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Nivedita: dance in silence Text & pics: Lakshmi Sivakumar and P Sivakumar, Pune e-mail: lakshmi_b_30@yahoo.co.in / spandithar@yahoo.com February 20, 2007 |
 This is the story of Nivedita, in whose life of silence, dance has been her companion. It is another instance where dance and its magic have brought a wonderful change to someone's life. You cannot keep the art away from this special girl. Nivedita's world is devoid of any form of sound, but it is beautiful because she lives in a world of dance. Born in 1989 at Bangalore, Nivedita is indeed born to a voice of dance, accomplished vocalist Rama Jagannath, whose voice has seen dancers perform their heart out. Well known artistes for whom Rama has given vocal support includes a list of luminaries like Nataraja Ramakrishna, Kala Krishna, Manju Bhargavi and many others. Nivedita’s father works for the health firm ESI. No sooner she was born, Nivedita had to undergo a surgery. Unfortunately this turned wrong, and let to disablement for the little child. Nivedita is deaf and dumb. In a way, Nivedita is a child whom the almighty has presented with the best of things in life. One of the wonders for her is Subhadra Prabhu, a well known artist. She is Nivedita's aunt, who runs the well known institution Nataraja Nritya Kalamandir for the last three decades. In her world of silence, dance always attracted baby Nivedita and she drew a sense of joy and enjoyment from the movements. Little Nivedita was always keen to be at the dance classes, as she could see others dancing. She then tried to imitate and try out the steps on her own. Seeing Nivedita's interest, guru Subhadra and her mother took on the task to bring out her hidden talent. It was total devotion of both guru and shishya, which ultimately saw Nivedita develop as a dancer, and ultimately perform on stage. While the mentor sowed the seeds of training, Nivedita's love for the art complemented her guru’s thoughts and she developed into a fine dancer. This is a remarkable achievement.  Nivedita with Guru Subhadra Prabhu and her mother Rama Jagannath Year 2000 marks a special year for this prodigy. At the Ability Utsav 2000 conducted by YMCA at New Delhi, Nivedita showcased her talent, eventually winning over hearts and heaps of accolades. She won the Second Prize at this national level event. Nivedita features regularly at all the dance events for her school and dance institution. During stage performances, Subhadra Prabhu guides Nivedita through mudras and helps her to co-ordinate with the song sung by her mother. This helps Nivedita perform ably with lot of rasa filled abhinaya. Nivedita is doing very well in her academics at her school J S S Sahana for the differently abled in Bangalore. Her teachers are proud of her all round achievements. Nivedita's family is looking forward to her Arangetram, and so is she. Nivedita's performance skills bear the mark of an admirable artist, and in coming times she will surely be a recognized artist. Nivedita is all about grit and determination, willing to surmount any hurdle that would deter her from mastering an art of such high intensity. She definitely serves as a role model for many in this world. Let us all salute Nivedita for her courageous efforts, which will surely bear fruits of success in life. Nivedita resides at 164, 16th Cross, 5th Phase, J P Nagar, Bangalore 560 078 Ph # (91-80) -26596903 / 26588511 Lakshmi is a Bharatanatyam dancer. Sivakumar has a passion for the arts and is a freelance writer. He is a collector of dance related news clippings. |
