sagar, a third year engineering student in a Chennai city college, exhibited
exceptional talent in flute playing even at the age of ten, when he won the ‘Child Prodigy Award’ from the Rotary
Club Besant Nagar. At seventeen, he won the ‘Kuzhal Isai Selvan Award’ from the Kumararaja Muthiah Muttamizh Manram.
He is also the winner of the AIR (2000) and Mylapore Fine Arts Club (2003) competitions. As a student of Chettinad
Vidyashram, a school that actively promotes extra-curricular activities, he won a number of prizes in many
inter-school competitions.
sruti.com
Natyanjali, the tradition of concentrated expression of devotion to the Lord of Natya, through dance on the occasion
of ‘Maha Sivaratri’ particularly inside the temple complex, was revived in Chidambaram in the early 1980s. It has
gradually spread to many centres where ancient and important Siva temples are located, many with a ‘swayambhu lingam’
as the main deity. It seems each year, some new centre is joining the endeavour of organising a festival.
Baroda was buzzing with movements. Fulbright scholar and dancer Janet Lilly, an associate professor of the
university of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and here to study Indian dance, conducted a Modern Dance workshop for
dancers and non-dancers. She spoke about the history of Modern Dance and Post Modern dance. She taught
Martha Graham's contraction and release, Humphrey's fall and recovery, and Cunningham's use of legs in
ballet techniques with a strong emphasis on the upper body in modern dance methods. She also demonstrated
her teacher Bill T. Jones’ movements which are lyrical and abstract. She also explained creative choreography
and how to create designs out of dance with the help of gestures and poses.
What happens when a traditional art form is moved out of its context and projected on the urban proscenium before a
suave audience not much in tune with its roots? Should it retain its robust and down to earth regional flavour or
should it be "refined" and enabled to acquire a sophisticated sheen to cater to the tastes of national and
international audiences? How much and what kind of change is permissible in an art form to prevent it from losing
its identity? Who decides and who accepts? I am reminded of the seminar on 'Tradition, Transition and Transformation'
in Kuchipudi organised last year by Saila Sudha on the eve of its 20th anniversary in Chennai. It was the first
Kuchipudi seminar held in Chennai, probably in Tamil Nadu. All these questions which plague the rasika came to the
fore as we listened to the deliberations and watched the presentations at the two-day confest. The questions continue
to bother you.
Yamini said, "The three 'Ts' – tradition, transition and transformation – are integral to the creative arts, but
one needs a lot of courage to bring about transformation." You concur as almost all the classical dance forms have
gone through a phase of "reconstruction" (if we can call it that) necessitated by circumstances. The reconstruction
has generally been brought about by a group of authoritative individuals which may have included practitioners,
teachers, scholars, writers and patrons of the art. "For any art form, transition continues to happen, enriching
the art, making it attractive for contemporary audiences," said Yamini. Vijayanthi Kashi put forth the view that
changes were brought about in the performing arts through the imagination of great guru-s, their ability to
shape presentations to current audiences without diluting the basic tenets.
Hailing from Jharkhand (previously part of Bihar) in eastern India, Jayant Kastuar has equipped himself with
artistic, academic and administrative skills, to rise to the coveted post of secretary of the apex agency for
the performing arts in the country – the central Sangeet Natak Akademi (SNA) in Delhi.
His brilliant academic record at St. Stephens, Delhi, his probing mind and passion for the arts made him opt for
service in the central Sangeet Natak Akademi even while in his twenties. He has since proved to be a dynamic
arts administrator. A well known disciple of the Kathak maestro Durga Lal of the Jaipur gharana, he has also served
as director of Kathak Kendra.
T. Balasaraswati, the Bharatanatyam virtuoso and T. Viswanathan, the enchanting Carnatic flautist, have left
indelible impressions on their arts. Though they were independently successful in two different performing art
forms, they were similar in their style of expression. This unique style has to be credited to the music of
their grandmother, the legendary Veena Dhanammal.
B. Rajam Iyer was a well known Carnatic musician and scholar. Born on 1st July 1922, he had the good fortune, when he
was only 15 years old, to be accepted as a disciple by Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar. His musical talents were shaped
by Ariyakudi's influence. He provided musical accompaniment for his guru for many years. Another strong strand of
the musical wealth acquired by Rajam Iyer was the corpus of Muthuswami Dikshitar’s kriti-s which he learnt from
none other than T.L. Venkatarama Iyer, an expert on the subject.
