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 40th International Nirantara Kalemane Festival in Mysuru - Vijay Shanker e-mail: vijaydance@gmail.com July 27, 2024 Kumar Performing Arts Center (Mysuru) presented the 40th International Kalemane Festival at the Kalemane Sabhaanga in Mysuru on 23rd June. It was interesting to watch six groups performing Bharatanatyam; most of the dancers were young teenagers. It was the enthusiasm and the excitement that was dominating the scenario, as most of the dancers were trying to do their best. Kumar Performing Arts Center is the premier cultural organisation in Mysuru that has been regularly giving platforms to upcoming dancers, in order to encourage artistes, to promote and propagate Indian classical performing arts and to reach a larger section of the society. Established by Prof Dr Kumar Kariappa and his wife, the Center has managed to build their own auditorium, without any corporate support, which is really laudable. Prof Kariappa is the head of the Dept of dance at the University of Mysuru and has been actively associated with Bharatanatyam for more than four decades in varied capacities like teacher, performer, singer, choreographer and scholar. He has been bestowed with various awards like Karnataka Kalashree and other honours. The six groups who performed Bharatanatyam were Guru Kanya Ramachandran and disciples of Natyapriya, Guru Bhavana Venkateswara and disciples of Sadhana Dance Centre, Guru Asha Hemaraju of Natyaanjana school of dance and music, Guru Shubha Hegde and disciples of Niranthara Academy, Guru Amrutha Shashank and disciples of Kaarunya Nritya Academy and Guru Pruthvi Parthasarathy and disciples of Srujana Centre for Performing Arts. All the groups were from Bengaluru.  Guru Bhavana Venkateswara's group Guru Bhavana Venkateswara and the dancers of Sadhana Dance Centre performed "Gopi gopaka swara yogi, koti surya samaprabha" in praise of Lord Krishna, incorporating varied scenes of the Bhagvatham like Gopika Vastraharanam, Kaliya Mardana and ultimately Krishna as the Parthasarathi who induces Arjuna to fight against adharma and protect and practise righteousness. With most of the dancers being children, it was the enthusiasm which was dominating more than the technical quality of the performance, however, their sincere attempt was lauded by the audience.  Guru Kanya Ramachandran's group Guru Kanya Ramachandran and her disciples performed a number in praise of Lord Ranganatha "Parkadal alay mele". While describing the glory and the power of the Lord, the varied incarnations of Lord Vishnu was also depicted, the most impressive being the depiction of Narasimha avatara. The expressions and dramatic ability dominated the performance, more than the clarity of movements and the rhythmic footwork, The group also performed another item in praise of the goddess, "Varajakshi Kamakshi" which was quite pleasing, as it dealt with the benevolent and virile aspects of the goddess.  Guru Pruthvi Parthasarathy's group Guru Pruthvi Parthasarathy and disciples performed the Jatiswaram that formed a fine synthesis of music, melody and rhythm and the piece de resistance of the performance was the number on Lord Shiva, "Chandra Chuda Shiva Shankara" that successfully dramatized the episode of the teenaged Markandeya, who was supposed to be taken away by Lord Yama but is saved by Lord Shiva.  Guru Shubha Hegde's group Guru Shubha Hegde and her talented team of teenaged dancers succeeded in the rhythmic dramatization of Kaliya Mardana in the number in praise of Lord Krishna. The sprightly entry of Krishna and the tussle with the Kaliya serpent was well executed with vivacious and vibrant movements that kept the audience spellbound and was one of the most attractive presentations of the evening.  Guru Amruta Shashank's group Guru Amruta Shashank and her disciples commenced their brief performance with jataka Vilajala in praise of Lord Shiva and proceeded to perform another number in praise of the goddess, "Kanchalakshmi Kamakshi, Tripura Sundari. Kamala Manohari" incorporating the varied facets and attributes of the goddess and destroyer of the evil for the protection of mankind and for the promotion of peace.  Guru Asha Hemaraju's group The last performer of the evening, Guru Asha Hemaraju and her disciples commenced the performance with Mahakali Mahasakthi Mahishasura Mardini with the dramatic destruction of the demon Mahisha, a brief number on Lord Shiva and a pleasant surprise of the evening, was the deviation from the traditional numbers, an inclusion of a Kannada movie song in praise of Little Krishna, that formed the grand finale to the group presentations. While by and large, most dancers were near perfection, better performances can definitely be aspired and strangely very few dancers maintained the aramandi. It was gratifying to note that there are lot of young children trying to learn classical dances with sincerity and passion. Kudos to Dr Kumar Kariappa and the team of Kumar Performing Arts Centre for organising a festival of such a magnitude.  Vijay Shankar is a Kuchipudi and Kathakali exponent, teacher, bilingual journalist, arts critic and actor. |
