Reimagining the margam

The Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival, now in its 49th year, is an important festival for Indian classical arts in the U.S., bringing together generations of the diaspora. Built over decades by V. V. Sundaram, it has grown from a small community event into a well-known annual gathering.

As part of this, the Margam workshop offers advanced Bharatanatyam training to dancers across North America, similar to the festival’s Sustaining Sampradaya program for music. The 2026 workshop was led by well-known dancer Divyasena Sommanna, who has mentored the program for the past two years, shaping its artistic direction and curriculum.

The workshop brought together participants aged 12 to 40, representing diverse Bharatanatyam banis. Keeping this in mind, S. Divyasena shaped the choreography with thoughtful variations to suit different age groups and stylistic backgrounds. Equal importance was given to both technique and interpretation. The sahitya was explained in detail, enabling dancers to connect more deeply with the material and bring greater clarity to their expression. Senior students of Divyasena, Shabin Bright and Upanisha Kannan, assisted throughout the workshop.

This year’s presentation centred on compositions on the saints of South India, weaving together works by Purandara Dasa, Appar, Tyagaraja, and Arunagirinathar within the margam. It also included a rare swarajati by Ponniah Pillai, alongside a Tevaram shabdam conceptualised by Divyasena, adapting traditional devotional compositions into a dance format. The workshop culminated in a performance featuring 30 dancers with a live orchestra as part of the festival’s finale. What stood out was the sincerity, confidence, and connection the dancers brought to the stage. They performed with enthusiasm and poise, reflecting how deeply they had absorbed both the technique and spirit of the margam.

While the festival has hosted many Bharatanatyam workshops over the years, the current two-way online learning and community-based model was introduced in 2024 by volunteer organizers Kanchana Sundaram and Savithri Sastri. Adapting to evolving technology has expanded access for students across the continent while also fostering a sense of belonging.

This year, the festival also introduced an advanced varnam masterclass led by eminent dancer Narthaki Nataraj with dance coach Aarthi Narain, further expanding its dance education offerings. Together, these initiatives reflect a sustained commitment to arts education, particularly in preserving traditional classical compositions.