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Sankaradeva and Madhabadeva composed a type of songs in
their plays known as anka or namar gita. There are 129 gitas composed by
Sankaradeva for his 6 plays. In the case of namar gita, it is found on
record that only 8 talas were used - bisham, cutkala, domani,
ektal, jauti, kharman, pari and rupal. But in course of time,
Sattras extended the number of talas by creating different rhythmic
variations. About 74 such talas are being practiced in different
Sattras. (‘The legacy of Sattriya dance, drama and music’ by Bhabananda Barbayan, Nartanam, Apr - June 2016) |
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Nataraja Ramakrishna's virtuosity in dance and his
improvisational abilities reached Raja Ganapathy Rao Pandya, the prince
of Bhandara Samasthan near Nagpur, a great patron of arts. Kalyanji and
Karthikji of Rayagarh state danced in Bhandara prince's court. With the
initiative of a friend, Rambhav Sir Deshpande, Ramakrishna was asked to
dance before the prince and a court full of patrons, singers and
dancers. Ramakrishna requested Kalyanji to lend their tabla master who
obliged him with delight. Rambhav gave the vocal support and during the
memorable performance, everyone hailed Ramakrishna as "Nataraj", which
later became his family name. ('Nataraja Ramakrishna: Crusader and Visionary' by M. Nagabhushana Sarma, Nartanam, Oct - Dec 2016) |
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