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 Aatmabodhi Festival in Pune - Nrupa Soman e-mail: nrupas@gmail.com Photos: Kaustubh Atre December 11, 2024 The Aatmabodhi Festival organized by Abha Auti and Laheja Events on the 29th November at Shakuntala Shetty auditorium, Pune, was a resounding success, reaffirming the timeless charm of solo performances in Indian classical dance. In celebration of the birth centenary of Guru Rohini Bhate and marking 15 glorious years of the Laheja School of Performing Arts, the festival opened to a packed house. Dr. Kiran Thakur of Lokmanya Multipurpose Cooperative Society (also the festival's sponsors), and Shubha Dhananjay (Director, Natyantharanga Karana and Chairperson of the Karnataka Sangeet Nritya Academy) graced this inaugural event as the chief guests. Shubha Dhananjay, while addressing the audience, espoused the need to promote Indian classical dance and revive the solo tradition in particular. The evening featured stellar solo performances by Abha Auti, Dheerendra Tiwari and Vaibhav Arekar. Aligned with the festival's theme, Aatmabodhi, the three artistes naturally gravitated toward compositions that inspired deep self-reflection.  Abha Auti Abha Auti, a disciple of Guru Roshan Datye and Guru Rohini Bhate, opened the evening with a melodious Dhrupad written, composed and choreographed by Guru Rohini Bhate. She followed it up with a traditional presentation of Teentala featuring compositions by Guru Rohini Bhate, Pt. Lacchu Maharaj and Pt. Mohanrao Kallianpurkar. For the abhinaya segment, she presented a thumri by Bindadin Maharaj, "Miljawe Nand ko dhauta". Her fluidity of movements and precision in both the nritta and abhinaya segments was well appreciated. Auti's performance was a prime example of the Rohini Bhate style of Kathak, and thus a fitting tribute to her guru.  Dheerendra Tiwari Dheerendra Tiwari, a disciple of Pt. Rajendra Gangani, entered the stage with breathtaking spins, to tremendous applause. He is a shining example of the Jaipur gharana and a credit to his guru. Beginning with a Shiv Vandana "Mahesham Suresham" that depicted Shiva in all his glory, Tiwari continued to showcase his command over complex rhythmic patterns in his presentation of Tala Chautal. He concluded his performance with a Meera bhajan, "Chado langar mori baiyan gaho na", beautifully depicting Meerabai's entreaty. His graceful movements, coupled with his speed and dexterity made his performance one of the high points of the festival. Both Auti and Tiwari were ably supported by a talented team of musicians - Sameer Puntambekar on tabla, Arpita Vaishampayan on vocals, Ameya Bichu on harmonium, Sunil Avachat on flute and Maneesha Abhay on padhant. Tiwari was also accompanied by Ashish Gangani on the pakhawaj and by Kritika Kargeti on padhant.  Vaibhav Arekar The final performance of the evening was by Bharatanatyam virtuoso Vaibhav Arekar. He began with a Swathi Thirunal krithi, "Anjaneya Raghuram", choreographed by Guru Kanak Rele. Arekar presented a dignified portrayal of Hanuman's devotion through sancharis based on episodes from Hanuman's life, interspersed with crisp jatis. This was followed by a deeply evocative rendition of "Krishna nee begane baro", through the eyes of Vyasraya, interpreted not as a literal search for little Krishna but a metaphoric search for lost innocence. The last performance was a Tillana in raga Sivaranjani, showcasing Arekar's finesse. Creative light design by Sushant Jadhav and Arekar's talented orchestra led by Kalishwaran Pillai on nattuvangam, Raghuram Rajgopalan on vocals, Prajesh Nair on the mridangam and Nitish Ammannayya on flute elevated the overall experience. The Aatmabodhi Festival as a whole, was truly satisfying, a fact proven by the theater remaining jam-packed even as the event stretched beyond its scheduled time. Curated to re-centre the spotlight on the tradition of solo performances in Indian classical dance, the festival proved to be memorable. Abha Auti hopes to make the Aatmabodhi Festival an annual event to offer a platform for soloists to explore their forms in great depth.  Nrupa Soman is a Pune based Bharatanatyam dancer, dance researcher and anchor of classical dance and music festivals. |
