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 Kuchipudi Natya Pathaka Swarnotsavalu - Vijay Shanker e-mail: vijaydance@gmail.com February 6, 2025 Kuchipudi Heritage Arts Society hosted the Kuchipudi Natya Pathaka Swarnotsavalu, the Antarjateeya Natya Sammelan for three days from December 27 to 29 at Kuchipudi Natya Kshetram, Movva Mandala, Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh. This unique festival featured veteran mentors, musicians, scholars, dancers and aspiring students. The morning sessions for two days were the lectures by veteran mentors pertaining to the growth and development of Kuchipudi over the ages, as a solo dance form on the international level, the various changes and aspects introduced by scholars and teachers with select renderings in Telugu of Siddhendra Yogi, Annamacharya Kirtanas, padams of Kshetragna etc. A photo exhibition of Kuchipudi dance dramas, based on the Bhagavatham tradition by several mentors and performers, over the centuries was also portrayed. Tributes to veterans in the field like Guru Chinta Venkata Ramiah, Vempati Chinna Satyam, Satyanarayana Sarma, P.V.G Krishna Sarma, Vedantam Ratiah Sarma, Vedantam Raghaviah, Vempati Venkata Narayana, Bhagavatulu Ramakotaiah, Vedantam Jagannadha Sarma, Vedantam Parvateesam, Mahankali Sriramalu, Vempati Pedda Satyam, Vedantam Lakshmi Narayana Sastri, Mahankali Satyanarayana, Vedantam Prahlada Sarma, Chinta Adhinarayana, Pasumarthi Subramanya, Chinta Krishnamurthy, Tadepalli Peraiah Sastry, Mahankali Mohan, Chinta Adinarayana Sarma, Pasumarthi Kesava Prasad, Chinta Ramadham, Pasumarthi Krishnamurthy, Chinta Seeta Ramanjaneyulu, Vempati Ravi Shankar, Vedantam Ramu, Uma Rama Rao, Korada Narasimha Rao, C.R Acharyalu, Nataraj Ramakrishna, Sobha Naidu, Lanka Annapoorna and Yamini Krishnamurthy. Kuchipudi, the classical dance style of Andhra Pradesh, is primarily known for its dance drama tradition pertaining to the Bhagavatham. It was performed by male artists known as Bhagavatulu. Females were not allowed to perform as it was believed that their participation would hamper the purity or the divinity of the dance style. The dancers belonged to the Kuchipudi village, originally known as Kuchelapuram in Krishna district and this village was gifted to the dancers by one of the royal Nawabs who was extremely happy with their elevating performance. Hence this village is exclusively inhabited by traditional Kuchipudi mentors, dancers, scholars, musicians and students. Later, members of the non-traditional families got involved and started learning and performing Kuchipudi which included females as well. Bhamakalapam by sage Siddhendra Yogi is considered the highlight of the Kuchipudi repertoire that features the story of Satyabhama, royal lady love of Lord Krishna. The plait or 'Jada' of Satyabhama is an iconic symbol of Kuchipudi dance. One of the Kuchipudi pioneers belonging to the traditional family of Bhagavatulu, Vedantam Parvateesam designed a flag to represent Kuchipudi with the Jada of Satyabhama and the sugarcane stalk representing the Indira Jharjara as mentioned in the Natya Sastra. The Kuchipudi flag is quadrangular made of cloth coloured in light pink, a sugarcane pole is used to hoist the flag, the Satyabhama Jada is painted on the cloth. The banner represents the four varnas (social classes) as well as the four Vedas (sacred texts), conveying the message that the Natyam is for everyone. The pink colour represents the early morning rays of the sun that signifies hope and prosperity. The sugarcane stalk represents the vitality of the dance form that is sweet with the aesthetic quality ingrained in it. As the inception of the flag completes 50 golden years, the Kuchipudi Heritage Arts Society with the dynamic leadership of Dr Vedantam Venkatachalapathy organised this huge festival that brought together several practitioners and promoters of Kuchipudi dance in varied capacities from various part of the globe.  Devi & Girish Chandra  MVN Murthy The performances commenced from 11 in the morning and concluded by 10.30pm with a minimum time slot of twenty minutes for each performer on both the days. While most of the performances were quite good, some were partially appealing. The performers were Sri Siddhendra Yogi Kuchipudi Kalapeetam, Mrunalini Saladi and group from Hyderabad, Pasumarthy Mrutyunjay Sarma, Pasumarthy Kumar Dutta, Tanaya Sarma from Paris, Padma Ragini Puttu from Moscow, Abhinaya Nagajyothi from New Delhi, Dr Chinta Ravi Balakrishna, Sudheer Rao group from Warangal, Pasumarthy Ramalinga Sastry group from Hyderabad, Kasi Aysola from USA, Manasvini Avvari from USA, Dr Jwala Srikala and group, Ameya King and group from USA, Dr Pranamya Suri from USA, Shama Krishna and Anuradha Vikranth and group from Bangalore, Jaikishore Mosalikanti from Chennai, Shobha from Chennai, Sabha Karyakramam, Avijit Das from Bangalore, Madhabhushini Ramani Siddhi from Hyderabad, Indira Prasaram from Hyderabad, Khas Coordinators, Sahiti Nadimpalli from USA, Dr Devi and Girish Chandra from Hyderabad, Sudha Vemuri from Canada, Tejasvi Prakhya from Tenali, Uma Maheswari group from Hyderabad, Dr Vineela Rao Uddisetty group from Hyderabad, Dr Yamini Saripalli from USA, Dr Pasumarthy Seshu Babu, Dr Nirmala Visweswara Rao and group, Dr Bindu Abhinav and group from Hyderabad, Rajesh Chawali from USA, Dr Bhagavathula Sethuram from Hyderabad, Aruna Rekha from Mumbai, MVN Murthy from Chennai, Dr S. Krishna Kumar from Kakinada, Anupama Mohan from Ernakulam, Padma Priya and Asha Priya, Chawali Bala Tripurasundari from Hyderabad for the presentation of Ksheera Sagara Madanam.  Release of book by Veena Murthy Vijay Left to right: Chinta Ravi Bala Krishna, Vedantam Raghava, Nemali Kanti Suvarna Lata, Pasumarthi Venkateswara Sarma, Vijay Shankar, Sita Akka, Veena Murthy Vijay, Yeleswarapu Sarvaani, Vedantam Radheshyam, anchor Murali, Vanaja Uday, Yeleswarapu Chalapathi Sastry, Vedantam Venkata Naga Chalapathi Rao Veteran Kuchipudi mentor from Bengaluru, Dr Veena Murthy Vijay, was a major support to the Kuchipudi Heritage Arts Society. Her book on Kuchipudi, the original which is in Telugu, the English translation was also released on the occasion. Two of her senior disciples Shama Krishna and Anuradha Vikranth presented a delightful performance with the interpretation of the number Baro Krishnayya in praise of Lord Krishna encompassing his varied facets and incidences in his life. Another male disciple of Guru Veena, Manu Jagadish performed the Sandhya Tandavam with vitality and vibrancy, creating a lasting impression on the audience with the fine execution of varied karanas.  Anuradha Vikranth & Shama Krishna  Manu Jagadish Aruna Rekha is an accomplished Kuchipudi exponent with several performances both in India and overseas to her credit. Aruna presented two selected compositions, Adi Shankaracharya's Bhaja Govindam and Tygaraja Kriti Ksheera Sagara Sayana. Bhaja Govindam takes you on a journey through three different phases of life and how the devotion for the Lord takes over. Yavat Vithoprajana Saktah portrays the instance of a wealthy man who is kind and liberal to his relatives but when he is sick nobody cares for him; it's the divine intervention that gives him peace and happiness. In the second case, the Bhakta is a true devotee of Lord Vishnu but he is about to be confronted by Lord Yama and again his devotion saves him from the clutches of death. The third phase talks about the course of both life and death and how your devotion for your Lord can lead you to salvation and bliss. In Ksheera Sagara Sayana, the tussle between the Kauravas and Pandavas are depicted and how the Pandavas lose everything including Draupadi who is protected by the grace of Lord Krishna. Both these items were well enacted with powerful abhinaya by Aruna.  Aruna Rekha  Avijit Das One of the best male dancers of the festival was Avijit Das. He has already danced for some of the most prestigious festivals around the globe. His stylistic quality and complete involvement make him among the best Kuchipudi exponents of the country. Avijit performed the Dashavataram with fine dramatic portrayal of the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu like Matsya, Koorma, Varaha, Vamana, Rama, Buddha, Kalki etc. His subtle interpretation of the ashtapadi Sanchara Dadhara described the intimate relationship of Radha and Krishna, pertaining to both union and separation, covering varied emotions of love. Avijit Das was the only Bengali to be featured in the festival which is normally dominated by Andhraites. Sahiti Nadimpalli from USA is blessed with a striking stage presence. Her interpretation of Manasa Sancharare and the Oothukadu composition Swagatham Krishna Saranagatham Krishna that portrayed varied aspects and facets of Lord Krishna, revealed her mastery over the technique and innate command over expressions. Tanaya Sarma from Paris is a talented Kuchipudi dancer. She performed an extract from Narayaneeyam, Om Namo Narayana with sincerity and involvement. Shobha from Chennai was quite impressive in the number Jai Jai Durge that portrayed the virile and the benevolent qualities of the mother goddess. The vibrancy and vivacious quality of her performance was noteworthy. She also performed the Balagopala Tarangam. Dr Krishna Kumar group from Kakinada featured nine dancers that presented a dramatic version of Swagatham Krishna covering various episodes of the Lord. The role of Kamsa was well enacted by Aruna Rekha. Anupama Mohan was quite pleasing in the interpretation of the ashtapadi Shankaradara Rasa Hari pertaining to the romantic aspect of the Lord and his dalliance with the Gopis.  Ksheera Sagara Madanam One of the best dance dramas of the festival was Ksheera Sagara Madanam, directed and choreographed by Chawali Bala Tripurasundari (Hyderabad), daughter and disciple of the veteran Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam. It was interesting to watch male dancers dominating the performance. While the Rakshasas were enacted by well built men, the Devas were enacted by young, handsome and vibrant dancers. The tussle between the Gods and the demons for the pot of 'amrutha' (nectar for immortality) was one of the best scenes and the dancer who played the serpent Vasukhi was quite impressive. While there were five asuras, the devas were four in number. This presentation established the dramatic quality of Kuchipudi dance. Kudos to Ramalinga Sastry, Chairman festival committee, convenor Dr Vedantam Venkata Nagachalapathi Rao, Vempati Satya Prasad, Joysula Pavan Kumar and others for organising this great festival in the Kuchipudi village in Andhra Pradesh.  Vijay Shankar is a Kuchipudi and Kathakali exponent, teacher, bilingual journalist, arts critic and actor. |
