News & Notes

Indian Performing Arts Convention 2023

Indian Performing Arts Convention 2023

An art immersion 

The 12th edition of the Indian Performing Arts Conference (IPAC) 2023, a brainchild of Aravinth Kumarasamy of Apsaras Arts, Singapore, kick-started on 17 June 2023 with over 50 participants and resources flown in from India. The conference featured week-long master classes, workshops and lecture demonstrations by distinguished faculty, Bragha Bessell, Rama Vaidyanathan, Ramaa Bharadvaj, Kapila Venu, Priyadarsini Govind, VR Devika, Ananda Shankar Jayant, Embar Kannan, and Methil Devika. 

An atmosphere of camaraderie and excitement enveloped the air as the AVAI theatre space opened its doors to the delegates of IPAC 2023. The inauguration session had interesting elements - an invocation, intelligently choreographed by dancer Mohanapriyan Thavarajah, interspersing a todaya mangalam with an alarippu, and a choral music presentation by nine vocalists from the Singapore Indian Orchestra and Choir (SIOC), conducted by Vicknesvari Vadivalagan. 

After Aravinth Kumarasamy, the visionary curator of IPAC gave a glimpse of the exciting special events planned for the convention, students dispersed to their classes.

The special session of day one was a workshop, Finding Poetry in Nritta, by Shankar Kandasamy. Through experiential wisdom, humour and sincerity, he captured the hearts and imagination of all. The day ended with Strings of Gold, a charming violin ensemble presentation at Esplanade Studio by young violinists and percussionists, with music arranged and orchestrated by violinist Embar Kannan.

Master Classes & Workshops

The master classes were conducted by senior Bharatanatyam dancers Bragha Bessell and Rama Vaidyanathan. The classes with the students were intense and aimed towards improving technique. Rama Vaidyanathan taught the senior group of dancers Swati Tirunal’s Ashta ragamalika composition, Pannagendra Sayana. Taken up in the varnam format, Rama had intelligently choreographed it to encompass subtle abhinayas and sprightly nrittas. With eight different poses at every Pannagendra Sayana to describe Lord Padmanabha, her classes were a treat to watch. When asked the students how they felt in her classes, all unequivocally agreed that while all the movements looked so elegant and easy on their guru Rama, it was challenging for them as core strength was vital. But in the end, they all learnt it in less than four days and performed to an audience. Rama also taught a ragamalika tillana to the intermediate group inspired by Kanda Sashti Kavacham

Guru Bragha Bessell taught two Swati Tirunal compositions – Chaliye Kunjanamo (a Hindi bhajan set in Brindavana Saranga) to the intermediate group and a Malayalam padam Dhanyayayi Njan (Navroj) to the senior batch. Bragha stressed the subtleties in the narration which add to the abhinaya. Always remember who you are speaking to and the context, said Bragha, as it changes how you express your emotion. Sustaining the abhinaya, transitioning between two abhinayas, when to smile and when not to were the challenging aspects while learning the pieces, said students from both groups. 

Attending dancer Priyadarsini Govind's session on teaching abhinaya was an eye-opener to the aspiring teachers who attended the session.  'Keep it simple' - was dancer Priyadarsini Govind's dictum when it came to abhinaya. How do you teach abhinaya outside of a composition? Priyadarsini said that she always felt the need for a structured approach to teaching abhinaya that will help students in the long run. Thus was born The Learning Ladder, a set of video modules created by her to demystify the concepts of abhinaya using simple narratives and demonstrations. Priyadarsini played snippets from The Learning Ladder to the participants. 

After a quick recap on the concept of Shiro bedha, which was covered in her earlier session, Priyadarsini Govind elaborated on the next module of Dhrishti bedha – expressing or communicating through different eye movements. The Sachi Drishti, where the eye is moved away from the centre and is often used in portraying romance or love, was discussed in detail.  Participants were given simple narratives, which taught them to focus and trace with their eyes. Participants then engaged in a role-play, where the importance of dialogues and how to effectively use the voice to create subtle improvisations in the narratives were taught. Shedding inhibitions and owning the narrative/composition is the key to communicating effectively, stressed Priyadarsini.  

Dancer Ramaa Bharadvaj conducted a workshop on "Approach to Choreography" to a group of experienced teachers from Singapore, India and Sri Lanka. Ramaa shared her thoughts and experiential insights drawn from her dance experiences. Her theme was how to create meaning through organising the external space via shape, time, energy and movement and accessing the internal emotional space. Singer-dancer Vaishnavi Anand supported Ramaa on the vocals providing extempore musical improvisations. 

The young and talented Mahati Kannan's session on the practical aspects of Natya Sastra energised the participants. Mahati mentioned how a combination of sthana, cari, and nṛitta hastas gives rise to a whole movement and not a mere posture. Angas are the major limbs of the body which include the head, chest, sides, waist, hands and feet. Upangas are the minor limbs, which include the neck, elbows, knees, toes and heels. The upangas of the face include eyes, eyebrows, nose, lower lip and chin. She took the participants through the different Anga movements and demonstrated how to move the various angas gracefully. 

Day six of IPAC witnessed the final workshop by Koodiyattam exponent Kapila Venu. Kapila conducted a serene yet intense workshop on preparing your body for Koodiyattam. She took the participants through the aesthetics of Koodiyattam, eye movements, posture, and voice modulation – how to stress on some of the syllables while chanting, using the core and keeping an erect back were all demonstrated. This served as a useful prelude to her performance the next day at the Esplanade, where she presented the stunning Mahishasuravadam  - The slaying of Mahisasura. 

Lectures

A memorial lecture instituted to dancer Lakshmi Viswanathan was a fitting tribute by Apsaras Arts. The lecture by Gandhian scholar and arts writer V.R. Devika on 'Nataraja and the Cosmos,' delved into the deeper meaning and cultural significance of the symbolism of the iconic Nataraja image and its connections to scientific theory and philosophy. With meaningful references and visuals, she created a distinctive garland of astronomy, art, sculptural creations, mythic stories and temple rituals. Devika's presentation highlighted the special relationship between the deities we revere and the cosmos. Her theory of comparing the image of Nataraja to the Orion constellation and the legends associated with Rohini, the star in the constellation of Taurus, which is considered many lightyears closer to the Earth, was fascinating to list. 

 

Lunchtime talks at IPAC 2023 featured a conversation with Thava Rani Mohan from the Bhaskar's Arts Academy on its latest publication, Love for Dance, on the life of Singapore's dance pioneers K.P Bhaskar and Santha Bhaskar. 

In another lunchtime talk, freelance photographer Suresh Easwaran gave a presentation on the intriguing art form – Theyyam. Suresh's collection of photos brought to life several forms of Theyyam including the Chamundy Theyyam, Gulikan Theyyam, Pudiya Bhagavathy Theyyam, among several others. The video snippets and his superb collection of photographs traced the journey of a Theyyam artist (deity) from the four-hour makeup sessions to the fire play and the climax where the artist transcends to become the deity itself. 

Dance found Rukmini Devi Arundale

Revisiting the life and journey of Rukmini Devi Arundale was a much-needed topic, especially when controversies abound in the social media space. Scholar and historian V.R. Devika presented an interesting lecture on Rukmini Devi Arundale interspersed with rare photographs and video clippings. Tracing Rukmini's birth on 29 February 1904, Devika spoke about Rukmini's father Neelakanta Sastri, who was interested in Theosophy, mesmerised by Annie Besant's work, and moved to Madras. Devika spoke about Rukmini's introduction and, finally, her marriage to George Sydney Arundale, which faced severe criticism in the city. 

Devika went on to narrate the story of Rukmini meeting the famous dancer Anna Pavlova who nudged Rukmini to learn dancing. There was a loud gasp from the audience when Devika mentioned that Rukmini Devi started learning Bharatanatyam in her mid-twenties. Devika recounted Rukmini Devi's tryst with guru Meenakshi Sundaram Pillai and then finally the start of Kalakshetra under a thatched shed in the Besant campus and then their eventual move to the Thiruvanmiyur campus. Devika said Rukmini Devi's missionary zeal had borne fruits in several spheres, be it Kalakshetra, her love for animals, and handlooms.  Devika's talk was an eye-opener to several on Rukmini Devi and her multifaceted interest in the varied aspects of life and art that has made her a unique 'cult figure'. 

Lecture Demonstrations

Colours of Music was a splash of musical hues by violin exponent Embar Kannan who had teamed up with the dynamically talented keyboard player Sathya. They demonstrated how the keyboard could ignite emotional layering in varied genres of music – from classical Carnatic to classical Western to film melodies. Their masterful finale of Chinese music in Mohana raga left all wondering if they had just heard a symphony orchestral presentation.


Thyagaraja Ramayanam by dancer Ananda Shankar Jayant and her student Neha Sathanapalli was a garland to Lord Rama strung with musical compositions of Tyagaraja, movingly sung and recorded by the late Sathiraju Venumadhav. The pair led the audience through a gamut of emotions through elegantly choreographed sections of key episodes from the epic. With her poise and confidence, Neha completely held the audience's attention – not an easy task while performing alongside the mastery of one's own teacher.

 

Kshetra specific sancharis for traditional varnams was the topic dancer Rama Vaidyanathan chose for her presentation. The varnam composed by vageyakaras, who lived during the Trinity era, was taken up by Rama for her lec-dem.  Rama took up a few compositions to show how she weaved in the subtleties of the composition in her sancharis.

Rama demonstrated the anupallavi from Mohamana (Bhairavi) varnam, Nagarikamana tirunagaril vasare bhoga tyagesa… Here she weaved in an interesting story, where Vishnu meditated with Lord Siva on his chest. The inhalation and exhalation of Lord Vishnu led to Siva's Ajapanatanam – the dance that emerges out of unuttered prayer. Keeping the breath as the core idea, how the nayika unites with Tygaesa spiritually and physically, was beautifully demonstrated by Rama in the sancharis. Rama also demonstrated Sami nee rammanave (Khamas), where the nayika describes the Brihadeeswara temple. 

Rama's take home for the students of IPAC was, be it a varnam or composition you are presenting, dancers must research the historical background of when the composition was made and why. Rama felt that if the composer had mentioned a particular deity/temple or some interesting anecdote or legend in the composition, it is important that dancers bring in that visual imagery in the choreography without losing the character of the nayika or without losing the emotions the composer had intended to convey. 

 

Ninda Stuti 

 

Ninda-Stuti - praise through a convention, used by poets, which takes the form of a complaint or an outward criticism and inner praise. Ninda-Stuti allows for a variety of emotions to be demonstrated through abhinaya-expositions. Dancer Mohanapriyan Thavarajah, in his presentation, demonstrated a variety of Ninda-Stutis from Gopalakrishna Bharathi, Purandara Dasa, and Krishnakarnamritam. His demonstration of the Dasar composition, which depicts an imaginary conversation between Parvati and Rukmini was interesting to watch.  Priyan's portrayal of bhakti and his subtle jocular expressions made his session very lively. 

 

The last two sessions for day five featured two captivating lecture demonstrations. The first was by dancer Ramaa Bharadvaj who presented Movements and their meanings.  Two centuries ago, a French oratory coach, Francois Delsarte, developed a demonstrable system of aesthetics in which body, mind, and spirit are not abstract concepts but actual forces with particular corporeal locations through which they manifest themselves. In an articulate and well-researched talk which was laced with clever humour, Ramaa viewed Delsarte's concepts through the lens of Indian dance, where sound, voice, breathing, and bodily movement are all important elements. Delsarte's deep research into the behaviour of the body in different emotional states, such as hand gestures with the thumb (whether open and held straight or collapsed), head and shoulder movements, connecting each of them with specific emotional states – is very close to Indian aesthetic concepts and was fascinating to hear.

The final session was a moving presentation by Bragha Bessell on Manmada Vilasam – Cupids Play. Bragha's nuanced abhinaya seamlessly portrayed Manmata, the formless intoxicator who churns and dwells in our hearts and is born from the mind. Bragha presented her first piece Madano, a sloka from the Amarakosa set thoughtfully to raga Vasanta (to signify the season of Manmata) and Ratipatipriya (Rati, the wife of Manmata) by vocalist Vanathi Raghuraman.

Bragha transported the audience to witness Manmata's army (moon as his umbrella, breeze as his chariot, parrot or his horses as his vehicle, young maidens as his soldiers, tender mango leaves- his sword, night –the elephants, cuckoo –the announcer, peacocks- actresses, five flowers are his arrows, makara – his flag). The lines Maran kanaigal tuvuran saramariyai was presented from the immortal Mohmana (Bhairavi, Tanjore Quartet) to aptly portray his crew. 

The sugarcane bow and pancha banas (five arrows) of Manmata were described beautifully by Bragha through Subbarama Iyer's Madapaiyale kadai yeigirai in Paras (Adi tala). Bragha convincingly portrayed the nayika who confronts Manmata as he shoots his pancha banas. With every gesture perfectly timed, Bragha demonstrated how Manmata aims his arrows. To conclude, Bragha presented an excerpt from the Kutrala Kuravanji. The narratives allowed for a variety of interpretations, where she portrayed Vasantavalli, who laments after she misses her lord, Siva. 

 

Kamala – The fragrance of a legend

 

The audience at IPAC was ever-ready to listen to Ramaa Bharadvaj's lectures, and her talk on the evergreen dancer Kamala was no exception. Having trained under Kamala for several years, listening to Ramaa, who spoke about Kamala's life on and off the silver screen, was heartwarming. Watching the video clips shown by Ramaa, the audience at IPAC, some 75 years later, still viewed it with bated breath as Kamala executed the jati korvais in unimaginable speed and punctuated it with reposeful adavus and sculpturesque poses. Kamala had the magic ability to make any dance item appealing.

 

When Kamala, still a child, entered the scene, she came to be recognised quickly as a dancer of extraordinary talent and skill. Her appeal was greater because thousands of children, and vicariously their parents, could identify themselves with her and aspire to follow in her footsteps. Listening to Ramaa narrate anecdotes from the invaluable opportunity of observing her guru at close quarters was exhilarating. Be it lessons on nattuvangam, costume, or stage etiquette, Kamala believed in traditions. Here was a heartwarming story of a guru who wanted to elevate her students with all that she could give. 

 

On the last day, Ramaa presented another delightful session of laughter and learning through her Tarkka Paattu. Ramaa's solo act combined dance expressions, singing, dramatic story-telling and fascinating narratives about Tamil folk literature, all peppered with huge helpings of humour. She presented interesting anecdotes supported by charming folk songs, which she rendered with gusto, enlivened by engaging gestures and expressions. 

 

The last lecture at IPAC was by dancer Methil Devika on Mohini Attam, and she demonstrated the tala structure, hastas used and how the dancer perceives laya. While internalising her art well, Methil Devika's presentation had an intellectual and subtle element. 

 

Devika shared with the audience a video of her presentation at a local temple in Kerala, depicting goddess Annapoorna, Bhadrakali and Mahisasura Mardini. Devika, within a short span, put together this impromptu performance using the prahara as the stage, the temple walls as her backdrop and live music by temple musicians. 

 

All through the ten full days of dance and music, IPAC 2023 brought to Singapore wholesome sessions, which renewed the enthusiasm of all the participants. Apsaras Arts did a commendable job attracting students from all the dance schools in Singapore, India and Malaysia. 


(With inputs from Apsaras Arts Singapore)

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