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News Round UpOctober 16, 2007
Dances, rains and Houston
Contributed by Sunanda Nair, Stafford, Texas
 

They say the peacocks spread out their wings and put up a spectacular show when it rains. That Saturday (Oct. 13) brought incessant rains to Houston and yes with it; there was the dance by Uma Dogra and Vyjayanti Kashi at Sri Meenakshi Temple in Houston organized by Sunanda’s Performing Arts Center.

In Uma Dogra's Ganesha Vandanam, it was quite a treat to see Lord Ganesha not just worshipped but played with too, something I have not seen before. The item was a colorful portrait with the decorations and splendid jewelry adorning the Lord and it easily transports one to the celebrations of Ganesh Chaturti in Bombay, might be Uma drew inspiration from there. Uma, with her fast footwork, crisp chakars (turns) and captivating abinaya and hand movements held the audience with her every second she was on stage.

Vyjayanthi Kashi, brought with her perfection to a totally different Indian classical dance form. As she came on stage in her blue Kuchipudi costume, it strikes one how wide and diverse India is and it amazes one to think of its rich culture and heritage.
Vyjayanthi started off with a powerful item on Ardhanareshwar, the powerful Lord Shiva and the feminine Goddess Parvati united together. Simple adavus, chiseled movements and powerful abinaya made it a treat for the onlooker. Vyjayanthi made it look effortless, but the powerfulness of the creator and the subtleness of prakriti she radiated showed off her caliber as an artiste par excellence.

Uma and Vyjayanthi brought in various nuances of their art forms to the audience. Simple explanations, expressive and vivacious personalities of the artists, a variety of rasas added a sense of joy to the onlooker. Be it the fast, footwork intense 16 beat cycle Thaat by Uma or the short, abinaya and nritta intense Ramayana Sabdam by Vyjayanthi the artists highlighted and brought out powerful visual aesthetics and elegance of each of their art forms.

In a sense one felt the recital was incomplete without live orchestra and the music that came out of the CD to take accompany these remarkable artists really did not do justice. But it is something Houstonians have to live with.


Both Uma Dongra and Vyjayanthi Kashi, with their imaginative choreography brought in Kathak and Kuchipudi in its purest classical forms to a small but very interested audience in Houston. Reviving past memories, the audience took back home more appreciation for these artists, art forms and the land it originated from.

For more on the organizing institution visit www.sunandanair.com, www.sunanda-pac.com

<< Sunanda Nair is a Mohiniattam and Bharatanatyam dancer based in the USA. She is a disciple of the noted Mohini Attam exponent Kanak Rele. She runs her dance schools - Sunanda's Performing Arts Center in Texas, USA >>

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