Assam with a musical touch

THE STRONG, familiar smell of grass woven into neat mats hits you as you enter the ballroom of Hotel Taj Coromandel. Even as the straw mats and the flowers outside seemed to give an indication of what was to come, nobody could have been prepared for the striking performance inside.

Welcome to Assam, welcome to its song and music, welcome to the culture of the ancient land of Kamrup.

Beginning with the inauguration of an exhibition, things moved fast until the CD Rom on `Life is love not Lust' by Dr. Janicee Darbari refused to move further. Abandoning the software folks to their tussle with the system, Dr. Janicee called onto the stage the musicians and dancers of Assam, ``Let us show Chennai what Assam is all about,'' she said.

Taking their cue, the songsters came on stage first, with their heavy cymbals invoking the lord to stay with them and guide them. The team then moved out and dancers came on stage clad in gold and white, their shiny cymbals flashing in the dimmed lights of the room. The tempo picked up and, the entire audience soon joined in, swaying and clapping, thoroughly enjoying the show. It was then time for the women dancers of Assam to exhibit the grace of their own classical form.

After a small break during which Education Minister released Dr. Janicee's book `Srimanta Sankaradeva', the dancers were on stage again. This time, to teach enthusiastic audience to try and move in rhythm with the music. Students, mostly from MOP Vaishnav College, came up to the stage to try their hand at some Assamese music and dance.

And if this was integration, it was time for the Assamese dancers to dance to the haunting title song of the now popular serial `Chitthi'. Surprisingly, neither side had any problems adjusting to completely different cultures against the fresh backdrop of plaited green coconut fronds.

``The true spirit advocated by Srimanta Sankaradeva, who brought in the golden era for Assamese art, literature and culture was here,'' Dr. Janicee said as the troupe members of the Sankaradeva Kalakshetra began clanging their cymbals and drumming that haunting beat once more - all over again.

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Section  : Entertainment