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Venkatalakshamma, exponent of the Mysore School of
Bharatanatyam, served at the Mysore Palace for 30 years from 1939 to
1969. It was Veena Bakshi Subbanna who recognised her merit and
commended her as a worthy student of her renowned teacher, Jatti
Thayamma (known as Natya Saraswati of Karnataka). Thus Venkatalakshamma
had the honour of becoming the asthana narthaki along with four other
dancers at the court of Raja Nalvadi Krishna Raja Wodeyar, the then
ruler of Mysore. She had the privilege of dancing for both the
coronation and wedding ceremonies of Jayachamaraja Wodeyar, himself a
great connoisseur, composer and patron of Samskrita, Sahitya and
Sangita. (‘Still untouched by time,’ Nandini Ramani, The Hindu, Aug 24, 2001) |
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During the days of Buddha, dance drama flourished, the greatest
dramatist of the time being Aswaghosha, while the dancer Ambapali was
also renowned at that time. By the second century AD, natya had a
prominent place in the life of the people, despite having like every
art, its detractors. Outstanding among them was Manu, the Law Giver,
who advised Brahmins to refrain from practising the art. (‘Indian dancing’ by Ram Gopal & Serozh Dadachanji) |
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Through sculptural and epigraphical evidences, literary and textual
references, it has been proved that the earliest sculpture of dancing
Shiva in India created on the basis of Bharata’s Natyagama was found in
the caves of Badami dating back to 570AC, which is very much earlier to
Chola Nataraja sculpture which is dated 1020AC created in the times of
Rajaraja Chola. (Thesis ‘Dance and music in temple architecture,’ Dr. Choodamani Nandagopal, 1990) |
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