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REVIEW / REPORTExuberant exposition of Ravali- Vijay Shankere-mail: vijaydance@gmail.com July 7, 2026 New Jersey based accomplished Bharatanatyam exponent Ramya Ramnarayan and her Nrityanjali ensemble presented Ravali the sound of flute, at the Experimental theatre, NCPA, Mumbai, on June 5. Besides the clarity and precision of intricate movements with uniformity, the audience was transported to the world of divine love and devotion. Every moment was an offering and every movement a prayer.  The performance commenced with the traditional Alarippu in Sankeerna Chapu talam, executed with sparkling and precise movements by the ensemble of dancers, creating a fine start and spectacle too. The piece-de-resistance of the evening was the pancharatna kriti of saint Tygaraja, Sadhinchine O Manasa wherein the saint composer asks the Lord, Why do you withhold your presence and not bless me? Furthermore, in the anupallavi, he questions, Are you not the guide of countless devotees, you showed the path of righteousness to Arjuna but hesitant to me. Interpreting his intimate connection with the Lord, he further says, samayaniki tagu mataladene - you are too clever to change according to your moods and circumstances. Another aspect of the Lord comes to focus in Gopijana manoratha, when he plays hide and seek with the gopis and the other minute moves forward to gently massage the leg of Radha. In the final phase of thematic interpretation in Vanitalasada Krishna makes an unusual presence when the Rishis are conducting Homan. He intervenes and asks for food and is denied but the Rishipatnis recognise and serve him, as they realise that the Lord can appear in any form at any time, hence it is the devotion that matters the most. It was interesting to watch the dancers, changing movements and expressions in fleeting seconds, revealing their technical expertise according to the requirement of the scene depicted. Ramya Ramnarayan interpreted the popular ashtapadi of Jayadeva, Sakhi hey keshi madana mudaram. While conversing with her Sakhi, Radha recollects her intimate moments with Krishna and mentions varied instances when he appears as saviour and wonders as to why he maintains a distance with her. She is unable to bear the pangs of separation and requests her Sakhi to call him at once. With subtle facial gestures of Ramya and sancharis pertaining to the birds and nature, Radha reveals her restlessness, while Ramya proves her calibre as a sensitive dancer.  Ramya Ramnarayan The finale number of the evening was the brilliant exposition of the Ahir Bhairavi Thillana, composition of the veteran Balamuralikrishna, danced by Ramya Ramnarayan and her ensemble featuring Ragini Iyer, Rakshita Raghunathan, Sivaatmiika Subramony, Ananya Anoop, Swetha Sankaran and Sakshi Pai. The dancers received a standing ovation for their immaculate performance forming a fine harmony of synchronised movements executed with the good choreography besides the intensity of expressional dancing which is a testimony to Ramya learning the subtleties from the veteran mentor Kalanidhi Narayanan. Ramya Ramnarayan is the disciple of the veteran mentor, Guru SK Rajaratnam Pillai and has been dancing for over four decades and been a dance educator for more than 30 years. She was a visiting faculty appointment at Rutgers University, Sarah Lawrence College and a few other institutions of higher education.  Vijay Shankar is a Kuchipudi and Kathakali exponent, teacher, bilingual journalist, arts critic and actor. |
