|     |
|
| |
ANITA SAYS..... Oct 1, 2025 Even in the midst of hard conversations, there must be laughter Even as we carry uncomfortable truths, we must carry each other - American poet laureate, JOY HARJO  Here are my thoughts at the end of this year's Navaratri season. This is my favourite time in India. The daily GOLU visits to friends old and new. Houses decorated with colourful dolls and figurines from the epics - some handed down from mother to daughter over 50 and 60 years ago. The chatter of women's voices. The chickpea SUNDAL snack that is served everywhere. October 2nd is the end of the festival and DUSSERA - the 10th day - is celebrated as VIJAYA DASAMI in South India. It is not just the marker for Devi Durga's triumph over darkness, ignorance and sloth but also a new awakening of the mind and the body to fresh possibilities. This is the season for new beginnings, especially fresh learning. Account books are balanced, Goddess Lakshmi worshipped, Saraswati invoked and manufacturing pauses on the 9th day to honour the machines and devices that we use daily. Writers place books, painters their brushes, musicians their instruments and dancers their ankle bells. IPads and laptops, anything that is part of the profession, is placed in the sacred prayer space. On that day, we are supposed to pause and rest; for dancers, it is our body, the machine. That is the main instrument which creates the art of dance.  The TENTH DAY is when the buzz begins. Thousands of students of music and dance all over the world - I am talking about Indian dance - pour into classrooms to begin a magical phase of their lives. THE VERY FIRST CLASS IN DANCE AND MUSIC. So many of my colleagues and teachers across generations gear up to induct new students into the wonderful world of imagination and possibilities that dance and music offer. So, when I hear from many younger dancers about how they stopped learning because they did not like their teacher or because of some remark or negative moment that was uttered in dance class, I think about how fragile and coddled today's young minds are and how carefully teachers of my generation must tread as to not trample upon the 'fragile' dreams of today's generation. One cannot be a reluctant dancer or a musician. The live arts bring a WIN-WIN template to all our lives. To embrace the arts with FIERCE JOY - my mantra for life - should be taught at home and in class. Best wishes to all those who have said YES to the experience of dance and music. Wishing you all the best of luck in this glorious adventure. THE TIZZY ABOUT H1-B The geo-political situation has not been without impacting the lives and future of many young dancers in the USA. With US President Trump imposing a dizzying fee for new H1B visas, there are hundreds of dancers who are currently performing and teaching only because their spouses are in the USA on a H1B visa status. What will happen to them? I have been in conversation with several dancers and the universal mood is "scary and uncertain". The rules are being changed and shuffled around daily and even the current popular P3 visa with which so many international tours are organised is under threat. Already many student and business visas have been revoked or rejected. Some artistes have been turned back at entry points. Will this be a time for the US based artistes, who have long grumbled about being sidelined for the main festivals by India based performers, to step forward? Will US based Indian organisations now begin to focus on the already accomplished talent who are either citizens or green card holders? As travel even across the border to Canada from the USA becomes more difficult, it will be interesting to observe if other markets open up for the India based dance community who have looked for far too long to the USA for their fame and fortune. And now I wish to focus on the matter of legacy - especially in dance. These thoughts are shared across 3 important events that took place last month. CHITRA VISWESWARAN AT 75  With Chitra Visweswaran 30 years ago  Chitra Visweswaran and Sukanya Ravindhar  Narthaki Nataraj  Sathyanarayana Raju  With Roshni Ganesh  With Chitra Visweswaran, Narthaki Nataraj and Sathyanarayana Raju I was invited to present a short dance piece on a Sunday morning at the ALLIANCE FRANCAISE Madras, to mark this moment. Singer Roshni Ganesh and my long-time dance colleague L Subhasri, created an acoustic/unplugged sharing of the famous Dikshitar composition ANNAPOORNE VISALAKSHI. It was a homage to a remarkable artiste who has given continuously with generosity and intelligence, much like the Goddess of nourishment who created the sacred kitchen in Kashi. Narthaki Natraj and Sathyanarayana Raju also performed, both choosing apt pieces for this special occasion.  Sudharani Raghupathy, Chitra Visweswaran and Padma Subrahmanyam in Viralimalai Kuravanji  Recreation of the green room The photo exhibition titled WHAT ANCHORED ME LET ME FLY was a nostalgic walkthrough of moments and memories. Sukanya Ravindhar, a senior student and now the WOMAN OF ALL SEASONS for CAPA (Chidambaram Academy of Performing Arts) has been working for many months towards this very special occasion alongside SNS ARTS CONSULTANCY / SHREYA NAGARAJ SINGH. Curated by Bhooma Padmanabhan, the well laid out exhibition covered the sweep of Chitra's life. Her early nomadic years were in many European countries with her parents until finally settling down in Kolkata. Her mother Rukmini's passion for dance led her to becoming a chance student of Ram Gopal. Chitra's meeting and marriage to R Visweswaran, her life and arts partner, was also displayed in one section. Beautiful images of Chitra as the Sakhi along with Sudharani Raghupathy as the Princess and Padma Subrahmanyam as the Kurathi (itinerant bard) in VIRALIMALAI KURAVANJI was an evocative moment for many of my generation who visited the exhibition. The week long photo exhibit was attended by many artistes and friends from the Chennai dance community who showed their appreciation for Chitra Visweswaran's stellar career. My special one-on-one conversation with Chitra about her life and legacy is scheduled for later this month and the programme will be available online very soon on the Narthaki YouTube channel. More to look forward to in the celebration is the recreation of PANCHALI, the stunning dance theatre ensemble created in 1996 in collaboration with the Tamil theatre company KOOTHU-P-PATTARAI. The revival performance will occur on October 12, Chitra Visweswaran's 75th birthday, in Kalakshetra. THE UNFOLDING LEGACY- VAJIRA CHITRASENA Just a few days earlier, I was walking through the LIONEL WENDT THEATRE in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where the corridors and walls were replete with visual memories of VAJIRA CHITRASENA. Sri Lanka's first professional female dancer, VAJIRA was the "blotting paper" for her guru and life partner CHITRASENA and the perfect muse for his remarkable "oeuvre". The couple's unflagging zeal placed Sri Lankan dance on the main stages of the world. Guru Vajira's unswerving discipline and dedication as teacher, performer and choreographer was a perfect complement to her husband's sheer grit and perseverance against all odds.  VAJIRA CHITRASENA passed away in 2024 at the age of 92 and has left behind 2 generations of brilliant artistes. Her daughter Upekha was a star during her prime and now Vajira's two granddaughters THAJI DIAS and HESHMA WIGNARAJA are blazing their own trails as principal dancer and Artistic Director. Watching the brilliantly planned and executed evening titled NAMO VAJIRAYE - The Unfolding Legacy, as a homage to their visionary matriarch - Madhu Nataraj and I were amazed at the emotional reception from the packed audience. It seemed as if everyone present was either a former dance student, a dance parent or a dance Rasika, all enveloped within the CHITRASENA dance aura. The gorgeous performance (led by the incandescent THAJI), stunning lighting (HESHMA) and the intelligent reimagining of the original choreographies resulted in an evening that was of international standards in every way. What was remarkable was that nobody held up their cell phones to record the performance. There were no irritating clicks of the camera and no phone rang during the show. A huge difference from the badly behaved Indian audiences who are careless about the intellectual property of an artiste. The evening was divided into three parts. The first BREAKING BARRIERS was a screening of videos from earlier performances in the former USSR and Europe. It also contained two dance pieces, a recreation of the KANDYAN DUET originally performed by the Chitrasenas and the wonderful GAJAVANNAMA, a fabulous choreography inspired by the sway of majestic elephants. Guru VAJIRA visited the city zoo repeatedly to watch the movement of the swans for her iconic solos of SARASWATI and NALA DAMAYANTI. In the second part - THE DUALITY - her granddaughter THAJI DIAS performed the Swan solo with an incredible kinetic ability and grace. The shoulder shimmy, the elongated neck and back arch were stunning to watch. The final section, A CREATIVE FORCE, presented an excerpt from an earlier production Gini Hora, and was reminiscent of Chitrasena's days at Shantiniketan and the dreamy Tagore influence. The rousing finale, TRIDHARA, brought together the three drum cultures of Sri Lanka as a confluence of styles researched by the Chitrasenas when they first began the pedagogical scaffolding of creating a vocabulary and movement vocabulary for Sri Lankan dance.   Madhu and I walked through the lovingly curated and beautifully mounted exhibition (designed and created by Jonathan Edward with RAMESAN Samsudeen and Shamod Dilshan) where the rehearsal dance costume (short skirt and cropped top), the wooden ballet barre (to train female dancers to leap high and gracefully) and looped videos of dance classes were on display. CHITRASENA and VAJIRA spoke on video of the many years of displacement and homelessness they endured while persisting with their dance vision. Sheer grit, determination, a passion for dance and a belief that this was an effective way of creating an identity for Sri Lanka is what drove the visionary founders. The world is vastly altered from 1943 when the dance company and school were founded. VAJIRA CHITRASENA and CHITRA VISWESWARAN have been dance pioneers, but we live in a fast changing world that has no time or patience for most things. Especially for anything historical or in the past. Navigating the complex web of geo-politics, dance and personal life pose an even greater challenge today. What happens when there are no children to pass on the legacy to? Is the very idea of LEGACY outdated? What are the lessons we can learn from choreographers and dance pioneers from other cultures who have enshrined their dance works, ideas, videos and photographs into an enduring template that can hopefully outlast the chaos of global events. MAD FOR DANCE  Exhibition inauguration  Rohan Bhutaiya, Rashmi Singh Khanna, Rahul Varshney and Proma Mukherjee To collect every poster, matchbox, newspaper cutting, postcard, calendar and ANYTHING that carried images of Indian dance became the lifelong passion for scholar MOHAN KHOKAR. A fiercely independent thinker, he was instrumental in starting the Department of Dance at BARODA UNIVERSITY among numerous initiatives. He also held the prestigious positions of Secretary of the SANGEET NATAK AKADEMI, Director KATHAK KENDRA and headed the NATIONAL SCHOOL OF DRAMA. September marked his 100th birth anniversary and a grand photo exhibition and celebration was held at the IGNCA in New Delhi. Ideated and presented by his son and dance historian ASHISH KHOKAR, the evening was highlighted by 108 dancers from various styles performing as a homage to the late dance passionista! Eminent artistes, award winning dancers and a large group of younger artistes gathered to listen to speakers who eulogised the late scholar for his enduring passion for dance against all odds. Suffering ridicule and censure for his forthright and direct ways, MOHAN KHOKAR was a very influential person in the Delhi dance scene. His recommendation and support meant a great deal to all emerging artistes. The centenary celebration was a fitting tribute to a very important figure in the 20th century landscape of Indian dance history. His vast collection of dance memorabilia is housed in the IGNCA and should be a MUST VISIT destination for anyone interested in dance. Not many knew that purple was his favourite colour and he often said, "I am not a royal but nothing stops me from feeling like one!" That was in reference to the idea that purple was a colour associated with royalty. The centenary event had a purple backdrop and Ms. Sonal Mansingh wore a purple saree to reflect the mood of the occasion. She knew the late Mohan Khokar very well.  Launch of Attendance in Delhi Meanwhile Ashish Mohan Khokar continues his own journey as a archivist, presenter and dance commentator. This year, his much awaited Attendance annual focuses on Bharatanatyam dancers in France. A little examined topic, it was Shrimati Saroja Khokar who made the early connection with Europe, particularly France. The volume contains fascinating points of the cultural landscape and the fascination of the French with anything south Indian. Bharatanatyam was the entry point for their love of India. FEET TAPPING ACROSS CULTURES  Antonio Vargas and Madhu Nataraj  Performed by Ponnamma Deviah & Flamenco Sin Fronteras Kathak and Flamenco have an interesting history which intertwines and departs across time. When the twin energies collide, something exciting emerges. As it did when choreographers Madhu Nataraj and Antonio Vargas worked on a dance presentation in Singapore. ESPERANZA-ASHA was the title that explored the themes of struggle, redemption and hope. Braiding the Arishad Varga with the Biblical Seven Deadly Sins, the evocative evening at the Goodman Arts Centre holds a promise of further development and repeated performances. 8 - TRADITION TURNED ON ITS HEAD   In the mostly arid landscape of ideas and originality, I was delighted to hear about the success of Deepa Dharmadhikari's solo work 8. A former Bharatanatyam dancer turned lighting designer from Pune, Deepa, student of Geeta Chandran, has intelligently recast the 8 heroines from traditional literature (the ASHTA NAYIKAS) into modern day India. Addressing caste, social barriers, faith, identity and other current issues, Deepa created a moving showcase with courage and daring. The small but engaged audience at Chennai's Bharata Kalanjali auditorium were stunned into silence. There were avid discussions on WhatsApp and phone calls after the show and one dancer told me that it was among the most unusual and riveting performances she had seen in a long time. Collecting all cell phones at the entrance was one effective way of preventing anyone from sharing the provocative visuals that unfolded on stage. THE QUEEN OF MADURAI    Another intelligent dancer, although mostly in the traditional mould, is Divya Nayar. A student of Sheejith Krishna, this young woman mounted a group production titled MEENATCHI. Using the original Tamizh spelling set me up for an earthy retake of the favourite legend of Madurai. Named Thadathagai, the one with three breasts, this radiant young 3 year old who emerges from a sacred yagna is groomed to be a warrior queen by her parents. The adorable Ujvalitha Rao was charismatic as the young Meenakshi and set us up for the ambitious queen who would follow. Divya reimagined the story as a living memory of the legend that still whispers from the corridors and sculptures of the Madurai shrine. Now a giant temple complex, the MEENAKSHI TEMPLE (Lord Siva as Sundareswarar is a quiet LINGAM in His own space). The production was separated into several parts. The opening chapter of the local legends were superfluous and only distracted from the main story. While the dancing was of high quality throughout and the Kalakshetra stamp was visible, the dramatic moment of the proud and undefeated queen meeting Lord Siva was anitclimatic. It is about time that we rethink the metaphor of what the THIRD BREAST actually symbolises. Is it a physical aberration or is it a symbol of a woman's ambition and drive? Why does only Meenakshi lower her gaze and suddenly transform? Would the emotion of shy coyness come as a surprise to her? Why does Lord Siva remain imperious and unflinching? Is He not struck by Her beauty and energy? Why should the queen step aside to make us watch Siva as Nataraja dance in stage centre as a conclusion? I was left with a mixture of admiration and discontent. Not for any fault of Divya and her DAKSHINA team of excellent dancers. It was for the urgent need of a dramaturgical vision who could assist Divya without the expected lapse into the Bharatanatyam jathi patterns. While the early sections of an adapted Alarippu and Sabdam were imaginative and very well executed, the latter sections could have broken free of the expected MARGAM pit that thematic shows often fall into. How can one not interrupt the narrative too much while still maintaining the contours of a classical style. Madurai, the original MAXIMUM CITY, is replete with the sounds and textures of history, music and weaving. More can certainly be done as this production travels to more stages. Tasteful costuming, a good musical score (Sarvesan Karthick) and fairly good lighting were all positive aspects of Meenatchi and augur well for Divya as an emerging choreographer who is also a very good singer. LONDON FASHION AND THE TAMIL JAMAKALAM      Like a gust of fresh air, award winning THERUKOOTHU folk performer PALANI MURUGAN shared a clip of his choreography on performer Vanmadhi Jagan for a fashion show in London. Inspired by the simple JAMAKALAM, the colourful rugs/dhurries created in the town of Bhavani in Tamilnadu, designer VINO SUPRAJA created a line of fashion garments for the runway. A culmination of style, weaves, textures and performance was a very positive outcome for the traditional weaving communities and an effective way of bringing the performing arts to align with new inputs for retail. Congratulations to Mallika Sarabhai for being chosen to receive the FORCE FOR CHANGE AWARD from Vogue Magazine. Aditi Mangaldas was honored with the NRITYA SAMRAT AWARD at the Guru Wickramasinghe Nritya Samrat Mahotsav, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Muthukannammal is to receive the Balasaraswathi Award for Dance. ARCHANA RAJA  Archana Raja This month, I choose to focus on a dance artiste who is working steadily in her new home in the USA. Archana Raja first came to me in July 2018 to audition for NAACHIYAR NEXT. Selected to play the lead role of Goda/Andal, I watched Archana slowly grow in confidence. Over the 2 years of performing and touring with the production, until her wedding in January 2020, Archana, who also sings beautifully, became so enmeshed in her character, that she held back her tears when Goda ascends the steps to transform into the Goddess ANDAL. Her moist eyes, held in the final unblinking gaze, were evident to me during each performance. After her move to the USA and all during the challenging pandemic, Archana started learning Kuchipudi with Washington DC based performer/teacher Kasi Aysola. A demanding Guru, Kasi has carefully trained and shaped Archana into the compelling performer she is today. I had mentioned to Archana during an early conversation in 2022 that this sparkling and earthy style of Kuchipudi suited her more than Bharatanatyam and that she should explore further in that genre. In 2024 Archana created her now breakthrough solo work THE ACCIDENTAL GODDESS. Based on the legend of RENUKA, the wife of Sage Parasurama who beheads her for an impure thought, Archana created an effective though flawed early version which I saw in Chennai. Over the past 12 months Archana has evolved this challenging work to deliver a more nuanced version of this lesser known character who is worshipped as a Goddess by the transgender community in South India. As a choreographer, student and performer, Archana at age 31, is proving to be a dancer to watch. I observe her progress from afar with pride although I am not her guru. To support young dancers, who pass THROUGH my teaching and guidance and then soar is very gratifying. To track their progress, keep in touch with their joys and fears and offer some tips and suggestions (only if they ask for them!) is always fruitful. In closing, I have to acknowledge the enormous emotion and energy that has been poured into the recent cricket matches between India and Pakistan. Even as India won the champion's trophy in Dubai amidst great drama and ultra abhinaya from all sides, politics seeped in with the Indian team refusing to accept the trophy that made social media erupt with opinions. Can politics and sports be mixed? We know that even in our field, the arts, politics plays a significant part in who gains attention, favours and opportunities. There is little or no money in the dance field. However, in art unlike sports, there is no winner and loser. Everyone wins. I have watched performers from Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Egypt and Syria when they were touring the USA. Qawali singers from Pakistan and Sufi musicians from Iran were a huge draw when presented by the Asia Society and World Music Institute in New York City. Today visas are becoming virtually impossible, crossing borders are dangerous and we are the poorer for it. We are living in a moment of centralised power where business, media and politics have triangulated to form a pathway towards controlling ideas, words and even thoughts shared on personal platforms. Freedom comes with responsibility and the creative forces must be aware of the gusts of change that are sweeping the globe. May the energy of FIERCE JOY pervade your beings! May you all never stop dreaming and imagining! May we all hope and work towards brave new beginnings! Happy Diwali also to EVERYONE. The special festival falls on October 21st this year. Stay safe. Travel with care. Guard your health. Until next time Dr Anita R Ratnam Travelling..... what else do you expect? anitaratnam.com Connect with us on Instagram and Facebook     Post your comments |
