Saturday 4 June 2016

Article - Kuchipudi: Resurgence or Funeral? - Amrita Lahiri

This may be a momentous period in the evolution of Kuchipudi. Rarely ever does this lesser-known, country-cousin of Bharatanatyam get as much attention as now. Some critics are despairing that it is in the ICU….predicting its demise…pointing fingers…questioning…looking back and asking what went wrong? Is it a time for resurgence? Or an impending funeral?
The spotlight recently fell on Kuchipudi when Sangeet Natak Akademi awarded two relatively unknown Kuchipudi dancers, sparking debates on transparency. Perhaps the more important question is what is the significance of this debate in the larger scheme of things? As far back as 500 BC, the Greek philosopher Heraclitus said, "There is nothing permanent except change". Clearly some changes are good, while others are not. And what is good can be a matter of debate. Like the village with the same name, Kuchipudi dance is also under the pressure of change.



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2 comments:

  1. Very well written Amrita..
    We need more articulate voices for Kuchipudi

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  2. I wonder if one reason Kuchipudi gets lost with all the Bharatanatyam around is that there is a lot of Kuchipudi which seems more modelled on Bharatanatyam - and often loses that wonderful bouyancy and shoulder work that I have always associated with Kuchipudi (which was of course traditionally done by men, even when dressed as female characters).

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