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Maya Rao and her entourage organised the performances of her classic pieces, Hoysala Vaibhava and ‘The Vision of Amir Khusrau’ at Ravindra Kalakshetra recently.
The first production, ‘Hoysala Vaibhava’ was based on Vishnuvardana, the Hoysala King at the Chennakeshava Temple, in Belur.
It starts with the temple stone sculptures breathing into life. The piece has an electrifying feel to it with the various dances and fight sequences. Different dance forms such as Kathak, Yakshagana and Thhangtha (Manipuri martial arts) were incorporated into the production. The performances held the audience enthralled and the costumes were eye-catching.
The piece shows the conquests of Vishnuvardana and his conflicts over other kings with brilliant martial arts performances intercepted with dances by other dancers. The piece ends with the victory of Vishnuvardhana and his return to his kingdom whereupon he, along with his consort and all the other dancers, become immortalised into stone.
Divya Rajendar, a student said, “It was such a dazzling performance, the choreography and the costumes were too good.” This was followed by a short film by Bhushan Bagadia on NIKC’s founder-director Maya Rao and her journey from a dance student to one of the most famous faces in Kathak history.
Maya Rao then addressed the audience which was followed by felicitations of the chief guest Manu Baligar, Director, Directorate of Kannada and Culture, who announced that the Directorate will be publishing two books on Maya Rao, one in English and the other in Kannada by the year-end, and others. Actor Ashish Vidyarthi then came on stage to introduce the second piece, ‘The Vision of Amir Khusrau’ which was Maya Rao’s doctoral thesis in 1963 in the USSR.
The piece is based on Amir Khusrau’s love for peace and harmony more than the historical aspects of his life. The ballet starts with muses arising from the tomb of Khusrau where devotees come and pay their respects.
At the court of Mughal Emperor Jalaluddin Khilji, Khusrau is given a warm reception amidst Nusrat, a Persian poetess and other dancers. But the calm is shattered by war and the piece ends with Khusrau sending out one last prayer to merge the people from different beliefs together.
The piece holds a very important message, though composed so many years ago— the plea for communal harmony could not have been more important than for the present. Seema Nair, a consultant said, “It is amazing how this piece has been created and it holds so true for today. Brilliant dance and an even more brilliant idea behind it.”