Swaralaya Festival

In a two day festival, the Sangeet Nrityotsav at Kamani auditorium, Swaralaya presented some fine short recitals by young artists who are growing with every performance. On the first day, Smriti Krishna, disciple of Raja and Radha Reddy, flagged off the dance portion of the festival with Kuchipudi. Smriti has a charming stage personality and displays a sensitivity for the delicate nuances of the art rare for a person of her age and little experience. Her total involvement in the art is manifested in an introspective demeanour devoid of brashness or self consciousness, two qualities that sometimes blight the growth of talented dancers. As she grows in abhinaya, she might also like to increase the intensity of her footwork, which though clear cut and rhythmically correct (as amply demonstrated in the Tarangam), is constantly on the soft side. By alternating sharp and soft beats as appropriate to the song and tempo, she will add texture and quality to her dance.

The scion of the Jaipur Gharana of Kathak, Rajendra Gangani, gave a simply superb performance to a packed hall. Beginning with Suryashtakam he went on to his rhythmic forte in Teentaal, and displayed awe inspiring tatkars and heart stopping chakkars that had the audience in raptures. His reflective disposition combines well with his virtuoso technique. The utthaans and thaats stood out for their masculine grace, and the concluding Tarana in Hamsadhwani reflected a beautiful responsiveness to melody that came out in many delicate shades of movement that added immensely to the rhythmic predominance of the piece.

The delightful Bharata Natyam recital by Rama Vaidyanathan, disciple of Saroja Vaidyanathan, was one of the most impressive of the festival. From her Ananda Natana Prakasham in Kedaram to the Bhairavi varnam, Viriboni -- a trademark of her earlier guru Yamini Krishnamurti -- and the depiction of four Nayikas based on the Malayalam verses of Mahakavi Vallathol, she displayed a lively appreciation for the grandeur of Bharata Natyam that translated itself into vivacious nritta and an excellent rapport with the audience. The jatis in the first half of the difficult ata tala varnam, a recent composition of the dancer, need a little tightening it would seem. Her abhinaya was highly communicative and concentrated, the choreography imaginative and studded with elegant postures.

The Mohini Attam performance by Vijayalakshmi, disciple and daughter of Guru Bharati Shivaji was replete with grace and well sustained on the abhinaya front. 'Kutumba Chema Ganapati,' a composition of the scholar Kavalam Narayana Pannikar, was based on the story of Parvati's disenchantment with Shiva who dispatched the young Ganapati with an excuse so that he could dally with Ganga in Parvati's absence. The dramatic piece ends in their reconciliation and the devotee's prayer to Ganapati to induce peace in all families, and was marked by lucid abhinaya and an easy interchange between the different characters, highlighting the bhava approach typical of Mohini Attam. The orchestra composed of Guru Bharati Shivaji who conducted, veteran Sadanam Rajagopal who sang, Kavalam Padmanabhan on the mridangam and maddalam, Shyamala Bhaskaran on the veena and Kunhiraman on the Edakka, created an appropriate ambiance.

Reela Hota, a disciple of Guru Gangadhar Pradhan and Madhavi Mudgal, gave a competent Odissi recital that rose at times to reflect an inner quietude and grace, but was marred at others by Reela's unfortunate luck with a percussionist who had no idea what she was going to dance. Burdened with having to conduct the recital and dance too, the strain showed both during the nritta and abhinaya items which were tightly structured rhythmically. Reela should however take the incident with the pakhawaj accompanist in a positive sense, as it afforded her the opportunity to display her thorough understanding of tala so that she was able to guide the performance as well as dance without a missed step. Art, being a reflection of life, is fraught with possible pitfalls, and negotiating them with aplomb is the mark of a dedicated artist.

-ANJANA RAJAN