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 Breaking new grounds - The diaspora experience - Vijay Shanker e-mail: vijaydance@gmail.com Photos: Roy January 12, 2024 The 22nd edition of Natya Darshan conference and performances was organised by Kartik Fine Arts at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan auditorium in Mylapore, Chennai on 16th and 17th December. The concept was 'Breaking New Grounds - The Diaspora Experience' that explored the varied experiences of the speakers in different countries, While sticking to the grounds and their respective disciplines, it was interesting to listen as to how NRI dancers forged ahead, against adversity and diversity, in order to promote and propagate Indian classical arts, while experimenting with varied themes and innovative choreography, with the intention of placing classical dance on the international map with global acceptance.  Roja Kannan  Rathna Kumar The welcome address was delivered by Roja Kannan, who expressed her gratitude to Kartik Fine Arts for having invited her to be the curator for the second time. Roja is the senior most disciple of Guru Adyar K Lakshman and Guru Kalanidhi Narayanan. Roja has established her dance academy Bharata Natyalaya training several students both in India and overseas. She is the president of Association of Bharatanatyam Artists of India known as ABHAI. The keynote address was by Rathna Kumar.  Folk performance The first day of the morning session commenced with 'Returning to the Roots - Paramparai Kalaigal' - folk dance traditions of Tamil Nadu by Friends Folk Cultural Team, Chennai. The dancers and musicians rendered an energetic and enthusiastic performance, reverberating with rhythmic beats creating lasting impressions on the select audience. The dancers performed Karakattam, Mayilattam,Thappatam and Silambattam.  Mavin Khoo 'Understanding the nuances of Adyar K Lakshman's choreographies - The outcome of an immersive journey' by Mavin Khoo, was a tribute to the legendary guru on his 90th birth anniversary. Mavin narrated how it was a great experience to learn from Lakshman Sir but at times he was put in a difficult situation when suddenly the repertoire would change on the day of the performance. He had to perform without making any mistakes which was a challenge for him as an ardent student. Mavin said, "We were few male dancers and he definitely gave us the space to grow without much interference in my personal life. A journalist described me as the Chinese Magic." Besides Bharatanatyam, Mavin Khoo is trained in Cunningham technique and studied with some of the leading teachers and coaches of classical Ballet in London (Marian St Claire and Nancy Kilgour to name a few). His worlds span across major ballet companies, international contemporary dance houses and Indian classical dance festivals.  Vasanthalakshmi & Roja Kannan Vasanthalakshmi, of the famous Vasanthalakshmi Narasimhachari duo, rendered a short and insightful speech regarding the mastery of Adyar Lakshman Sir. She said, "He had a unique way of correcting your mistakes and was quite generous in his praises too. Within a short span of only three years, I could learn a lot along with other disciples of his like Roja Kannan and Bragha Bessell."  Ramli Ibrahim 'The Exotic East Saga' by Ramli Ibrahim revealed as to how he started with Bharatanatyam, learnt ballet and ultimately decided to explore the beauty and aesthetic quality of the Odissi dance style. Without any support from the Malaysian government, how due to sheer hard work and consistency he could venture out into different themes with innovative choreography for an international audience. He elaborated on the Sutra Foundation Dance Outreach Programme through which he could reach out to talented children who could not afford to learn dance due to financial constraints. One such dancer from the outreach programme is the talented dancer Hareen Loganathan who rendered an impressive performance in the evening. As the artistic director of Sutra Dance Theatre, Ramli Ibrahim has choreographed stunning works and nurtured some of the brightest dance talents from Malaysia.  Thiruppavai rendition The second day of the conference commenced with the Margazhi Malarndadhu rendition of Andal's Thiruppavai by the students of the music academy of Dr J. Jayalalitha Music and Fine Arts University, Chennai.  Ramya Harishankar Ramya Harishankar spoke about 'Evolving Traditions- A perspective from the Diaspora'. She is the artistic director of the Arpana Dance Company (ADC) and a premier school of Bharatanatyam in California. She was recently recognised as a 'legacy artist' 2023 by the California Arts Council and granted an Individual Artist Fellowship. This was preceded by the 40th anniversary of Arpana in a performance, Darpana ... reflecting on 40 years, the culmination of the Alliance for California Traditional Arts Apprentice grant 2022-23. Ramya narrated how it was not easy for her to establish her academy in California as the people were not aware of the classical dance of Bharatanatyam, hence it was important to conduct an awareness programme about the significance of classical dance in India and its growing popularity internationally. Besides the Indians living overseas, it was important to connect with others as well. The appreciation started coming slowly when people started witnessing and learning Bharatanatyam. During the pandemic, Harishankar started conducting online classes on the intricacies of abhinaya and interpretative dance with teachers and keen students of dance. Glimpses of her short films 'Bhumika' on climate change and 'Asha - until we meet again' a tribute to 9/11 were shown at the conference, and have been featured in several dance festivals.  Saranya Devan The talk on 'Diasporic Dynamics making Bharatanatyam Meaningless Movements' by Saranya Devan from Durban, South Africa, traced Bharatanatyam from the days of apartheid. Hence there was no place for Indian classical dance as people were only aware of the African dances and the music of the drums. After the social turmoil, entertainment started gaining some importance and slowly there were dancers who started teaching Bharatanatyam but strangely there was hardly any quality; it seemed like meaningless movements as it was commercialised. Some of the popular names mentioned who gained popularity as Bharatanatyam dancers were Krish Samivel, Yogambal Singaram, Vasugi Singh, Manormani Govender, Kantharuby Munsamy, Vanitha Phillips, Vyjayantimala Naidoo, Suriyakumari Govender, Savitri Gangen, Jayesperi Moopen and Maya Makanjee. Saranya Devan was born in Durban and is recognised for her versatility in drama, dance performance and choreography. She holds a Masters degree from the University of Madras and a Masters in Dance from the University of Cape Town. Saranya is guest lecturer in theatre and dance at the University of Cape Town and is currently registered for Phd in Dance that looks into the obliteration of Indian performing arts with special focus on classical Indian dance in South Africa.  L to R: Mavin Khoo, Ramya Harishankar, Rathna Kumar, Priya Murle, Ramya Ramnarayan, Ramli Ibrahim The panel discussion on 'Breaking New Grounds' featured Rathna Kumar, Ramya Harishankar, Ramya Ramnarayan, Ramli Ibrahim, Mavin Khoo and the moderator was Priya Murle. Each speaker narrated their experiences in trying to reach out to new audiences through the medium of Indian classical dance and how classical dance could cater to a larger audience with a holistic approach to dance. Rathna Kumar received the Pravasi award for her outstanding contribution for the promotion of Indian dance on the international platform for over four decades. Rathna established Anjali Centre for Performing Arts in Houston, Texas in 1975 and it was not easy for her but consistency did pay off. Rathna also contributed as an organiser by inviting several artistes from India to perform in the US which definitely enhanced her popularity and propagated Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi as well. The evenings featured dynamic performances by Aniruddha Knight, Alexandra Dennisova, Rathna Kumar's disciples, Lucrezia Manniscotti, and Hareen Loganathan, Sophia Salingros and Parur MS Ananthasree. 'Immersive experience with the Legends' featured Vyjayanthimala Bali and her team, and The Dhananjayans. On the whole, it was a well-attended conference and festival.  Vijay Shankar is a Kuchipudi and Kathakali exponent, teacher, bilingual journalist, arts critic and actor. |
