ANITA SAYS.....
A body by itself.
No move it makes arousing possession in another
The independence to be yourself,
Complete in yourself, is heaven.
- Shanta Gokhale, Arts writer and translator
ONE FOOT ON THE GROUND - a life told through the body (an autobiography)
Welcome to March - a time of changes, transitions and much more,
I started writing this month's thoughts on MAHASIVARATRI- February 26 -
where the energies converge and the universe opens its hearts to sacred
impulses. Across cultures where the lunar cycle is acknowledged, this
day stirs a profound change and churning. Dormant feelings emerge, bonds
are strengthened or weakened, new horizons are born for the brave to
witness and our planet glimmers with hope and radiance. Of course, this
does not occur without the dark side of experience also surging forth to
the surface. It is IN the churning that the nectar can be found -
Mahalakshmi, the glorious Goddess of Abundance rises AND the poison
surges - that Lord Siva so bravely consumed for the universal
good.
February was an unusual time for me. A return to a beloved ensemble
performance, a talk in the Nilgiri mountains about Arts and Business,
moderating talks at the exciting Goa Literature Festival, ongoing
rehearsals, writing deadlines and a quick break to my favourite
destination, Sri Lanka.
You may have noticed that I am writing less and less about actual
performances and focusing more on trends and issues surrounding the
dance world. It is because there is already so much that is poured forth
on the digital platforms and the automatic responses that these videos
generate are mostly cherry picking comments and praise and deleting any
murmur of negativity. My reflections on dance, music and theatre may not
be useful to many in today's world of instant gratification but this
monthly document serves as a record of my shifting thoughts and
perspectives on the global world of Indian dance. After all, this portal
will mark 25 years online and has become a vital reference tool for
citations and reviews on Indian dance.
Read on....
Connect and subscribe to our podcast on Spotify
Anita Says...by Dr. Anita R Ratnam
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TAKITATOM
New Nritta / Nritya Karanas are a new attraction at Dakshinachitra, The Heritage Museum at Muttukkadu, Chennai. Recently BHARATA KALANJALI has installed a few Noothana (new) Karana sculptures and more are to be added in due course.
Senior Natyacharyas are invited to join this monumental project by
installing new Nritta / Nritya Karanas created by them in their
choreographic work. This will benefit present and future generations to
understand the changing nature of arts from generation to
generation.
For more details, contact Natyacharya V.P. DHANANJAYAN (bkalanjali@gmail.com).
SAKUNTALAM: A DANCE MUSICAL based on the timeless love story of
Sakuntala and Dushyanta in Kalidasa's epic play Abhijyanasakuntalam, was
premiered in Chennai on Feb 8th, by the Nrithyakshethra Dance Academy
helmed by MADURAI R MURALIDARAN. The title song has been played
by almost 70 musicians of the renowned Budapest live orchestra.
Muralidaran is the first person in the dance field to collaborate with
the Budapest live orchestra. Apart from the title song almost 40
supporting musicians enhanced the musical aspect.
An Eelam Tamil dance group who won first place at the World of Dance
Switzerland Championships last year, will now be heading to the World
Championships in LA. The dancers, all Swiss-born Eelam Tamils, include:
Samjutha Sadanandarajan (27), Rashmiyaa Navanesan (26), Archana
Sachchithananthamoorthy (26), Shamya Vallipuram (26), Rethuga
Jeevakanthan (30), Mithuja Amirthalingam (32), and Janusha Amirthalingam
(28). The dancers are all in diverse occupations ranging from school
teachers to speech therapists and legal / financial experts. They will
next participate in WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS OF WORLD OF DANCE hosted in Los
Angeles, USA that is expected to take place in July 2025. |
LOOK OUT FOR
The Story of Little Ballet Troupe - Full Documentary
The Story of Little Ballet Troupe chronicles the remarkable journey of
India's oldest ballet troupe, brought to life by the visionary
choreographer Shanti Bardhan who transformed classical Indian stories
into mesmerising ballet productions, creating timeless masterpieces such
as Ramayan. Directed and edited by Sourav Dutta and produced by Nootan
Bhakal and Ketan Premani.
Mollika
Directed by Pratyusha Gupta and Mythili Prakash, the film features
dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash alongside her mother and dance
teacher, Viji Prakash, and daughter, Rumi Prakash-Gollapudi, with music
arranged and performed by Sushma Soma.
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SLIDE SHOW
Ganesa Natyalaya's flagship festival SHIVAARGHYA exclusively for
male dancers, showcased young professional dancers from across all
disciplines of classical dance.
On Feb 23, 2025 at Ganesa Natyalaya, New Delhi
Photos: Rahul Singh
AWARDS
On February 8, 2025 during the Dhauli Festival, Bhubaneswar, the following awards were given.
BUDDHA SAMMAN 2025 to PROF RAMHARI DAS (singer, composer & musicologist)
GURU GANGADHAR SMRUTI SAMMAN 2025 to Odissi dancer SHARMILA BISWAS, DR.
SANGITA GOSAIN (singer & composer), GURU KALANDI CHARAN PARIDA
(mardala exponent) and KHIROD MOHAN PATTNAIK (Art promoter).
Apsaras Arts presented the NEILA SATHYALINGAM MEMORIAL ENDOWMENT AWARD
2025 to NIKITA MENON on 9th February 2025 at the Padmotsav event in
Singapore.
PT. BIRJU MAHARAJ AWARD instituted by Kalashram in memory of the
maestro, was conferred this year upon veteran singer ASHA BHONSLE at a
function held in Mumbai.
On February 11, 2025 Guru DR. SNEHAPRAVA SAMANTRAY received the SAMAKSH
KALA SAMMAN and RAJASHRI PRAHARAJ was recognised with the SAMAKSH YUVA
SAMMAN from Sanchari Trust of Rudraprasad Swain in Bhubaneswar.
The KJ SARASA MEMORIAL AWARD was given to veena artiste MUDIKONDAN SN
RAMESH, HARIKRISHNA KALYANASUNDARAM (Director, Sri Rajarajeswari
Bharatanatya Kala Mandir, Mumbai) and SENTHIL KUMAR of Shanti Tailors on
February 22, 2025 by Sarasalaya at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Chennai.
SANATAN SANGEET PURASKAR will be conferred on Kathak dancer RAGINI
MAHARAJ and performer-artist AARUSHI BHARGAVA on March 1, 2025 by
Sanatan Sangeet Sanskriti at New Delhi.
Bharatanatyam Guru PADMINI RAVI to receive the SHANTALA NATYA PRASHASTI by the Govt of Karnataka.
Nalanda Dance Research Centre bestows NALANDA NRITYA NIPUNA on S VAIDEGI of Articulate Dance Studio.
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ATMA SHANTI
Guru MAYADHAR RAUT (July 6, 1933 - February 22, 2025)
Guru MAYADHAR RAUT, the doyen of Odissi, passed away on February 22, 2025 at New Delhi. He was 92.
His training to become one of the
foremost artistes of the dance form began at the age of seven with
learning the Gotipua dance form, a precursor to the classical Odissi
dance. Raut was the first to present the Gotipua dance on stage in 1944.
He was a founding member of Kala Vikas Kendra in Cuttack in 1952; it
was the first institute in India where Odissi was taught.
Raut was one of the
founder members of Jayantika, an association of scholars, performers and
gurus, formed in 1959, that played a major part in the reconstruction
of modern Odissi through codification and development of the dance form while building
its vocabulary by incorporating basic science of abhinaya. He is
credited with steering the revival of Odissi with Shastra-based
knowledge. He also had great mastery over ancient treatises like
Natyashastra, Abhinaya Darpana and Abhinaya Chandrika and adopted many aspects from
them into Odissi. He is credited to have introduced sanchari bhava,
Mudra Viniyoga, and Rasa Theory in the study of Odissi. He was the first
to adapt Gita Govinda ashtapadis to Odissi on stage. Delhi’s Kamani
Auditorium was inaugurated with the performance of his Gita Govinda in
1971.
He has been honored with many
awards including Orissa Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1977), Sahitya
Kala Parishad Award (1984), Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1985), Rajeev
Gandhi Sadbhavana Award (2003), Upendra Bhanja Samman (2005), and Tagore
Akademi Ratna (2011).
He is survived by his daughter
Odissi dancer Madhumita Raut, and sons Manoj and Manmath Raut. His wife
Mamta Raut died in 2017.
Tribute to a legend: Natyacharya Mayadhar Raut
- V.P. Dhananjayan
Odissi Guru Mayadhar Raut: The last giant man standing just fell
- Ashish Khokar
VIMALA RANGACHAR (96) passed away on 25th February 2025 in Bangalore.
She was the granddaughter of Venkataranga Iyengar, one of the founders
of Malleswaram in the late 19th century. Fondly known as Vimala aunty,
she was a vibrant personality. A promoter and lover of the arts, a
patron of crafts and textiles, theatre personality, she was a pillar of
strength to several organizations and educational institutions. As an
educationist, she was one of the founders of the reputed Mysore
Education Society (MES) in Bengaluru in 1956 and was involved in running
many education institutions of the MES as a member of its management
committee till her demise. She was one of the founders of the
Malleswaram Enterprising Women’s Society (MEWS), and a patron of Seva
Sadan.
Vimala Rangachar was active in promoting performing arts and traditional
crafts. Much before Ranga Shankara or Ravindra Kalakshetra came up in
Bengaluru, Vimala Rangachar had taken the initiative to build ADA
Rangamandira (Amateur Dramatic Associates Theater) on J. C. Road.
She was among those responsible for setting up the Jawahar Bal Bhavan at
Cubbon Park in the early 1970s, where she created space for theatre as
well. She received the Rajyotsava award in 2003. She will be fondly
remembered for years to come.
Multi-faceted cultural personality and Mysore Education Society co-founder Vimala Rangachar passes away in Bengaluru
- KV Aditya Bharadwaj
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FROM THE ARCHIVES
 Kuchipudi: Resurgence or Funeral?
- Amrita Lahiri
Rarely ever does this lesser-known, country-cousin of Bharatanatyam get
as much attention as now. Some critics are despairing that it is in the
ICU... pointing fingers...questioning...looking back and asking what went
wrong.
Mohiniyattam Missteps - A few observations
- Methil Devika
Of all papers that I have come across, a must-read is the thesis by
recent researcher Justine Alexia Lemos who has carefully detailed out
the positioning of the form of Mohiniyattam vis-à-vis the socio-cultural
context of the sambandham or 'alliances' rampant in Kerala in the 19th
century.
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