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Mitra: Poetry, emotion, melody, imagination  - Mridula Rao e-mail: mritrao@gmail.com Photo: Sreekumar Krishnan September 14, 2014 Very rarely do we come across a Bharatanatyam program that is enjoyed by all - dancers, adults, children, students and parents. ‘Mitra-Dance Hymn to Friendship’ scripted, choreographed and performed by Ramaa Bharadvaj on August 24, 2014 at Abhinava Dance Space, Bangalore, was one such thoroughly enjoyable program.  It was organised by the dancing couple Nirupama and Rajendra.   The theme Mitratvam or friendship, though so universal in its feeling, is rarely attempted as a full length production by dancers. This theme was dealt with in an intelligent manner by Ramaa, where she brought out the harmony that exists between all of nature, between human beings and between the human soul and the universal soul. The depiction of imagery like the process of photosynthesis, evolution of a single celled organism to homo-sapiens was beautifully integrated into Ramaa's choreography.   As a performer, Ramaa’s dancing was dynamic and full of life. She came across as an involved dancer and a storyteller who took on multiple roles with an ease that can be seen only in a dancer with full mastery over various elements of his/her dance form. Ramaa’s scripting of the story and character development of Sudhama’s wife needs a special mention here. Her choice of poetry from different Indian languages, her multi-dimensional use of space, uninhibited dancing and a flow in abhinaya and nritta was thoroughly enjoyed by all present in the audience. Aesthetic costume, beautiful music by Rajkumar Bharathi and a strong emotion driven performance by Ramaa created a highly charged atmosphere.   A must watch if you enjoy music, dance and story-telling, for these elements of art came together, became friends and seamlessly blended into each other to create this delightful production. Mridula Rao is a Bharatanatyam and Kathak dancer and the founder director of Kala Sahita school of Kathak in Bangalore.