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The Natyanjali Dance Fests are special. The dancers hop across one temple to the other during
the five days and pay homage to Lord Shiva through dance.
As the festivals unfold in Tamil Nadu, the Kutcheribuzz team covers the journey, the festival, the
sidelights and the people every year. We bring you the daily reports this year also.
VINCENT D' SOUZA writes from these places, daily.
At
the feet of the Nandi, Thanjavur
The
Natyanjali trustees at Chidambaram are kind of possessive about
us! So, on a beautiful Sunday afternoon I slip away. To
Thanjavur.
The rains have done a lot of good to this region. The rolling
fields are lush green. A SMS from a friend reminds me that I
should say a prayer in passing, as we zip past Vaitheeswaran
Temple. It appears to me that the number of signboards offering
Naadi consultations here, have increased. And are louder too!
But
Thanjavur is as crowded and dusty as ever. The Brihadeeswarar
Temple is, to many people, a picnic spot. The Archaeological
Survey of India must do something about the scores of 'potti
kadais' (stalls) outside which pockmark this amazing heritage
site.
The majesty and layout of the Big Temple stuns you every time
you visit the place. And the natural stage at the base of the
giant Nandi, which seems to grow even today, is a great venue
for dance. The Brahan Natyanjali fest, has grown into a
well-managed event over the years.
Gopuram of the big temple as backdrop
As
the setting sun sinks behind the gopuram, Bangalore-based
Kavyashree Jayaram, a student of the family of Kasturi, Pulikesi
and Prasanna, takes the stage. And then, the duo of Zakir
Hussain and Sri Lankan Canadian little dancer Suvedha
Pararajasingham - the duo who also performed at Chidambaram.
The volunteers of the fest seem to have been impressed by a
whole lot of 'kutti' dancers. They are still talking about
five-year-old Amara, sishya of guru Dr. Siri Rama of the Kanaka
Sabha Performing Arts Centre, Mumbai, who performed on Saturday.
And of the dancers of guru Sasirekha Raammohan of Chennai.
On
Sunday evening though, inadvertently this looks like Kerala Day!
The troupes which follow are all from Kerala. Dancer Shoba Kumar
is from the USA and a sishya of Chennai-based Gopika Verma. She
has juggled the musicians for her recital but it doesn't seem to
work. Gracefully, she performs one piece and smiles away!
Guru Anupama Mohan presents a Kuchipudi recital. We wonder -
haven't we seen one too many Kuchipudi troupes from Kerala this
Natyanjali season? And we learn that many from God's Own Country
have been students of guru Vempatti Chinnasatyam.
Kathakali by Natyasala Kathakali Sangam
This
Sunday evening programme is a fine mix. The South Zone Cultural
Centre, Thanjavur, sponsors a Kathakali performance today. Guru
N. Suresh presents the Natyasala Kathakali Sangam,
Thiruvananthapuram, on stage. For the huge Sunday audience, this
is a treat.
The sustained promotion of the Natyanjali brings in foreign
tourists. Organisers Dr.VVR and Muthukumar say they had 20 South
African Indians for two evenings. The Brahan Natyanjali team of
volunteers seems to enjoy their responsibility. A Customs
officer who is also a dancer, a wholesale vegetable businessman,
a Electricity Board staff, a insurance agent. . . For 10
days, they set aside their jobs, and work for the fest.
Saravanan is one of them. He briefs me on all the recitals so
far. And seems highly impressed with little Amara's recital on
Saturday. And he also fills me up on the vegetables business in
these parts!
Students of Regatta Cultural Society
Guru Girija Chandran, who runs the Regatta Cultural Society in
Thiruvananthapuram, presents Shobha Mohandoss, Suma Sandhya and
daughter Madhavi in a Mohiniattam performance. Slow, graceful
and measured. But once the recital is over, they zip off - to
catch a midnight train. They have a recital the next evening
back home!
Dance
troupes on the Natyanjali festival circuit have learnt to live
with a perform-hop-perform itinerary! On Saturday, the rains
washed the Kumbakonam fest venue in the temple campus but those
who had to honour their schedule at Chidambaram kept it. Like
the sishyas of Sujatha Mohan of Chennai. They arrived late at
the 1000-pillared hall at Chidambaram, chose to dance at 5 pm
the next day, and drove for over two hours to be at the Big
Temple.
On the go.
Photos by Mohandas Vadakara
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