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 Dhananjayans' lifetime contribution presented in a concise enthralling evening - Vijay Shanker e-mail: vijaydance@gmail.com Photos courtesy: NCPA August 19, 2023 National Centre for the Performing Arts presented 'Smriti Patham' Bharatanatyam theatrical productions by natya acharyas Shanta and VP Dhananjayan and Bharata Kalanajali dancers covering the lifetime contribution towards the propagation of classical arts on the international platform, for more than five decades. It featured selected works presented in a program for almost two hours, creating a lasting spell on the audience with their enthralling and exhilarating performance that was applauded with a standing ovation. The programme was held at the exquisite Jamshed Bhabha auditorium on 3rd August. Bharata Kalanjali was established in 1968, after 18 years at the renowned Kalakshetra by The Dhananjayans in Chennai. After being defined as the 'Perfect Dancing Couple', incorporating the tandava and the lasya in their respective dance presentations, the dynamic couple moved ahead to choreograph fifty group productions, the most outstanding being Aikya Bharatham that featured several folk dances from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and Gujarat to Nagaland; Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book with collaboration from Ohio Ballet Company combining the aesthetic quality of Bharatanatyam and the western classical ballet; Pt Ravi Shankar's 'Ghanshyam'; The Broken Branch that dealt with the dangerous and contemporary topic of drug abuse. The performance at NCPA included six presentations of the most popular dance productions of Bharata Kalanjali.  Srinivas and Anand Satchidanand  Musicians The first number presented was 'Nataraanjali', an invocation and "swagatha nruthyam", a prelude to the dance drama 'Nandanar Charitram' (1982) portraying the story of how a 'low born' person attains moksham due to his sheer devotion for Lord Shiva. It made a fine start with the dancers, followed with an exciting Nritta Swaravali, composed way back in 1988 by Vidwan TV Gopalakrishnan symbolising the rhythmic train journey while he was traveling in Europe, choreographed by Dhananjayan set to Mohanam and misra chapu talam, which was initially performed by Shanta and Dhananjayan, depicting the masculine vigour and the feminine charm. In this programme the dancers were Srinivas and Anand Satchidanand who performed with effortless ease and clarity of movements, creating a fine combination of both melody and rhythm, sung well by the singers Lavanya and Shalin, mridangam by Vedakrishna Ram, violin by Sukanya and on the nattuvangam was Shanta Dhananjayan. Mani (or Mala) Pandu attam is the game with the flower ball, an extract from Valli Thirumanam that portrays the story of Tamizh love, first major dance drama in 1974, featuring Lord Muruga and tribal girl Valli. This was a thrilling dance sequence combining folk Kummi and classical elements, performed well by the female dancers Shreemati, Shambhavi, Shoumitri, Keerthana, Anjana, Hasitha, Devika and Hemavathi. This number was penned by Periyasami Thooran and tuned by T Rajagopala Sarma and Madurai Sethuraman. Based on Thyagaraja Vaibhavam and the compositions of the saint composer Tyagaraja, in Sri Krishna Leela, the composer sees both Krishna and Rama as one entity. Srinivas as Krishna was quite pleasing.  Sri Krishna Leela  Sethu Bandhana As part of Rama Natakam, renamed as Seeta Rama Katha (1974-75), Sethu Bandhana depicts how the bridge was constructed by the Vanara Sena for Lord Rama. The angika abhinaya of the monkeys was so impeccable that the audience could get the actual feel of the bridge being constructed, performed extremely well by the dancers. It is believed that our great critic Subuddu Maama was so impressed by this performance that he remarked that the dancers could possibly be used as workers by the Metropolitan department. The piece-de-resistance of the evening was Ashoka Sanghamitra (1978) that portrays how King Ashoka after his bloodshed battles, ultimately follows Buddhism, when his daughter Sanghamitra refuses to accept the ornaments as they are stained with blood. Ashoka repents and takes to the path of dharma with the chanting "Buddham Saranam Gacchami, Dharmam Saranam Gacchami." The role of Ashoka was played well by Uttiya Barua with fine mukaja abhinaya.  Ashoka & Sanghamitra The grand finale number was "Maitreem Bhajata," a composition of Dr V Raghavan, music by Vasant Desai and sung by the legendary MS Subbalakshmi and blessed by Kanchi Paramacharya which was presented at the UN Assembly way back in 1961 for world peace. It was a great spectacle to watch all the dancers, creative director Shobhana Bhalchandra and the veteran acharyas Shanta and VP Dhananjayan.  Vijay Shankar is a Kuchipudi and Kathakali exponent, teacher, bilingual journalist, arts critic and actor. |
