Dance Unparalleled
On the 3rd of October, Pallavi Krishnan and group from Trichur performed
Mohiniattam. Pallavi Krishnan is a noted exponent of Mohiniattam. She is known
for her versatility as a performer, choreographer and teacher. She is the
alumnus of Shantiniketan and Kerala Kala Mandalam. She has trained under Guru
Kalamandalam. She has performed in India and abroad. Pallavi has been the
artistic director of Lasya Academy of Mohiniattam since 1994.
About the concept of the performance, she said, “Panchabhuta or the five
elements have been connected to the human body based on Adi Shankaracharya’s
Saundarya Lahri and Ananda Lahri. When Shiva and Shakti unite, the whole
universe is created and the highest evolved animal is human being. The human
being is then connected to panchabhuta – mooladhara chakra to earth,
manipooraka to water, swadishtana chakra to fire, anahada chakra to air,
vishudhhi to sky and then the agni chakra between the eyebrows is connected to
the mind. In the brain is the sahasrara chakra where a thousand lotuses are
abloom. Devi lives in solitude with her consort, Shiva. The solo in the
performance is based on Swati Tirunal’s composition, which was very traditional
since we are asked to stick to traditional pieces only.”
The evening was a very breezy one, so much so that it became difficult
to light the ceremonial lamp. The ambassador of Afghanistan, Shahid Mohammed
Abdali, was the chief guest for the evening, who, with great difficulty, lit
the lamp. The first piece of the performance was a Ganpati Stuti in raga Puraneer,
aditalam, invoking the blessings of Lord Vighneswara. Lord Ganapati, the
elephant God, is depicted by swaying elephant ears and trunk. He is chaturbhujam,
prasannavadanam, vighnopshantaye, parmanandam. The Lord was shown as moving in
a procession of dundubhi players and devotees with chavar and chhatra, blessing
all.
Next, Pallavi did a solo padam in raga Vrindavani sarang Aditalam - “chaliye
kunjan mo Shyam hari.” The nayika is requesting Lord Krishna to accompany her
to the garden. Pallavi showed the flowers and the bees hovering over them. “Dekho
Yamuna re bahi sunder.” She showed the fullness of the Yamuna while enacting
stepping in the water playfully, “ati neer bhari”. “How you can take your hand away,
Lord, while I am still holding it,” the nayika says in a hurt tone. She draws
His attention to the songs of the cuckoo - "suniye koyal ke bol, piye kya
kehri.” Pallavi depicted the embrace, romance and kiss through abhinaya.
In the end, Pallavi and her group presented Panchbhuta-the five eternal elements.
The choreography begins with the concept of Shakti, the universal energy. The
union of Shiva and Shakti yields the Panchbhuta – ether, wind, fire, water and
earth. The life forces come from these elements. The most evolved of the
natural world, man is the prototype of the macrocosmic universe. Seven energy
centres or chakras are housed in him. Adi Shankaracharya says in Saundarya
Lahiri that the five cosmic elements correspond to the lower five chakras.
Kundalini resides at the base of the spine, the mooladhara chakra in three and
a half coils. Rising up through the psychic centres, it reaches the top of the
head, the sahasrara, as man experiences the final truth. While depicting the
theme, the dancers did stances to show the union of Shiva and Shakti – Shiva
shaktaya yukto. Then they went on to show the five elements – the sky, the
flowing movement of the wind, the flaming movement of fire, the drops of water
collecting to form a rivulet and then a river moving in waves, the earth with
its plantation, the trees that house the birds and the animals. The five
chakras of the body were shown to correspond to the five elements. The energy
rising from the spine to the sahasrara in the form of a lotus and finally the
performance ended with the group portraying Shiva with his damru in one hand
and Shakti blessing all. Technically, an excellent piece to portray a very
abstract theme.
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Maitreyee Pahari’s objective has been of preserving, promoting and
propagating the traditional culture of rural India. She has received training
in kathak from Smt Vaswati Mishra and Pandit Birju Maharaj. She has majored in
Manipuri dance from the Rabindra Bharati University. She has performed
extensively all over India and abroad and participated in prestigious dance
festivals. She was awarded the Charles Wallace Fellowship in 2003. She has her
own repertoire, the Lok Chhanda Cultural Unit. About the choreography for the
evening, she said that she wanted to present an amalgamation of the two forms –
kathak and chhau.
The performance for the evening was titled ‘Maharaas’. It was a
traditional presentation integrating Kathak and Chhau. While the two forms are
quite distinct from each other, the dancers portrayed the feminine aspect
through kathak and the masculine through chhau.
Maharaas is traditionally performed on sharad poornima, or the brightest
poornima after the rainy season. The three part presentation of Maharaas began
with poorvaraga, enacted during the varsha ritu or the monsoon. The nayikas
dance under the beautiful cloudy sky, enjoying the pitter-patter of rain and
the sweet fragrance of drenched earth. The kathak dancers were dressed in blue
and green costumes. ‘Baadal re umad ghumad barsan laage, jhan-jhan boondan
barse, chhan-chhan payal chhanke.’ The peacock (morva) is calling from the
terrace. This was followed by the peacock dance in kathak.
But soon, joy turns to despair as the rain turns into torrents that
bring devastation. The nayikas yearn for the rain to stop and the moon to
emerge – Aayi re kaari badariya, garaj barse mohe darave. The ferocity of the
rain was depicted effectively by the spins and leaps of chhau. The kathak
dancers then took the stage with a composition showing the pain of separation
of the nayika. ‘Sajana, barse hain kyun akhiyan, sawan aaye tum na aaye.’ The
chakkars in this piece were predominant.
Anurag – the second part – was the union. The monsoon is over and with
the sighting of the crescent, preparations begin for the special night of the
full moon, the night of Maharaas. While the nayikas adorn themselves, Krishna
appears and dances with each one of them. The costume change was red lehengas
for the kathak dancers and white dhotis for the chhau dancers. The depiction
begins with description of the beauty of Shri Radha – ‘mohini, sunder, sohini,
vaa ki chhav ko varne sake naa.’ She is referred to as ‘vrindavaneshwari,
ujjwala, rasika, rasapriya, haripriya’. In the piece, to show the maharaas, the
kathak dancers played manjiras. ‘Raas mandal gopi gopal baal’ - then the group danced
in the raas formation. Suddenly Krishna disappears from amongst them. The pride
of the gopis makes him go away. The pain-struck sakhis look for him everywhere.
‘Piya bin nahin aave chaina, viraha satave ab din raina.’ Viraag explains the
pangs of separation and then yearning for reunion.
The final part of the performance was ‘Moksha – the ultimate reunion’.
The soul yearns for this union with God. ‘Sarvadharmaan paritajya maam ekam
sharanam vraj’. The dancers came on the stage in white and saffron costumes
holding flaming lamps in their cupped hands. A cloud of fumes engulfed the
dancers, giving it all an ethereal look. The performance ended with some fast
chakkars.
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