The Natya Sabha of Mysuru had organised a beautiful Bharatanatyam ‘Marga’ recital at the Veene Seshanna Bhavana on the 28th of September. The artiste was Vidushi Kathyayini Shringari, who was groomed by Guru Dr. Kripa Phadke (Mysuru) and currently under the guidance of Vidwan Vijaykumar from Chennai.

Vijaykumar, a rare and gifted artiste, is committed to bring a sense of sublime awareness to this sacred art form called Bharatanatyam. A deep knowledge of our sacred texts, understanding Sanskrit language and literature helps him in pursuing his goal. At a time when students are easily attracted by the glamour present in the art, it is indeed a tough task to transform the deserving disciples and guide them to identify the sanctity of this art form. He has successfully changed the approach, appreciation, understanding and attitude of a handful students from Mysuru and Karnataka.

The supporting artistes of the day were also equally good and helped in elevating the experience of the concert. Guru Vijaykumar was on natuvanga, Vidushi Harshitha Vidya on vocal, Vidwan Vinay Nagarajan on mridanga and Vidwan Jayaram Kikkeri on flute, each one doing their job wonderfully. The concert opened with a Ganesha Kautuvam  and Vrittam.

The selection of the items for the day also spoke loudly of the devotion and the spiritual touch that was going to be conveyed. An unmatched Padavarna by the famous art critic Sri Subbudu, Ranjani mala by Tanjavoor Shankarayya, a Meera bhajan, an Ashtapadi of Jayadeva and a Thillana, all of which were immersed in the Bhakthi rasa.

All the items were choreographed by Vijaykumar. His choreography  speaks in a subtle way the nuances of the great art. This requires a very keen and minute observation of human emotions, love, agony and ecstasies, separation etc.

Ranjanimala praises Devi about her divine appearance with tender lotus petal like eyes and her karuna on her devotees by getting rid of their sins. The Padavarna was indeed a rare composition — Devayani explaining her painful secret to ‘Anname,’ the swan. The cause of her pain is that Valli, who has bewitched and dazzled her beloved Muruga with enchanting speech. This intolerance and jealousy of a nayika was beautifully portrayed by Kathyayini Shringari. Nowadays, a varna is reduced to 20 or 30 minutes in a concert. But this exemplary composition held the spectators for more than an hour.

Another distinctive feature of Vijaykumar’s choreography is blending two or more compositions with the same bhava in an item. Meera bhajan ‘Kunjan ban chadi’ in which she directly questions Him ‘Where shall I proceed in this dense forest to find you? If only I were a fish and you would come to that pond to take a dip, I would have touched your lotus feet.’ This bhava complied with ‘Gopala Gokula vallabhi’ by Tulasidas.

Another stanza where Meera says how fortunate was Yashoda to take care of you like her son. ‘Enu sukrutava madidalo Yashode…’ was so befitting lines and bhava, despite being in a different language. Kathyayini did full justice to the mood of the composition. Her controlled abhinaya and body language perfectly conveyed the emotions.

Vijaykumar dives deeply into the essence of the compositions and is carried away with its philosophical meaning, which he tries to explore through dance medium. He is one with it and carries the spectators too along.

Same bhava was experienced in Ashtapadi too. The end piece was a Thillana and yet again a different Mangalam. ‘Sarva mangala mangalye’ brought the curtains down peacefully for an unforgettable performance.

—Dr. Rama V. Bennur