Article - Vadya Pallavi: the concept and process - Parwati Dutta

In the late 1980s, when I was curiously studying the history and journey of Odissi dance, I came across a brief description of pallavi with an elaboration mentioning 2 kinds of pallavi – Swar Pallavi and Vadya Pallavi. While the first seeks to be a visual trans-creation of the raga – the melodic mood - the latter is inspired by the rhythmic element and the percussion of Odissi. During my training, I discovered that all pallavis taught to us were named after the raga in which it was composed, hence can be considered as Swar Pallavi. As per the name and its underlying concept, a pallavi gently unfolds in space and time through melodic, rhythmic and gestural patterns. My quest to know more about this extremely imaginative dance concept led me to the realization that Vadya Pallavi has not been attempted post revival of Odissi.

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