Classical offerings leave audience in spell on Day 2 of ‘Kalidas Mahotsav’
| Date :07-Jan-2020 |
(Left) Saptak group artists presenting ‘Panchattatva’, directed by city’s very own Renuka Deshkar, that depicted the five elements of the body. (Right) Sitar player Samanvay Sarkar filled the air with the divine melody through his strings with Pinaki Chakravarty on tabla.
By Biraj Dixit :
Today’s programme
Odissi dance by Sushree Mohanty
Sufi concert by Nooran sisters
Classical vocal by Aditya Khandwe
“I AM proud to begin my year with a presentation at a platform as prestigious as Kalidas Mahotsav.” Well-known actress and Kathak exponent Sharvari Jeminis’ words echoed the sentiments of audience who also felt blessed to have such a culturally affluent and fantastic start to their New Year. On the Day Two of the Kalidas Mahotsav, too, well-known artistes and some lesser known performers added to the cultural richness of the new year. Be it the grace and elegance of classical dance or mesmerizing magnificence of Indian classical music or its deep philosophical legacy, the evening had all the elements to satiate the art lovers of the city.
Well-known actress and dancer Sharvari Jeminis, while complimenting the city for its gift in form of a grand festival, paid back wholesomely to the city’s art lovers as she demonstrated the splendour of that majestic dance form of Kathak. Paying an apt tribute to her Guru Pandita Rohini Bhatte, Sharvari started with ‘teen tal’ giving her performance a thunderous start. The excellent footwork offered first glimpses of her command over her dance form.
As she went ahead with ‘tatkar’, the nuances were executed with memerising perfection. For dance lovers present on both days of the Mahotsav, it was amazing experience to see two fine exponents of their dance forms present the same ‘Ardhanarihateshwar.’ On the previous day, Arupa Laheri too presented Adi Shankaracharya’s beautiful composition on Shiva and Paravati during her ‘Bharatnatyam’ performance. On Monday, even as Sharvari presented the same ballet, the nuanced difference between two dance forms was apparent.
Through the many ‘aamads’, ‘Natwari’, ‘parans’, she presented the strength of her ‘bhav aang’. Even her ‘bols’ as she recited and explained her presentation, were every bit a dance of verse and expression. Be it ‘sound’ful presentation of a house-hold dispute or the dance drama based on the theme of the Mahotsav ‘Vikramorvashi’, the actress in her always achieved the perfect expressions. Her skill with the ‘bhav anga’ of Kathak were on full display during the presentation of famous ‘thumari’ ‘Yaad piya ki aaye…’ Sharvari was ably accompanied by her husband Nikhil Pathak on ‘tabla’, Chinmay Kolhankar on Samwadini, (he also gave his voice to songs during presentations), Sunil Awchat on flute and Juhi Sahdev.
Music is actually an art of listening carefully, understanding and feeling the essence of sound. Through this sonorous sound music gains its soul-stirring ability. Well-known sitar player Samanvay Sarkar, as he stirred the strings of his sitar, also pulled strings of audiences’ hearts. As his fingers deftly unravelled the magic of the instrument at his command, he demonstrated the soul-stirring powers of sitar. With ‘aalap’ he beautifully introduced himself. As his companion on tabla, Pinaki Chakravarty gave the sitarist perfect company. As the two artists travelled together, theirs was the journey of class, command and comfort. The two playfully showed their skills while exploring the seemingly limitless world of ‘laykari’.
Together, they created such a spell which was allowed to be broken only when the two gave audience opportunity to break into applause. Samanvay presented the ‘Maruh Kalyan raag’ with great verve and finesse, taking his own time to explore the nuances of the raaga and showing to the audience why his Guru ‘Girija Devi’ reposed so much faith in his abilities. And as he bid his farewell to the audience, a mesmerised crowd, perhaps taking a cue from the sitarist, did not allow applause to die down easily. Earlier, the evening began with ‘Panchattatva’ – a presentation by Saptak group.
The presentation was an amalgam of music, dance, philosophy, ayurveda and pure science, to explain the huge import of the life-giving ‘five elements’. Directed by city’s very own Renuka Deshkar, the presentation described at length the five elements of sky, air, fire, water and earth. If the dances tried to match the essence of these elements, the explanations of their overwhelming powers in philosophy, Ayurveda, pure science and even in relation to the ugly human exploitation of Nature were all-encompassing.
The dancers depicted the vast all-pervasiveness of the space, the suppleness of air, the ferocity of the fire, the lucidity of water and the stoic earth through their well-choreographed movements. It was no mean task to achieve the essence of all these important elements but choreography by Swati Bhalerao, with the help of music by Shailesh Dani, was a brave effort at achieving synchronisation of good number of dancers. Vaidya Mrunal Jamdar explained the importance of these elements in life through ayurveda and how our disturbed lifestyle has taken us far away from healthy living. Dr Yogesh Murkute explained the essence of these elements through science while Dr Sandeep Shirkhedkar threw light on things that can and are going wrong due to imbalance in these elements. Earlier, the programme was inaugurated by the lady members of Kalidas Samaroh Ayojan Samiti.