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Entertainment
Essence of contemporary art
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In theme, content and presentation, The Other Festival stood out for the way talent yielded to the artistes' imagination and innovation. CHITRA MAHESH writes.
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Aditi Mangaldas. — Pic. by K. V. Srinivasan.
STUNNING IN its imagery, marvellously coordinated, the two programmes of The Other Festival on December 4, was something that cannot be easily forgotten. The styles were different and so were the themes, but the way they had been executed, made the evening stand out. That a company with seven young dancers can achieve so much just through their work was put forth in the first half. Nritarutya from Bangalore is all about impeccable inputs of disparate dance and martial backgrounds. It could be Bharatanatyam, Odissi, Kathak, contemporary, Kalaripayattu, and Taekwondo. All the diverse elements of each style converged into a wholesome picture that was not only very eye-catching, but also perfectly spelt. Here is a group committed to the joy of dance and though has its roots in the traditional format, is constantly looking for new expressions. They called it `And.' to signify that there is no end. That there is a sense of infinity to all that they portray - expressions may change, but the feelings are age old and forever. And this is one way of showing how different elements come together, harmoniously. And so they divided this into short pieces each with a mood of its own and with an imagery of a journey. `Five Minutes With My Inner Self' is all about two sides of a coin. Or the fact that ying and yang exist, and so do good and the bad. It was portrayed by two dancers in black and white, who moved on stage like a snake, rather like a two-headed one. And for one startling moment against the grim lighting, one had to remind one self that these are dancers painting a vivid image. In terms of coordination, it was tremendous and some of the movements were mesmerising. Forming patterns to music by Raghupati Dixit, the dancers writhed and moved with confidence. ``Push Me," symbolised the energy of a push in several areas. A push is required to move forward, to go back, to move up or just move! And the dancers toyed with the subject with moves that had perfect trust and coordination as the central force. Some of the kicks and strong forceful movements have their roots in taekwando, which one of them demonstrated with energy. Choreographed by Mayuri and Madhuri, music for this piece was funky and earthy. Yantra represented the mechanical aspect of our lives - machines and their dominance over most things in daily life. Like the repetitiveness of a machine, the dancers moved to a beat of eight counts of the konnakkol with music composed by Panchanath.
The costumes reminded one of films such as ``Star Wars" or even ``Star Trek" and the robots all in black, displayed very superior skills of choreography and pattern formations. Almost perfect! As for ``Conversation" — the piece being inspired by Gitopadesa — it brought in abhinaya to show the dialogue between Arjuna and Krishna. To this, they added the technique of using the body and presented a work that was strangely beautiful.
Somehow these talented dancers seem to have captured the essence of contemporary movements with their adaptations of themes and ideas. ``We draw inspiration from many things," said one of them after the performance which was applauded energetically. ``The way one walks, from art students who are involved with the paintings. That's how we take our cues." The dancers who participated were Satya, Umesh, Madhuri Updhayaya, Harini, Geeta, Ashwini, and Mayuri. Nanda Kishore gave technical support.
A style that arose from the fusion of Hindu and Muslim cultures and after many steps of evolving to its present form, Kathak has remained one of the most fascinating art forms of India. Though accent is on footwork (what with the truly die hard Kathak dancers dancing with almost a hundred-bell anklets) abhinaya is also present, though in a subtle form. And that gets enhanced with the dancer's ability to express a theme in different ways and with nuances that are feather soft. And for an artiste such as Aditi Mangaldas, who has trained under Birju Maharaj and Kumudini Lakhia, (she is the principal dancer and choreographer of the Drishtikon Dance Foundation.) she has also managed to fit in the contemporary, with a new set of content and form. She says ``I view my work as having the spirit and dynamism of Kathak with a yoga spine. I have looked at this ancient dance form with a modern mind and tried to give it contemporary dimensions. The form of Kathak has always been close to me; it is not a tether that holds me back, but in fact it is the deep roots using the strength of which I have attempted to reach new forms, create new spaces and evolve a new vocabulary." An example of which we got to see in the latter half of December 4.
Arresting footwork
`Rhythm and Sound' was typical of its title — in the different textures of the beats, the feet, the tabla (Yogesh Gangani) and pakhwaj (Mahaveer Gangani). In dramatic red and black for the women and cream and black for the male dancers (Sandhya Raman), the piece was an arresting display of footwork - on different surfaces and accessories.
The tatkars and the spectacular spins, so characteristic of the style, immediately dazzled the audience - the bursts of energy along with the sheer power of the footwork came to rest on a glorious climax - something that is not exactly new, but done with an eye on being different.
Allen and Karen Kaeja. — Pic. by R. Ragu.
Accentuating the mood through lighting was Narayan Chuhan and dancing along with Aditi were Pooja Srivastava, Gauri Kumar, Rohit Lal, Hemanta Kumar Kalita.
Cycle of bondage
`Lament' was more of a piece finding contemporary expression. Based on the poetry of Pablo Neruda, it is an extract from a larger production ``When Eternity Ends — Journeys In Love." With a recorded voice background by Shubha Mudgal, `Lament' seeks to explore the full circle of bondage. From the anguish of separation, to pain to resurgence and to being part of the process yet again. The dancer moved on the stage in a languorous manner initially till she puts herself through some savage movements, which signify the depths of anguish. The blood is on her hands and she finds it strangely comforting to apprehend it, instead of being horrified. Because this is what will set her on the path again. The same path that she has already traversed.
Like in all abstract work, thoughts are worked on stage through movements that fit the mood - they hold no particular significance on their own but when in conjunction with unfettered mind and music, they assume a form that is a language of the artiste and of her body. The Kaeja d' Dance from Canada on December 5, provided audiences with a good look at the sometimes-austere aspect of contemporary dance. Creative, fluid, and very physical, the directors of the company, Karen and Allen Kaeja were also the dancers who brought the language of their work to the fore! Established in 1991, the Kaeja d' Dance Company believes in dance, film and education and is rooted in creativity and innovation. Smooth flowing movements against sounds of everyday life - put the theme of relationships - especially in ``Elements Of Touch and Desperate Song," to test. The work was in layers of abstraction detailing the intimacy of togetherness. Their moves were in harmony even with the harsh bowing of the cello, in the background music. The idea is to keep the body in constant motion and from the frenzied steps of everyday life calmness settles down - at night perhaps, when the stage is bathed in blue light. The birds have come home to roost.
Gestures and movements
In ``Earth Scent," which was done with Chennai artistes - Viji Rao, Mrinalini, Aarti Bodani, Madhuvanti Arun, and Sangeeta Ishwaran - all Bharatanatyam dancers — the piece explores the multi faceted personalities of each individual through the Contact method - amplified through partnering and intricate physical communications with gestures and fluid movements. And Allen had only very good things to say about these dancers and their work. ``They are just brilliant,'' he said. ``We have worked with Asians in Canada, but this is something very unique. What is really amazing is that for most of them this is the first of its kind. Sometimes fusion can be very difficult but for most of them it has been a journey into the soul.'' With music (Tavlin Singh) that had several interludes with the tabla and the drums, the group synergy was dramatic. What with the dancers in stark black and Karen in a charismatic red! Everything about ``Earth Scent" was pretty minimalist - with no ornamentation of the body, steps or postures. It looked remarkable, but a trifle stark.
Jaimini Pathak. — Pic. by V. Ganesan.
Short films made by Allen followed this performance, which showcased themes into which their dance was interwoven. ``Sarah" was based on the unknown destiny of woman married to Allen's father before the World War II. She is not seen again and the whole film examines through dance movements her separation, her memories and her whole demeanour through the cruel separation. Zummel examines holocaust issues and is the first part to the trilogy as a memoir to Allen's father's last family. The film set in that period with costumes to match, captures the gloom and feeling of desperation of that time. The music is inspired by the Jewish tradition and provides an effective foil to the visuals. So it was with 1939, where the Jewish uprising in the Warsaw ghetto is danced out.
One-man show
If one person can be on stage and make everyone believe that there is a whole lot of people around and that too with such fervour, then Jaimini Pathak (Working Title, Mumbai) is the one. ``Mahadevbhai" (1892-1942) enacted by him is perhaps one of the finest plays presented in Chennai. On December 6, as the play started and Jaimini took centre stage, one never realised how gripping it would turn out to be. By the sheer force of his one-man act! Of course, it's a story that has its inherent emotions of patriotism and the life of none other than Mahatma Gandhi. But where the play scores is in the way Jaimini takes on different roles with such ease that you could almost imagine the characters around. Mahadev Desai was Gandhiji's secretary from 1917 to 1942 and was a key witness to the fight for freedom. And all this is made known through the daily diary and letters that Mahadevbhai maintained all through.
As events roll, references to the Jallianwallah Bagh, Chauri Chora (when mobs kill many forcing the Mahatma to abandon his Non Cooperation Movement), incidents at Godhra and Champaran, attempts to decry Gandhiji (so beautifully done that the ambience of that time was created by just his words and dramatic `Gandhi hai hai'), of times when Gandhiji wanted him to make chapathis, and several other incidents that led up to the freedom movement in all its frenzy, was captivating and on occasions, very moving as well. He was able to recreate the era by just his emotional outpourings (with Gujarati and Hindi, interspersed) and body movements. A truly marvellous experience!
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