Classical goes three-in-one
15 April 2012 8:01 PM GMT
Western dance forms have recently become very popular in the Capital. In the midst of the frenzy for jazz, salsa and tango, classical dance lovers of the Capital were on Thursday treated to performances by Dr Alekkhya Punjala, Jagdish Gangani and Shubha Dhananjay as part of the Jhankaar festival at the India Habitat Centre. The performance was a combination of Kuchipudi, Bharatnatyam and Kathak.
Dr Punjala presented an experiment of dance and music. His jugalbandi with vocalist K Chander Rao created fire on the stage.
Shubha Dhananjay's performance began with Nataraja Padam, in which she described the divine dance ananda tandava of the lord of dance. The dance showed how the lord drank the ghastly poison during the amrutha mathana, the churning of the ocean, the gods and demons singing praises calling him Neelakanta. The moves depicted a union between the mind, body and soul in which the dancer recited something and danced to something else.
The performance required concentration and rhythmic synchronization of the mind and body. The main attraction was Phrini Nrithya, which is traditionally performed on a mud pot. The balance she showed received a lot of appreciation from audiences.
Pt Jagdish Gangani of Jaipur Gharana is a well-known name in Kathak. Before his performance, Jagdish said: “Kathak is an art of storytelling where you explore mythological charactersand you are exploring different characters in one story. To master this dance form, one has to be perfect in preparation and practise it with feeling.”
Dr Punjala presented an experiment of dance and music. His jugalbandi with vocalist K Chander Rao created fire on the stage.
Shubha Dhananjay's performance began with Nataraja Padam, in which she described the divine dance ananda tandava of the lord of dance. The dance showed how the lord drank the ghastly poison during the amrutha mathana, the churning of the ocean, the gods and demons singing praises calling him Neelakanta. The moves depicted a union between the mind, body and soul in which the dancer recited something and danced to something else.
The performance required concentration and rhythmic synchronization of the mind and body. The main attraction was Phrini Nrithya, which is traditionally performed on a mud pot. The balance she showed received a lot of appreciation from audiences.
Pt Jagdish Gangani of Jaipur Gharana is a well-known name in Kathak. Before his performance, Jagdish said: “Kathak is an art of storytelling where you explore mythological charactersand you are exploring different characters in one story. To master this dance form, one has to be perfect in preparation and practise it with feeling.”
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