A Divine performance
In the far corner of the white town, tucked inside a quaint street, out of the chaos of daily life is a small theater of performance,the Indianostrum Theatre. Dimly lit room, with old broken furniture at one end, rickety wooden planks hastily put together for the audience to sit, worn out doors and windows that made ominous creaking sound and the noisy fans on the wall. All in all, the place wasn’t inviting at all. There was also that one flickering bulb to add to the effect of a horror building. But all thoughts about the dungeon was taken away from one’s mind as Priya Srinivasan, alumni of Kalakshektra and student of Leela Sampsom came on stage. Her performance, Divinity, was a short yet lively Bharatnatyam recital performed at Indianostrum Theatre on 9 March, 2014.
Priya Srinivasan during her performance
Priya began her performance with the Thisra Alarippu, an invocatory piece, offering her respect to the audience gathered. In this nritta piece, her command over the laya and tala of the dance was highlighted in every head shake and footwork. As it was not a long performance, Priya didn’t go for the traditional full margam. Instead she tried to bring in dances pertaining to different genres. Her next piece was Ananda Nadamidum Paadam a Keertanam in Kedaragowla raga, glorifying the god of dance, Nataraja in all of his resplendence. Priya’s quick yet precise footwork, her stage presence and an ever smiling face had the audience bewitched.
Following her offering to the Lord Nataraja, she then proceeded to bid farewell to her beloved, Lord Krishna in a soulful rendition of the Padam Mogadochi Pilachedu, in the raga Sahana. Here she portrayed the role of a girl who was married as a child, and now her husband has come to claim her to start their marriage life. But she has always been in
love with Lord Krishna, and now its time for her to bid farewell. In her adieu to the Lord, she says that like a lotus, which is so far away from the sun, yet always looks upto the sun, the days that I shared with you will forever be in my mind and can never be taken away by the growing distance. Her abhinaya was spot on and conveyed the pathos of the girl being portrayed.
She looks for Lord Krishna, her beloved
It doesn’t end here, the next item on presentation for the evening was a bhajan by Tulasidas, Sri Ramachandra Kripalu, a devotional piece, in praise of Lord Rama rendered in Hamsadwani raga. The dance was accentuated by the vocalized syllabi that chanted the name Rama over and over to emphasise as well as add a rhythmic touch to the dance. Priya transformed into a devoutee who fully reveres her lord Rama enchanted the audience with her strong and graceful dance movements.
Priya’s perfectly aligned geometric poses
The recital was brought to a conclusion with a Thillana on Hindolam raga. The rhythmic geometrical patterns created through this dance were spell-binding. And Priya added more grace to the whole dance. Her recital was nothing new, nor was it out of the box. It was a simple, elegant and traditional performance. There wasn’t much experimenting, and the dance items performed were not new either. Rather they have been performed by many seasoned artists for over a long period of time. But it was the simplicity of the dance that added a unique charm to the entire performance. Priya brought her own youthful exuberance into her performance leaving the audience craving for more and more.
Photos: Krishnaveni Ilanthirayan
Krishnaveni Ilanthirayan
1st M.A. Mass Communication
