In fine fettle

AN ARRESTING stage presence, beautiful dance lines and an exceptionally articulated araimandi make Urmila Satyanarayana's Bharatanatyam a visual treat. Like a Ravi Varma portrait come to life in the three quarter seated posture of Tripurasundari with the Pasha and Ankusha in two hands, the entire visualisation based on hymns from Abhirami Andadi, the dancer began her programme for Bharat Kalachar, the invocation followed by Pushpanjali in Bowli ragam.

In an entire recital devoted to `Devi Mahima', the high point was the varnam in Kamas ``Mate Malayadhwaja Pandya Sanjate'' a composition of Harikesanallur Muthiah Bhagavatar.

The first half largely comprised anecdotes from the Meenakshi myth, the birth of the child, her physical deformities being removed with her falling in love with Sundareswarar and her marriage to the Lord with Vishnu himself giving away the bride.

The Chamundeswari myth, when the Goddess assumes a blood-thirsty manifestation in order to destroy Chanda, Munda, Shumbha and Nishumba the demons, was a trifle over-dramatised, a trap that Urmila, of late, has been prone to fall into. But in the latter part of the varnam, after the Pallavi and Anupallavi, starting with the passage where the note `Dha' becomes the resting and punctuating point, both in the solfa and the sahitya arrangement, followed by the charanam with the refrain ``Shame Sakala Bhuvana Sarva Bhaume'' the dancer was in fine fettle, both abhinaya and rhythm rising to a crescendo.

The music/dance togetherness was impressive.In Swamimalai Suresh whose silken voice, precise Nattuvangam and clarity of enunciation and totally unobtrusive support are a potent combination, Urmila has an asset.

Sivaganesh's interventions on the violin, particularly with his way of wielding the bow, added to the dramatic content of the music. Nellai D. Kannan provided mridangam support.

After the marathon centrepiece came a meditative homage to Akhilandeswari followed by the bubbling joy of Purandaradasa's ``Bhagyada Lakshmi Baramma'' in Madhyamawati.

All the previous music/ dance alignment went haywire in the concluding Tillana in Hamsanandhi, which in the uneven tempo threw all kalapramanam and tautness of laya to the winds.

LEELA VENKATARAMAN

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Entertainment
Previous : Interesting adavu patterns
Next     : Riveting exposition of Khamas in dance