Talk on “Banteay Srei – the Khmer Jewel” to Friends of the Museums
Virtual Events On 4th November 2020, Aravinth Kumarasamy gave an hour-long mesmerising talk on Banteay Srei, the Khmer temple in Siem Reap, Cambodia that inspired Apsaras Arts upcoming production – “Amara – Dancing stories of Banteay Srei” which premieres on Friday 20thNovember 2020 8pm as part of Kalaa Utsavam, Esplanade, Theatres on the Bay’s annual Indian festival of arts. This production will be available digitally till 29th November 2020 1159pm via tickets purchased on SISTIC: Click here In the talk, Aravinth detailed the historical context of this unique temple – Banteay Srei and how it came to be created in the 10th century by the Khmer kingdom. He also drew connections to the many stories carved in the bas reliefs derived from ancient Hindu texts of the Mahabharata, Ramayana and Puranas. He provided his perspective on how these stories have been interpreted within Cambodian society and how French archaeologists rediscovered this temple in the 19th century and its significance among the pantheon of Khmer architecture. He also shared how “Amara” came to be inspired by these carvings, the movements within the architecture and the visual feast of dance performed by the many characters featured including Shiva, Parvati, Ravana, Yoginis, Apsaras and the interpretations intended by the Khmer sculptors. FOM members who are active docents at Singapore museums and enthusiasts of history & heritage engaged in many inquisitive questions. They appreciated Aravinth’s artistic impressions and asked questions on how the sculptures can be conveyed through classical dance. Many spoke of their trips to Siem Reap to see the famed UNESCO heritage site, Angkor Wat but spoke of a much needed revisit revisit in light of this talk to this more obscure but jewelled temple of pink stone. An engaging session that helped bring excitement to the upcoming launch of Amara.
Spotlight Series October 2020
In a session entitled “Art of Collaboration” featuring two stalwarts of classical dance – Leela Samson and Madhavi Mudgal, they shared their early interactions in pioneering efforts in the genre of collaborative dance performances. This conversation was guided by Aravinth Kumarasamy who engaged them in an effortless dialogue of memories of their craft and long-held friendship and common goals in their dance journey. They both shared that they first came together in a TV series, where as they performed their dance form’s footwork, a realisation that a common ground could be found. They began work with certain Ragas which helped them explore a collaborative dance. Both reminisced of the fun times they had in 1975-76 in Delhi and Raag Hindolam & Raag Malkauns which opened up these possibilities. Leela akka shared that when collaborating, it was important to find similarities within the natural form of the artform which brings harmony yet allows for appreciation of the differences. She called their collaborative work – a “confluence” of ideas. Madhavi didi spoke about “Sanskriti” – a togetherness where the exploration was not a competition of ideas yet on reflection, this kind of jugalbhandhi had not been done before them. They also spoke about the importance of creating silences within a performance and the importance of staying true to ones’ own dance form and working on finding compatibility. Much credit to their early collaborations was given to Madhup Mudgal (brother of Madhavi didi), acclaimed Hindustani vocalist, who helped them with his compositions especially in the use of Thumris & Khayal and gave them latitude to explore the concept of Abhinaya in Thumri. Madhavi didi spoke of the difficulties of collaboration in the 1970s when they were very much on their own – no funding, handling all aspects of production & negotiating both the creativity and the practical aspects of a show. She noted the tremendous support from vocalist, O S Arun and his willingness to try new ideas. She credits the fact that as young artistes then, their openness to experiment and exploration helped. Reminiscing, Madhavi didi shared the challenges in finding space, the lack of resources for set design & finding affordable yet compatible sarees. Leela akka went on to explain how the “Bols” were negotiated in their collaboration – the precision needed and “journeying into the others’ space.” She emphasised the need to make effort to learn about the other dancer along with the artform without being judgemental and giving mutual respect to both the person and the style. Madhavi didi spoke about the influence of their Gurus who were alive then to critique their collaboration and she explained that their creative process embedded the inputs of musicians – e.g. Shubha Mughal (her niece), a young vocalist then would perform a Thumri in Khayal-style and they would let the singers sing and as choreographers they would listen, imbibe and then create their steps . They both emphasised the importance of retaining the essence of the genre of the music. Another important aspect of choreography included the need to be sensitive to the audience watching as they would need to watch two dancers at the same time, thus many considerations would need to be evaluated when developing a duet. Leela akka put it astutely when she said, “There is no need to make it a “drama” – a duet is not a tennis match. The dancers should come very close yet not be merged together.” In the Q&A segment, there were many questions from dance students. Both artistes shared some key wisdom. They spoke of the importance of lessons in learning of the artform – as students, much is copied yet to become a serious dancer, the need to get deeper into each item happens when working on a collaboration. This kind of initiative helps a dancer realise how much you don’t know and the influence you can have on the other and the long-standing impressions that get created. They advised that in a collaboration, the compatibility of dancers is important. A willingness to compromise, to find a third area of “movement vocabulary” that speaks to each other. The dancer’s attitude towards the other should be based on a mutual understanding, not to be pressurised to do something & to give the collaborative experience – time to flourish. Dancers should have a thirst and quest to work with others. An overarching message from both the artistes is that our Indian dance traditions have certain structures which need to be respected and there is much to create within it. Over 80 participants were present at this engaging and inspiring session.
AMARA – Making the Impossible Possible
Special Feature by Mohanapriyan Thavarajah “From the forest of his matted locks, water flows and wets his neck, on which hangs the divine snake like a garland, and his drum incessantly plays damat, damat, damat, damat.” Thus, Shiva is engaged in a very vigorous Tandava dance, to bless and shower, prosperity on the entire universe. That day in the flowing water, I saw Shiva’s Lingas dance. My approach to the choreography is to portray the emotions that brim through these carvings at the Banteay Srei temple and bring them to live. In this production, the Yoginis will take us through the temple with dancing stories and the audience will be transported to the temple itself. As we are looking forward to the premiere of Amara on 20th November, it served as an opportunity for me to share my experience of the creation of this production. During this unprecedented times of Covid-19, the making of Amara was not an easy task. To keep our spirits up in this new normal, we took baby steps with Sita: the first digital production of Apsaras Arts. This work enlightened us with possibilities to think outside the box. Amara is an hour-long production which convinced us to adopt the 3D green chrome technology meaningfully. My vivid memories of trips to Cambodia are still so fresh in my mind. Everything I saw there has deeply affected my thoughts and has served as an inspiration. The artistry of the Khmers is simply astonishing, I know their architecture is irreplaceable with any other creations of mankind but what awed me is their reimagination and interpretations of the concepts of religion and art. The idea of carving thousands of Lingas in the river bed of Mount Kulin is evidence of their brilliant imagination. They combined nature and religious symbols to create sacred surroundings not only in temples but wherever they could find space for divinity. I still remember touching the Linga in the middle of the flowing river and remembered the Shiva Thandav Strotra lines “From the forest of his matted lock, water flows and wets his neck, on which hangs the divine snake like a garland, and his drum incessantly plays damat, damat, damat, damat.” Thus, Shiva is engaged in a very vigorous Tandava dance, to bless and shower, prosperity on the entire universe.” That day in the flowing water, I saw Shiva’s Lingas dance. Banteay Srei was the first temple that I visited in Cambodia. The soft pink stones of the temple aren’t immediately visually convincing as an architectural building but it resembled a dwelling made of ruby gem stone with cuts of intricate carvings. The details of carvings were similar to my father’s goldsmith works that I have often admired. The presiding deity is Chandrasekhara but interestingly, it is the Yoginis – beautiful female figurines which have been craved and celebrated all around the temple as a gesture of pride to their Matriarchal society of that time. The Hindu gods and goddess have been absorbed into the typical features of Khmer. It is noteworthy that the presiding deities of Angkor temples like Shiva and Vishnu appear majestic in their looks which are in sync with the concepts of king-god synergies. The carvings of the Hindu gods and characters are often studied in the myths but in the Khmer style, these are not static carvings but they are in motion. Their body language and curves are so convincingly realistic and there is clarity in the expressions on their faces. My favourite sculptures are of Ravana lifting Mount Kailash and Mahishasuramardhini. Unlike the Indian version of Ravana with his horizontally aligned ten heads, the Khmers have visualised Ravana’s ten heads to be decked on top of each other like a mountain. This is where the visualisation is illuminating to a choreographer like myself in order to understand the emotions of characters in detail. For example, by seeing Ravana’s heads decked the way, it shows his arrogance and the power he commands in his actions. The sculptors have also created motion with Ravana’s multiple hands lifting the mountain, easily more than 20 hands have been drawn capturing the enormous arm strength of his action. The level of detailed carving continues with Shiva seated calmly while all other divine beings including Parvati holding frightened expressions. In the case of Mahishasuramardhi, she is carved slaying the buffalo headed demon holding on his tail in an upside-down swift movement which shows us the power of goddess who ensures triumph over evil. In truth, stopping at any of these decorated lintels and looking up close at these carvings, one may realise these lively sculptures are breathing softly through the magical stones of Banteay Srei. My approach to the choreography is to portray the emotions that brim through these carvings and bring them to live. In this production, the Yoginis will take us through the temple with dancing stories and the audience will be transported to the temple itself. You will need to watch the production to behold this for yourself. With safety distance measures, the dancers had to deal with many restrictions in the day long shoots. This production is filmed using the green screen chrome technology where perspectives of dancers are changed for the cameras to capture the best of their moves. This was a new approach for us as we had to dynamically adapt ourselves to change, to add something on the spot to meet the expectations of the director, of the visuals planned. The challenge lay in sustaining the stamina and still evoke rasa in repetitive, multiple shots. This experience has been a great learning lesson in the need for patience, focus and determination. Getting the costumes ready for Amara was a hunt in the tunnels. As we knew that we have very limited resources in Singapore and with no travel and courier exchanges between countries – complicated. This journey enabled me to explore Singapore’s textile sector and allowed me to find the closest fabrics similar to Cambodian Ikats and Silks.
The square and the circle of the Indian arts
by Kapila Vatsyayan The Square and the Circle of the Indian Arts is a major contribution in Indian art history. More than a book on the theories of arts, it has far-reaching implications for the way one thinks about the future of indology and art history. It provides a model to be emulated for inter-disciplinary research, not only between the arts but also the sciences and the arts.The book begins by re-examining the imagery of the Vedas and the Upanisads, highlighting some aspects of early speculative thought which influenced the enunciation of aesthetic theories, particularly of Bharata in the Natyasastra. The next chapter introduces a new methodology of analyzing the rituals (yajna) as laid down in the Yajurveda and the Satapatha Brahmana, the best way to focus the relationship between the text and the practice. Four chapters follow – one each on drama (natya), architecture (vastu), sculpture (silpa), and music (sangita). Each presents some fundamental concepts of speculative thought, concerned with each of the arts and purposefully correlates these with actual examples both of the past and the present. This second edition remains an event not only because the book benefits from the works published since the first edition, but also because it presents the author’s integral vision and her unique adventure into the boundaries of several disciplines. It demonstrates the efficacy of her earlier approach of investigating the imagery and the metaphors as basic to the discourse of the Indian tradition. She proposes a multi-layered cluster of concepts and metaphors which enable one to decode the complex multi-dimensional character of the Indian Arts. Also significantly she suggests a deeper comprehension of the relevance of the developments in the field of traditional mathematics and biology for the study of the language of form of the Indian Arts. About the Author Kapila Vatsyayan (कपिला वात्स्यायन) (25 December 1928 – 16 September 2020) was a leading scholar of Indian classical dance, art, architecture, and art history. She served as a member of parliament and bureaucrat in India, and also served as the founding director of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts.In 1970, Vatsyayan received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, the highest honour conferred by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India’s national academy for music, dance and drama; this was followed by the Lalit Kala Akademi Fellowship, the highest honour in the fine arts conferred by Lalit Kala Akademi, India’s national academy for fine arts in 1995. In 2011, the Government of India bestowed upon her the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian honour.
The Consummate Musicianship of a Dancer
Distinguished Guest Column By Savita Narasimhan “From the day I first heard this music, I have been unabashedly in love with it.” Says Savita Narasimhan, a Carnatic vocalist, teacher and painter. She is also the Director of the Chennai-based Museum of Performing Arts MOPA. This article is from a series she wrote as she curated MOPA’s first exhibition on Balasaraswati titled ‘Credo of a Dancer’. In the Carnatic world, most of us in my generation or the next have heard and been enamoured of the music of T Brinda and T Mukta and through them, their grandmother, the great Veena Dhanammal, whose music we may not have heard much, but whose tales form part of the Carnatic lore that is handed to every eager student. From the day I first heard this music, I have been unabashedly in love with it. It was March 2019 and I had begun working on an exhibition on another member of the Dhanammal family, the redoubtable Balasaraswati, to mark her birth centenary. I had the privilege of hearing her brother T Viswanathan live just once. This was in the late 90s and his demise left me yearning for more. Curating an exhibition on Bala brought me back into the warm embrace of their music. Her grandson Aniruddha shared several recordings of her music that day and I recall the first time I heard ‘mosa jesene’ in Sindubhairavi. This recording had Bala and her brother exchanging phrases even as she danced (her voice coming from farther away on the stage). It had, besides an obvious Hindustani influence, a richness, a uniqueness, a depth of feeling that ran in my head for months after I first heard it. It left me hungry for more of her music. The next few months saw me hunting for all possible recordings. I realised that there were striking differences between Bala and her cousins Brinda and Mukta. That was explained by Viswa speaking about how each one developed his or her own styles even within the family, while being bound by the aesthetic and musical values that could be traced back to their grandmother. In and down each generation of the family, there had been a lateral transfusion of music from impeccable sources that were handed down as a precious and unbroken heritage. To quote Bala in her speech at the Music Academy, “my great grandmother Sundarammal was a musician as was my grandmother Dhanammal and my mother Jayammal.” The compositions of Shyama Shastri and Subbaraya Shastri were inherited heirlooms, with Sundarammal having learnt directly from Annaswami Shastri. Family lore says that Annaswami Shastri would insist that Sundarammal sing his father’s Todi kriti ‘nannu brochutaku tamasamela’ everyday. This composition became the personal property of Sundarammal who taught it to Dhanammal, who in turn passed it on to Balasaraswati, but never to any other family member or outsider. Anayya’s compositions like ‘charanu charanu’ in Chenjuruti and ‘mahima teliya tarama’ in Shankarabharanam (known better as a pallavi) were family property. The compositions of Muthuswamy Dikshitar in the family also had a direct link to the composer himself. Dhanammal’s guru Panchu Iyer was the disciple of Tambiappa Pillai, a direct disciple of Dikshitar. It was to cure Tambiappa’s illness that Dikshitar composed the Navagraha kriti-s. Veena pustaka dharini in Vegavahini was similarly an exclusive family property. Dhanammal learnt many compositions of Tyagaraja’s direct disciple Veena Kuppier and his son Tiruvottriyur Tyagier from the latter, a great friend and admirer of Dhanammal, many years his junior. She was also perhaps the first musician who rendered Ettayapuram Kumara Ettendra’s compositions as outlined in Subbarama Dikshitar’s Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini. Prominent composers like Patnam Subramania Iyer, Tiruvottriyur Tyagaier and Dharmapuri Subbarayar composed in her presence and enriched their compositions further by her musical touches. The famous javali ‘smara sundaranguni’ in Paras composed by Dharmapuri Subbarayar was in praise of Dhanammal. Jayammal taught Bala the close relationship between abhinaya and raga, saying “your head, your whole body, must move with the gamaka, the sangati, not just with tala.” Bala’s guru Kandappa Pillai’s rhythmic compositions were guided largely by musical principles and the dance simply had to follow. In the family tradition, raga-s were given life not only through ornamentation (gamaka-s) but also with an intuitive and effective use of voice, intonation and modulation to arrive at the optimal sound and mood. With such a background and training, it is not surprising that almost all of Bala’s artistic decisions were informed by her music. The text may have guided the meaning but it was the musical phrase that shaped the gesture and expression, thereby creating the emotion. Such was her ability to understand the inherent mood of the raga that the music became the catalyst for mime, providing endless options. In Bharatanatyam, the padam is considered the compositional form that gives a dancer maximum scope to express her artistic skills. It is also extremely difficult to sing a padam well, given its super slow pace and nuanced structure and its demands on the musician’s vocal, technical and aesthetic abilities. Bala believed that the padam must be explored continuously because of the infinite possibilities in the poetry and music, the unlimited interpretative possibilities. She developed an instinctive dependence upon the musical gesture as a guide to abhinaya. John Higgins summed this point up succinctly in his presentation at the Music Academy: “To watch Bala sing is to begin to understand a padam…her body leans into each musical phrase as if to coerce it; each syllable of sahitya is allowed to find its level, its own unique sound value. Thus in a dance performance, Balasaraswati breathes with music and the music breathes life into her gestures.” There is a delightful video recording of her brother Viswanathan talking about how she would continuously think musically, taking apart the smallest detail of the song in order to examine it freshly and present it in new ways. A phrase – explored, analyzed, treated with her voice, transformed from a phrase to a ‘opening up’ of myriad forms of expression. He tries to demonstrate her mime for the word ‘vaari’ (combing one’s tresses) by singing the word in various ways in Saveri. We can find a short segment of this
An interview with Devenasan Charles
“A life of colour, aesthetics & the discipline of an artiste” An exclusive interview with W Devenasan Charles By Vidhya Nair In this month’s interview, we meet with W Devenasan Charles, for whom learning dance opened doors into a career of a celebrated make-up artist, a life-long performer and a spiritual seeker. “Our culture is from India – a chosen land of the Gods. We must make an effort to appreciate our own culture and find deeper meaning and pride in what is ours,” says Charles as his advice to the next generation of local artistes. VN: When did your interest in the arts happen? Was this something you were exposed to in your family in your youth? DC: I came from a mixed parentage household – Father (Tamil Christian) and Mother (Sinhalese Muslim). Our family value system was built on a strict, rules-based disciplined upbringing. We were exposed to all religions and I kept an open mind. My father was interested in music and self-taught in many musical instruments and often played with his friends. My mother was a fair beauty and often dressed immaculately and I found myself interested in helping her look her best. VN: What was your earliest memories of learning dance and how did you get involved? DC: As a teenager, I was part of an informal dance group and met other like-minded people. I had a natural inclination, poise & rhythm. I was captivated to learn Bharatanatyam when I first saw other young men performing in Kala Mandir’s (now known as Temple of Fine Arts) in the early 1980s and later in Bharataanjali [founded by my senior V Balakrishnan]. I decided to learn formally and began taking classes in my early 20s in both dance & music. Quickly, I was roped into the People’s Association (PA) Indian Dance Troupe when I was 24 which resulted in my early encounters with Mami, who was teaching at PA. VN: Tell us about your early days with PA & Apsaras ArtsDC: At PA, our ensembles largely performed contemporary & folk dances. There was a distinction between the PA dancers and Apsaras Arts girls who already had years of formal Bharatanatyam training. It was Mami through her creative choreography that brought these distinct groups and styles together. She understood the aesthetics of both genres and she helped bring the dancers together so that we would work as a team and perform as a single unit. This bond was built over the decades through our overseas trips representing Singapore. I visited many countries from Paris, London, Germany, Macau, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Malaysia & India. In the course of these trips, I learned and developed skills in make-up & hair, backstage production & costume design. All of these areas require a sharpness to pick up and execute quickly and accurately according to the demands of the production which I enjoyed and took up seriously. VN: Over the decades, what are your memories of Mami and can you share glimpses of your relationship with us?DC: Mami was a strict yet lovable teacher. I used to be very fearful of her but regarded her as my mother and I respected her deeply. She was endearing and called me “Raja….” I miss her but for me, she still lives. I feel her presence and I occasionally have visions of her and consider her demise, a personal loss. We developed a professional and personal relationship that allowed us to be very frank with each other and lean on each other through challenges. My greatest admiration for her is her brave vision to execute productions which would seem impossible at the start but she had the tenacity to make it happen and bring everyone to see her vision come alive. With her guidance, I was able to push my boundaries in playing many roles which has shaped my dance identity and my confidence as a performer and transformation into enigmatic stage characters. [ Charles is known for a number of stage roles which have become synonymous with him – Brahma, Ardhanarishvara & Peacock dance to name a few] VN: How did you branch into other areas like backstage production, hair/make up and make it your full-time pursuit? DC: These roles in Mami’s productions incentivised me to pick up formal skills in make-up. I did a number of courses – Cosmoprof for professional make-up techniques, School of Hollywood for advanced prosthetics, Victoria Jackson Cosmetics to further enhance my professional make-up expertise. To be in this line of work, paying attention to details, being organised, punctual are essential. These skills helped open many doors within the arts industry. From PA to TCS (precursor to MediaCorp), it was no easy feat to take charge of choreography and backstage for over 100 artistes over 10 days of National Day performance and for 13 years, exclusively for Vasantham Channel under the tag “Charles n Team”, I am proud to say that we dressed and styled a generation of artistes seen on TV. Thinking back, my career in this line flourished alongside my own performances simultaneously. I have been a freelance make-up artiste working with a variety of artistes such as Ravindran Drama Group, Avant Theatre, Manimaran Dance Group, Maya Dance Theatre, Bharatha Arts, Sathyalayam and engaged by performers like Roshni Pillay, Sharmila Gunasingam, Priyalatha Arun, Gayatri Sriram, Shanta Ratii, V Balakrishnan, Chitra Sankar, V Balagurunathan, Ramli Ibrahim (Malaysia), Ajit Bhaskar (Suvarna Arts), Girish Malika Panicker and Mrs Shanta Bhaskar till date. I have fond memories of working with well-known Indian cine-artistes like directors Balachander & Parthiban, Solomon Pappaiah, singer Chinmayi, Mathangi, Prasanna, Tippu-Harani, Michael, Pandiarajan, Anita Ratnam, Vani Ganapathy, OS Arun, Methi Oli Group, Leonie Group and I still do large scale events like Singapore Youth Festival troupes, People’s Association and major Apsaras Arts productions like Kannagi & Angkor. In 2000, I received the “Artistic Excellence “award and in 2008, the “Kala Sevaka Mani” award. These recognitions by Mami and Apsaras Arts are an important validation to my contributions. I also received the Top 10
Experiences from New York Kathak Festival
By Shivangi Dake Robert In December 2018, I got to know about the New York Kathak Festival. They were accepting applications from Kathak artists around the world and I sent in my application. In Jan 2019, I received a reply from the team which said “We enjoyed reviewing your application and are excited to share that you have been selected to perform at the 2019 festival”. I was over the moon on receiving this opportunity to perform a solo at the New York Kathak Festival ( abbr. NYKF) and started preparing. The New York Kathak Festival team did their best to promote the festival via social media. It was a first of its kind festival to be held in the city. A bunch of talented Kathak artists from the US and different parts of the world were selected to perform. I was excited to meet them and watch them perform. I was also thrilled to know that Padmavibhushan Pt. Birju Maharajji and Vidushi Saswati Sen didi were going to perform there and conduct an intensive workshop. I could not wait to go to New York. The NYKF dates were 19th April 2019 – 21st April 2019. It was a roller coaster ride to get the US visa but I finally got it! First time my visa application was rejected. Applied again, and second time, Visa approved!! Anisha, one of the main organisers of the festival and Urvashie were very helpful and made the process easier. Prepared and rehearsed a lot for my solo performance to be presented. Costume, jewellery, make up, ghungroo, hair accessories, all packed and ready to travel! On 16th April I boarded my flight from Singapore to NYC. Changed two planes and 22 hours later reached the Newark airport. Tired, jet lagged but full of anticipation and excitement. To reach my place of accommodation it took me two train rides and a long walk with a heavy suitcase from Columbus circle subway station, it was an adventurous journey. First two days in NYC were spent rehearsing and exploring the Manhattan neighbourhood, including some of the popular locations such as Central Park and Times Square. Spellbound by the vastness and beauty of these places, I was so tired in a couple hours that I went back to the room and got much needed sleep. Evenings were quite chilly for the month of April in NYC. NYKF Day 1 – Woke up refreshed after a restful sleep. It was the first day of New York Kathak Festival and the day of my performance. I practiced, got ready to attend Maharajji’s workshop. Packed my costume and ghungroos for the performance and headed to Ailey Citigroup Theatre, Manhattan, the venue for both the workshop and the festival. Reached the venue and met some wonderful new people, most of whom were from New York, New Jersey and some other parts of US. It was so good to meet Anisha, the main organiser and the core team of NYKF consisting of about ten people. They were such warm and wonderful hosts. Soon after, Maharajji and Saswati didi arrived for the workshop. I felt like the luckiest person in the room because my guru was right there in front of me. Post the workshop it was soon time to get dressed for the performance. All set and ready! I was one of the few artists to be performing that evening. I was both excited and nervous before going on stage. Maharajji and Saswati didi were the chief guests of the festival. To perform a solo in front of them and to receive Maharajji’s blessings for the performance was definitely a dream come true. My performance was in two parts – both original choreographies by yours truly. First part was a Kathak recital set to Brazilian jazz music and the second was a Kathak presentation on a semi-classical song involving the Sitar and guitar. The audience’s reaction with a roaring applause left me humbled and determined to work even harder to perfect my craft. Interviews, photographs and post performance meet-n-greet followed, overwhelming me with joy. I was grateful to the NYKF team for letting me be a part of their beautiful event. Day 2 – This day too started with meeting artists and art enthusiasts at the festival over breakfast. This was followed by Pt. Birju Maharajji’s workshop. It was such an enriching experience to learn from the maestro himself. So much to learn each time I meet the legend! Got to meet the well known tabla Guru Pt. Divyank Vakil, based in New Jersey, a few of his Kathak dance students were also a part of this festival. Later that day the line up of artists was quite interesting. One of the artists was New York based Kathak exponent Prashant Shah, a disciple of Padmavibhushan Kumudini Lakhiaji. Prashant and his disciples performed wonderfully, the show ended with a well deserved standing ovation. Day 3 – The most awaited day of the festival was here! Maharajji and Saswati didi were going to perform at the finale concert! The concert started with some of the most awaited performances of the festival followed by Saswati didi who performed a traditional Kathak solo and mesmerised everyone with her grace, intricate footwork and expressive story telling through various rhythmic patterns. The finale was concluded by Maharajji singing his beautiful compositions of thumris which left everyone absolutely spellbound! We couldn’t get enough of it, the evening ended with a standing ovation for the maestro. It was also the last day of the festival. It was not easy to say goodbye to the wonderful team of NYKF. Anisha, Urvashie, Meenakshi, Henna, were such wonderful hosts! But I was happy to have connected with some wonderful artists and people. With some time to spare before my flight back to Singapore, I decided to further explore the city of New York. I caught glimpses of iconic places like Times Square, One World Trade Centre, Rockefeller Centre and the Hudson River. Now it was time to pack up and get ready to catch my flight
Hidden Truths – Raja Ravi Varma: The Inside Story
Featuring Mrs Rukmini Varma By Vidhya Nair The December edition of Spotlight Series on the 13th featured Mrs Rukmini Varma on the topic: Hidden Truths – Raja Ravi Varma: The Inside Story. The title comes from the book authored by the Mrs Rukmini Varma who is herself a leading Indian artist who paints in the classical tradition. Born in 1940 as Princess Bharani Tirunal Rukmini Bayi Thampuran of Travancore State, Rukmini is the great-great granddaughter of the master painter Ravi Varma and custodian of his artistic legacy through the Raja Ravi Varma Heritage Foundation. In her talk, she shared rare pictures of their ancestral home, Kilimanoor Palace in Thiruvanthapuram, Kerala and how the Travancore royal family lived. It was interesting to learn of Raja Ravi Varma’s birth and the prophecy of his contribution. She also reviewed a number of his notable paintings and shared his artistic techniques, use of colours, his appreciation of aesthetic beauty in his use of saree drapes, jewellery and his interpretations of significant events from the epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana. She also shared personal family anecdotes learned from her grandmother on Raja Ravi Varma’s challenges in gaining patronage for his art from other royal families around India and his relationship with the East India Company. She also shared the sadness and his sufferings with diabetics which ultimately claimed him in the years when he produced his best works. It was significant to note that he lived in the same time space as Swami Vivekananda when the West was taking interest in Indian culture, religion and the arts and the lasting contributions that these men made in their time and beyond. Mrs Rukmini Varma earnestly took time to answer questions from the audience of over 80 who keenly asked about the printing press he created in Mumbai, his foresight to have greater outreach to the masses and she shared that he considered it his life work to create a universal Indian identity and this was his way to unify India as a collective whole. This talk was made possible by the Raja Ravi Varma Heritage Foundation which is a not-for-profit institution that works to preserve and promote the artistic legacy of one of India’s greatest artists. The Foundation works in the space of research, documentation, authentication and education with regard to Ravi Varma and his art works and does not trade in the work of the artist but collaborates with public and private museums, collectors to promote Ravi Varma’s artistic contributions. This talk was held in conjunction with the premiere of Apsaras Arts’ SITA – selected paintings by Raja Ravi Varma, a first of its kind digital dance film production which was screened at Esplanade Recital Studio in 3 separate sessions on 20 December 2020 to full-house audiences and rave reviews.
Audience Reviews of SITA by Apsaras Arts
SITA – Insight into the life of Sita By Meenakshi Palaniappan Was bliss to be back at the Esplanade yesterday to watch Apsaras Arts Dance Company ‘s digital production of Sita. We got a glimpse into Ravi Varma’s beautiful paintings and watched the art come alive through dance. The production took us back to our rich mythology, not just to celebrate but also to ponder and be disturbed by some aspects. Ramayana is beautiful but Sita’s voice is silent for much of the text. Ravi Varma’s paintings allow us to wonder about Sita further, what might have gone on in her mind. The dance brought these ‘wonderings’ to life. While all the “painting dances” were beautiful, it was the piece where Ravana abducts Sita and where Mother Earth takes back Sita that really moved me. For the former, Sita’s captivity was emphasised by the fact that the dancer could only move as Ravana did and only within a small radius. Furthermore she had her hands behind her back much of the time. Hand movements are very much part of Bharatanatyam, so for the dancer to dance with her hands ‘tied’ really conveys Sita’s lack of freedom. Her face was full of agony, yet that dance was so graceful. Just masterful. For the latter, ah, the mother daughter duet was touching, heart wrenching in fact, for it showed how Sita found unconditional love with her mother, not her husband. Kudos to the team and thank you for a beautiful piece. Looking forward to many more Aravinth Sir! SITA Beautiful Blend of Technology and Dance By Vidhya Venkat It is almost a week since we saw SITA – selected paintings by Raja Ravi Varma by Apsaras Arts. Firstly it was so refreshing to be back at the Esplanade recital studios , meeting some live audience and watching this digital production after a gap of many months. SITA is a first in many aspects – digital CGI production , remote control between Singapore and India , all costumes had to be made in Singapore – these are probably a few . To me,it was a beautiful blend of technology and dance . It was a seamless blend . Each painting sprung to life and went back once the dance was over . I found that fascinating . There were a lot of moments in the production which made an impact on me personally. – the part where Rama n Sita meet for the first time with the song Annalum Nokkinaal avalum nokkinal .. -the part where Ravana lifts Sita . The graphics were very well done. -Sita in Ashokavanam when she asks – Was it all a mirage ? -the last scene when Rama pleads with Sita and she implored Mother Earth to take her back . The choice of a thillana there was just perfect. These are just a few of the things which stood out . There are many more . This production just stands to prove that arts has survived the Covid crisis to a great extent. This production was turned around to suit the times . It was a big challenge to get the dancers, dance without any sets , just a green floor and cameras around and having to have them turn around in many directions. The musicians and composers sitting in Chennai and belting out a wonderful score. As always brilliant music by Sri Rajkumar Bharathi sung more beautifully by Bombay Jayashri , G Srikanth and Keerthana Vaidyanathan, music direction by Sai Shravanam, filming and editing by Visual Beats Ltd , Choreography and costumes at its best by none other than Mohanapriyan Thavarajah and creative direction by Aravinth Kumarasamy. A special shout out to the members of Apsaras who have been part of this production. And finally congratulations to all the SITAs – Kshirja Govind, Nikita Menon, Ashmita Jayaprakash, Janani Arunkumar and Devapriya Appan . Other dancers – Maanasa Sri Ganesh, Periyachi Roshini, Meera Balasubramanian as Bhumidevi and of course Mohanapriyan as Rama and Ravana . An afternoon extremely well spent and left the mind wanting to know more and understand more. Congratulations Team SITA.
National Award for Apsaras Arts Dance Company
Presented by National Heritage Board of Singapore on 10th December 2020 Acceptance speech by Aravinth Kumarasamy, Artistic Director of Apsaras Arts Dance Company. “Dear Guest of Honour, Minister of Culture, Community and Youth, Mr. Edwin Tong, Ms. Yeoh Chee Yan, Chairman of NHB, and Ms. Chang Hwee Nee, CEO of NHB. Good afternoon. Receiving this award for Apsaras Arts has invoked us with the rasas of Endorsement, Encouragement and Excitement This award is an endorsement to the vision of our founders Mr S Sathyalingam and Mrs Neila Sathyalingam, pioneers of the arts in Singapore, and for what they had envisioned for Apsaras Arts when they founded the institution 43 years ago in 1977. We humbly dedicate this award to their memory. This award is an encouragement to the current generation of Art makers of Apsaras Arts for their dedication to preserve, evolve the art form to make it relevant and hand it down to our next generations of Singaporeans. This award has also invoked excitement to all those who are involved in Indian Dance as its an honour to have Indian dance considered as one of the Intangible cultural heritage of our nation. Indian dance has been practiced in Singapore for the past 100 years, and has its origins in India, and were very surprised at the excitement that was seen in India when this award was announced in Singapore a few months ago, and the Indian mainstream media covered this Singaporean story on the front pages of their daily newspapers. We are hopeful that our very own mainstream media too will be excited to cover traditional arts with excitement in the near future. I would like to congratulate NHB for instituting this award to celebrate our very own heritage, giving the due recognition to its practitioners and custodians. Thank You. I would like to congratulate our core team at Apsaras Arts – Our board members led by our chairman Ambassador K Kesavapany, our team of art makers – Seema Hari Kumar, Devapriya Appan, Mohanapriyan Thavarajah (who will be performing for you today) and to our dedicated art managers Vidhya Nair, Vijaya Nadesan and Sankari Elavalahan who are the back bone of our team, who are all present here today. I would like to acknowledge and thank National Arts Council for holding our hands in this journey. Without their support, Apsaras Arts would have not be able to work on its mission to towards its vision. Thank you NAC.