Kalakshetra Art Festival 2025

By Bhavani Ravindran

The 72^nd Art Festival was inaugurated at the Bharatha Kalakshetra Auditorium on 19 December 2025. This time the inauguration was a simple affair, commencing with the lighting of the traditional kuthivillakku by the dignitaries in attendance. There was a welcome address by the Director, Suresh Kumar Chikala. A video message by the Honourable Minister of Culture and Tourism, Government of India, Gajendra Singh Shekawat as he was unable to attend due to prior commitments. There was also a message from the Secretary of Culture, Vivek Agarwal. Both messages praising Kalakshetra and wishing the ten-day festival a grand success. The chief guest, Aneish Rajan, Director (Academics), Ministry of Culture, addressed the students of Kalakshetra, speaking on the institution’s enduring vision, the Central Government’s involvement since 1993, and the responsibility of the younger generation as torchbearers of the legacy shaped by the much-revered Rukmini Devi.

The defining moment in the epic of the Ramayana is the demand by Dasaratha’s wife, Kaikeiyi, that Rama must be banished from the kingdom for 14 years. It is a strange coincidence that Rukmini Devi also is said to have taken 14 years to bring Rama to His kingdom with the conceptuali-sation of six epic dance productions that tells this much loved story of Lord Rama. This year’s Kalakshetra Art Festival staged all these six productions after a gap of many years. The first of these productions, Sita Swayamvaram, is dated 1954 and the last, Mahapattabhishekam (1970).  The story of Rama is universal knowledge for believers and non-believers alike. Yet these productions of Rukmini Devi draws packed houses even after over five decades since they were first staged. It is a tribute to the genius of Rukmini Devi that her concept has stood the test of time, and in-spite of all that has changed around us, her choreography still takes one’s breath away, sometimes in wonderment how she could even put such productions together.  The word magnum opus usually is reserved for the best offering by a creative person but in Rukmini’s case all these six productions would qualify for this label.  Some anecdotes which, in a way, highlight Rukmini’s genius, shared by V.R. Devika, a journalist and writer who was closely associated with Athai, as Rukmini Devi was addressed, will give an insight to how she was able to conceptualise and execute these productions. While delineating the character of Soorpanaka, Rukmini Devi did not visualise her as transforming into a beautiful woman, her interpretation was that Soorpanaka already considers herself beautiful. Another one was the clever strategy of using the apsaras to describe the battle scene rather than recreating the war on stage. Rukmini Devi created exquisite costumes and chose amazing colour combinations, it is said that she placed fallen leaves in different stages of drying to come up with a costume for Jatayu. 

In the past a Kalakshetra Art festival only had ‘in-house’ productions usually comprising the Ramayana series interspersed with other dance productions by Rukmini Devi. Over a period this pattern changed with music concerts, both Carnatic and Hindustani, finding space on the august stage. There were also dance productions of other genres both from India as well as overseas. This now has become a pattern, which is being followed specially after the involvement of the Ministry of Culture of the Central Government. This festival too had two music concerts, one Carnatic and the other Hindustani, a Mohini Attam, a production of Punya Dance Company, and a production from Singapore Fine Arts Society (SIFAS).  The opportunity to perform on the prestigious stage of Kalakshetra is a much sought after feather in the cap for all performers, both in India as well as from overseas.

There were some delightful inclusions in this year’s festival that made waves among the viewers. Even die-hard Kalakshetra audiences, like myself, were given a thrill by these surprises sprung on us by the programmers. The first and probably the highlight was the re-introduction of Lava and Kucha in the first part, Sita Swayamvaram. This was said to have been planned by Rukmini Devi even for the earliest staging of this piece, but it had to be edited out, for want of a suitable pair of young dancers to don the roles of the twin sons of Lord Rama, who are said to be the story tellers of this epic. The two little ones, Samanvitha Lakshmi and Akshith Krishna, who were given this responsibility, executed their part with flawless perfection, which was a delight for the audience, since the children were so small.  The earliest available picture of Sita Swayamvaram with Lava and Kucha is a 1955 production in which dancers C.P. Shanta and Rama Devi were the twins.

The other inclusion was in Choodamani Pradhanam and Mahapattabhishekam where a new Hanuman was introduced. These two productions too were hibernating for want of Maruthi. The boy, Jyothish Satish, who portrayed the role of Hanuman was excellent and brought back memories of the very distinguished dancers who donned that role before him. In a roundabout way we can credit Jyotish for the staging of the full Ramayana series after a gap of a few years, since without Hanuman the last two episodes cannot be staged.

As has been the norm with Kalakshetra, the choreography of their presentations are so precise, that even when the dancers donning the various roles change, the production retains it pristine form as Rukmini Devi would have envisaged. For this one must commend both the choreography as well as the teachers who have been involved in taking meticulous care to see that there was no deviation from what has been handed down by succeeding generations of performers. The emergence of Jyothish in the role of Hanuman highlights this aspect of how these productions receive so much care to see that the original is retained as accurately as possible. One must also mention that the senior dancers who have done these roles many times too have not allowed their performance to slacken in intensity. It must be quite challenging to retain the enthusiasm to do a role repeatedly over a long period of time. Special mention must be made of Girish Madhu, K.P. Rakesh, Kailashanathan, Jayakrishnan, Sreedevi, Athena, Manasi, Balagurunathan, and Suryanarayana Murthy.

The series of six dance dramas, Sita Swayamvaram first staged in 1954, Rama Vanagamanam 1960, Paduka Pattabhishekam 1964, Sabari Moksham 1965, Choodamani Pradhanam 1968, and Mahapattabhishekam 1970 were split into two sections, three on the first three days and three on the last three. The idea was probably for the audience to savour what they had seen on the first three days before getting into the final three of these exquisite performances. Also the division aptly gives a break in another sense that the first three productions had music by Mysore Vasudevacharya and the last three by his grandson, S. Rajaram.

The middle four days were occupied by music and dance productions from outside Kalakshetra.

On 22 December, a Hindustani vocal recital by Ulhas Kashalkar was staged. Ulhas Kashalkar from Maharashtra, is a musician from the Gwalior, Jaipur, and Agra gharanas. A versatile performer and highly respected guru and a recipient of many national awards.  He is associated with the ITC Sangeeth Research Academy Kolkata as a senior guru. His performance was excellent and well received.

23^rd December we had two performances, a Mohini Attam by Pallavi Krishnan and group and a Bharathanatyam presentation by the Punya Dance Company.  

Pallavi Krishnan a well known exponent of Mohini Attam, was recently honoured with the prestigious Central Sangeet Natak Akademi award for Mohini Attam, she is also the recipient of the Kerala Kalamandalam award. She is well-known for her mastery in blending invocations, mythological narratives, and pure dance
pieces to present captivating performances. At the festival, Pallavi put together a collection of items with her students beginning with a Siva stuti followed by a varnam, describing the full story of the Ramayana, with music composed by Nedumpally Rammohan in the raga Shanmukhapriya, the verses of this piece were adapted from the poem, Chinthavishtayaya Sita by Mahakavi Kumaran Asan, this was the mainstay of the performance. The poem reflects the philosophical musings of Sita. The poet imagines Sita as an idealistic figure who resides in Vakmiki’s hermitage for twelve years. Where, in a contemplative mood, she reflects on the events of her life, questioning and interpreting them through a philosophical lens culminating in her seeking refuge in the bosom of Mother Earth. The varnam was followed by a Swati Tirunal padam in Sahana and the performance concluded with a tillana in raga Bhaghesree.

The orchestra: nattuvangam Udayshankar Lal; vocal Udupi Shreenath, mridangam Unnikrishnan, edakka Kalamandalam Arundas, flute Vivek Shenoy, veena Thrissur Muralikrishnan.

The second performance of the evening was by the Punya Dance Company, featuring P.V. Adithya, Parshwanath Upadhye, and Shruti Gopal. They presented ABHA, a Bharatanatyam work that narrated the Ramayana in the margam format. The production, which had been performed internationally, traced the story beyond Rama’s Pattabhishekam at Ayodhya.

Based on Devdutt Pattanaik’s Sita, the work explored Sita’s journey through love, duty, and identity, offering a fresh perspective on the epic. The music drew verses from both Hindustani and Carnatic traditions. One of the most affecting moments was a scene where Sita spoke to her sons, narrating the story of their father as she fed them—a sequence that stood out as the highlight of the performance.

Day five concluded with two performances by two dance disciplines portraying their perspective of the Ramayana. The fact that they were performed on the stage of Kalakshetra, which has seen the Ramayana performed for more than five decades, was a little like carrying coal to Newcastle.

24 December, day six, was occupied by the Rising Son, Putran a dance presentation by Singapore Fine Arts Society (SIFAS). This Bharatanatyam presentation explored the lives of six sons form Indian Mythology; Ganesa, Krishna, Karna, Hanuman, Rama, and Buddha, through the eyes of a mother. The performance was by eight Singaporean artists was a commendable effort, as it showcased the recognition of Singaporean talent on the global stage. What made their presentation special was the fact that they were the only international ensemble invited to perform at Kalakshetra. The production showcases the richness of Bharatanatyam storytelling, from devotion and valour to wisdom and awakening. Choreography and concept was by P.N. Vikas of SIFAS.

The accompanying orchestra was a mix of tutors, Kalakshetra alumni, and artists from Chennai. Nattuvangam K.P. Rakesh; vocal Lavanya Balachandra and Jyothismati; mridangam Sai Akhileswar; violin Eswar Ramakrishnan; flute Saravanan and veena by Soumya Ramesh.

Each of the six sons’ important event in their lives and their significance to the devotion they attract, were wonderfully portrayed. Predictably the opening was done by Ganesa, since He is the beginning of everything. The piece chosen was Girirajasudha, a Tygaraja kriti describing Parvati’s son Ganesa. Next came Krishna whose story was enacted in the varnam format of Bharatanatyam. The various events in the life of this avatar of Vishnu were elaborately presented from childhood to adulthood. The varnam in the raga Reetigaula takes us through the various stages of Krishna’s life, from carrying the mountain on His little finger, Vasudeva carrying the baby away to protect Him, the attempt to poison Him ending in the vanquishment of the demon Puthana, the dance on hood of the fierce serpent, Kalinga, the acceptance of the role of a charioteer for Arjuna in the great war, culminating in the most significant event which gave us the Gita in Geeta Upadesham. The next son was Karna and the event portrayed was his meeting with his mother Kunti. This is perhaps the most poignant scene of the Mahabharata  showing the struggle that both mother and son go through. Next was Hanuman who was elaborately described by a musical recitation of the famous Hanuman Chalisa. Next came Rama, and the song chosen was a Hindi song describing the journey of Ram Lakshman and Sita to the forest. The presentation concluded with Buddha.

25 December, day seven, was occupied by the genius of Ganesh and Kumaresh the renowned violinist duo. They have been instrumental in popularising Carnatic music globally with a career spanning five decades. They began with a varnam in Charukesi followed by kritis in the ragas, Mohanam, Mukhari, Rasikapriya, Mohana Kalyani, and concluded with a Dwijavanti tillana. In the presentation of their main piece in Mohana Kalyani they adopted a unique feature where one brother played Mohanam and the other Kalyani and they were able to blend the two ragas beautifully. A mesmerising concert by two highly talented musicians who amazed us with their complete command over their instruments to deliver a musical concert that took us into the realms of ecstasy.

Day 8, 9 and 10 were Kalakshetra's Sabari Moksham, Choodamani Pradhanam, and Mahapattabishekam, in that order. With that the curtain came down on yet another memorable Kalakshetra Art Festival, aptly concluding with the advent of Sree Rama back to Ayodhya.

(The author is a connoisseur of music and dance)