Kavya Harish, disciple of Sreelakshmi Govardhanan and grand disciple of Guru Pasumarti Rattaiah Sarma, enthralled audiences with a rare Kuchipudi Yakshagana performance.
Dance rasikas in Thrissur were treated to a glittering recital of Kuchipudi by Kavya Harish, a disciple of Sreelakshmi Govardhanan and grand disciple of Guru Pasumarti Rattaiah Sarma, last week.
The two-hour performance was an exposition of her terpsichorean artistry as well as the traditional Kuchipudi Yakshagana, very rarely staged in Kerala these days. Interestingly, the octogenarian Guru Sarma himself turned up from the Kuchipudi village for the show not only for nattuvangam but to don a couple of characters as demanded by the Yakshagana style.
After the traditional invocation, ‘Amba paraku’, the dancer presented the famous number ‘Tandava Nruthya Kari’, a devotional piece on Ganesha. Ganesha’s dance was an exposition of powerful tandava enriched by the beats of mridangam.
‘Pooja Nruthyam’ is an exquisite piece in Kuchipudi composed by Vedantam Lakshmi Narayana Sastry who was instrumental in introducing solo recital in the dance form. Choreographed by Guru Sarma, Na hrudaya peeipai’, is a worship of Lord Siva. The postures of Siva struck by Kavya in this performance were noteworthy. The vibrancy of Kuchipudi with well defined adavus was laudable.
The first part of the recital ended with ‘Balagopala Tarangam’ that was specially noted for the innumerable sancharis performed by Kavya. In this connection, the vocalist Murali Sangeeth deserves special mention for the umpteen sangatis he had to render until the dancer completed all the anecdotes related to Krishna from a baby to a grown up boy dancing on the hoods of serpent Kaliya.
A rich repertoire
Tarangam is a demarcating number in Kuchipudi specially noted for the dance on the plate with a pot on the head. Kavya’s balance and astute sense of rhythm as she performed on the plate was praiseworthy and spoke for the years of practice under her Gurus.
A margam in Kuchipudi recital is never complete without ‘Dharavu’ (entry and self introduction). So, the second half began with the Pravesha Dharuvu of Hiranyakashyapu, excerpted from the Kuchipudi Yakshagana, Prahlada Natakam.
The character of Hiranyakshyapu entered seated on a pedestal. He introduces himself in which an element of arrogance is perceptible. But soon his mood shifts to one of worry about his son who is totally indifferent to his responsibility as the heir to the throne. He explains the efforts he had taken to correct him, but to no avail.
Surprisingly for the audience Guru Sarma who was doing nattuvangam jumped on to the stage with cymbals in his hands. The ‘sandhi vachanam’ (dialogue) between the dancer and Guru Sarma as the king’s minister, brought out the theatrical elements of traditional Kuchipudi which elicited applause from the audience.
Letters and omens in Bhamakalapam
In ‘Madana Dharavu’ from Bhamakalapam, Sathyabhama turns a viratkhantitha nayika who laments about the separation from Krishna. She describes how she is tormented by Cupid’s arrows; even the moon makes fun of her; the sounds of birds, bees etc are horrible to her ears. Kavya’s portrayal of all these were commendable.
‘Lekha and Sakunalu’, also from Bhamakalapam, was also a theatrical one with the Guru Sarma as Madhavai to whom Bhama dictates her feelings. It was quite an interesting scene to see how the disciple dictates and the guru takes down, both seated on the floor. She asks him to take the letter to Krishna and also to take care to see good omen while starting his journey.
Kavya wound up with a tillana set to Kedaragoula, a composition of Bokka Kumarasamy.
The entire repertoire was choreographed by Guru Sarma.
The accompaniment musicians contributed in a large measure for the success of the recital. They included Shyam Kalyan (Violin), Hariprasad Subramanian (Flute) and Kalamandalam Sreerang (Mridangam). Of course both Guru Sama and Sreelakshmi Govardhanan were on nattuvangam.
A documentary tribute to Guru Sarma
Prior to the recital, a documentary, Curtain Call, was screened. The film directed by Sahal Hameed and shot at Guru Sarma’s home in the Kuchipudi village, showcased the strenuous efforts of Guru Sarma to transmit the rigours of learning Kuchipudi to the students of Irinjalakuda-based Avanthika Space for Dance owned by Sreelakshmi. It was a tribute to Guru Sarma’s dedication and unwavering commitment to mould the younger generation.
Small wonder Kavya’s performance was a testimony of these assiduous efforts that had transformed her into a versatile performer. Over the years, she has performed at National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA), Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC), Soorya Festival, Nishagandhi Festival, Konarak Festival and the Serendipity Festival. She was also a featured performer in the ICCR Cultural Exchange Programme ‘SARANG Festival 2024’ that toured across South Korea.
Photos: Banish Pamboor, Mintu John
