Prateesha Suresh, an exponent of Sattriya dance, under the aegis of her
Pratishruti Foundation arranged a one day seminar and lecture
demonstration / performance at Rabindra Bhawan, Guwahati on 4th July
2016. The seminar on ‘Tradition of Classical Dance and Music in Assam’
focused on Devadasi Nritya, Apsara Nritya, Chali Nritya and Classicism
in Sattra singing.
It is a welcome initiative offering insights into these dance and music
traditions. In spite of the fact that Sattriya dances received
recognition in the year 2000 as the 8th classical dance form, a lot
still needs to be brought to the attention of scholars, performers,
gurus, organizers and both connoisseurs and lay public alike.
Read the article in the site
Choreographer Sharmila Biswas’s latest work, Antar Yatra, is the
tentative journey of a thinking artiste and her process of creating her
magical world.
Three classical dance forms, songs sung in six languages, multiple
voices of the narrator and a tour of seven cities, Antar Yatra is a
travel through time, space and eternity.
Read the interview in the site
Rajashri Praharaj is the recipient of Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar this
year. She is an upcoming Odissi dancer of Guru Kelucharan style of
Odissi. Trained extensively by Guru Ratikant Mohapatra at Srjan, this
young dancer was taken by surprise, on hearing the news of her being
selected for the Bismillah Khan award.
Recently she was in Kolkata, and regaled the audience with Guru
Kelucharan Mohapatra's famous choreographic work 'Sita Haran' with
inputs from Guru Ratikant Mohapatra. She presented a jaw-dropping
performance and fitted easily into the many roles in the piece involving
high drama, which she performed solo. She was at her best. This lead
dancer of Srjan's team, was again in Kolkata soon after her performance
at Rabindranath Tagore centre of ICCR, to help Ratikant Mohapatra to
conduct an intensive Odissi workshop with senior dancers. I took this
opportunity to get her to answer a few questions at the venue of the
workshop. I was curious to know what inspired and interested her to take
to dancing.
Read the interview in the site
One of the finest developments of 21st century in Bharatanatyam is the
entry of the daughters, sons, and granddaughters of hereditary dancers
and Nattuvanars into the field as performers and teachers. I would call
this the latest Renaissance. It began in the late 20th century in small
instances when the last gurus passed away, leaving sons and daughters
who knew the art in practice, but did not quite have the courage to make
dance a vocation gradually tested the waters. They eventually made the
bold decision to treat their artistic inheritance seriously. With almost
all the teachers of dance belonging to the non hereditary community
steadily attracting more and more students, and thus earning sizable
wealth, prestige and power, the young inheritors from families of gurus
woke up to try their hand at teaching and also performing. Today they
are making their mark!
Read the article in the site
The ancient Indian idea of 'drama' varied from the present-day
perception of the same. As per the ancient concept, drama did not
consist of speech alone but also included mime, song and body movements
including dance. And 'nāṭya', as it was termed, was, meant to evoke
rasa - the divine aesthetic pleasure in the spectator. Rasa, being, the
relish of human emotions happens only if the artiste's performance
effectively engrosses the spectator's mind away from mundane
things to a world of aesthetic beauty and bliss. According to Bharata in his Nāṭyasāstra, the
'birth of rasa' is said to be the ultimate aim of the nāṭya. This is to be achieved by the artiste by
conveying intended emotions with the tool of abhinaya and other important constituents of
drama. The Sanskrit word 'abhinaya' is made up of the prefix abhi 'towards' and the root ni 'to
carry'. It can be understood as "disclosing the various aspects of the theme to the spectator by
means of words, gestures, costumes etc." It is a suggestive imitation of the various psychological
states of characters in the theme.
Read the article in the site
"I can float like a butterfly and sting like a bee
I am the greatest. The boldest, the prettiest, the most superior, most scientific, most skillfullest."
- American boxing and cultural icon Muhammad Ali (1942-2016)
"Time is the curtain, a walled city with doors that let you in and not out."
- Opening lines of THE RAMAYANA, written and directed by Gopal Sharman,
writer, poet, musician, culture catalyst and co-founder of AKSHARA
THEATRE, New Delhi (1935 - 2016).
As we mourn two very different individuals, we also mark the power of
creativity and conviction. Cassius Clay aka Muhammad Ali became more
than a sporting legend. He was the conscience keeper of the USA,
sparring with his government and delivering the knockout punch when he
refused to enroll in the army to fight the Vietnam war.
Gopal Sharman was not a sporting icon or a politician. He was the
quintessential free spirit - creating, dreaming and manifesting his
passion in the arts through the charming Akshara Theatre in the nation's
capital. A generous host, many remember his warmth and bonhomie during
the numerous plays that were staged or nurtured at Akshara.
Three more giant trees fell late last month. Aruna Sundarlal, the music
patron and iconic Bengaluru cultural figure, breathed her last. Nearby,
in Kerala, the giant savant Kavalam Narayana Panikker bid farewell in a
peaceful final transition in his home. Another renowned artiste, noted
Hindustani classical musician Veena Sahasrabuddhe, made the final
transition. Odisha lost Odissi guru Kanduri Charan Behera. They are
going. Fast. Quickly. Quietly. Our cultural landscape is looking sparse.
Retilling the soil is becoming more and more urgent.
Read the message in the site
