Bharatanatyam for the common man

Dance exponent

My intention has always to been to bring this beautiful classical art of Bharatanatyam closer to the common man through interesting themes. We need to innovate and keep the art vibrant and in tune with the interests of the new generation,” Bharatanatyam danseuse Jyotsna Shourie told Metrolife, on the sidelines of her dance centre’s recently held audio-visual dance drama ‘Varanasi — A Gateway To Moksha’ as part of HCL Concerts at India Habitat Centre.

Through the medium of film, slides and classical dance, the over one hour performance by professional as well as young dancers highlighted the ancient and vibrant city of Varanasi which is linked with the attainment of salvation. Depicting the temples, the ghats, the Ganges river, and the religious fervour that permeates through the city, the production was a tribute to Varanasi. “The attempt was to bring to life the nuances of Varanasi -- where Lord Shiva and Parvati are venerated, where the holy Ganga river flows absolving the sins of millions. It is a city dotted with temples of historical and religious importance. It is a city whose beautiful evening aarti and heady chanting of mantras attracts thousands of people from all over the world,” she shared.

While Shourie was the brain behind the choreography, concept, narration and script, the music was given by Carnatic music singer O S Arun.

The main cast consisted of professional dancers from the Jyotsna Shourie Dance Society who have performed extensively in India and abroad including Himanshu Srivastava,  Ishita Matharu, Nandita Kalaan Mehra and Amrita Sivakumar.  Some of the accompanying dancers from the Jyotsna Shourie Dance Centre were young artists like Gunita Tandon, Zoya Hassan, Akansha Vats, Anahita Jain, Anya Ahuja and  Ishita Mahajan. “This act was conceptualised about six to seven years ago and was presented extensively at that time in different cities. We are delighted to perform this at the HCL Concerts as well. HCL’s dedication and efforts are a much needed impetus in the field of art. Their efforts become all the more significant in today’s world where artistic influences counter-balance the stress and strife and bring us closer together with a feeling of joy and co-operation,” Shourie said.

Meanwhile, Shourie who started performing at the age of six and presented her arangetram at the age of 10, started experimenting with a fusion of dance styles and themes to incorporate a wider vision to classical Bharatanatyam. “My first such attempt, especially aimed at children, was to choreograph and present Alice in Wonderland.  This was followed by The Sound of Music (the film of yesteryear), Noddy in Nrityaland (the story of the wooden toy created by Enid Blyton), the birth of Jesus (incorporating carols, visuals and dance to tell the nativity story) and such others,” explained the 65-year-old.

“I also  worked with my senior students on themes like the ‘Krishna Chalisa’ (the 40-line verse of the Chalisa presented in Bharatanatyam accompanied by bhajans and visuals), the ‘Radha Chalisa’, the ‘Geeta Govindam’ by Jayadeva, ‘Face to Face’ (a dance-theatre dialogue between Sita and Draupadi, two extraordinary women from Hindu mythology), my latest ballet ‘Devadasi ...the Eternal Dancer’, Tradition and Inspiration, (a Kathak and Bharatanatyam jugalbandi ) and others,” she adds.