Venue:Sivagami Pethachi Auditorium on 06/02/10
Bharatanatyam – Priyadharshini Govind
Vocal – Savita Narasimhan
Violin – Akkarai Swarnalata
Mridhangam – Muruganandham Vadivel
Nattuvangam - Balakrishnan
What is woman’s liberation ?
I happened to meet Ms.Mridula TYagi (name changed) during my recent visit to Delhi.She runs a band that offered fusion music with Sitar,Saxaphone,key board and drums that day.Mridula plays key board.(FYI they fusioned Jog,Chayanat & Bhairavi).She was attractive,bold and in her early thirties.My friends wanted me to sing something and Mridula agreed.Initially,Mridula broke my heart by calling me uncle.I sang a mixture of Kanada & Darbari,sang something like a tanam for about 15 mins.( I am not a trained singer ,but somehow manage such extempore challenges.Moreover it was not Mylapore).After this she called me Ganeshji offering me a little bit of solace.
This function was going on in Indiahabitat center,Lodhi road where there was a cocktail party on the lawns.It was 5 deg.out there and fire pots were kept all over.Mridula came to me smoking and with a glass of whiskey in her hand and during our conversation told me she is a freewoman and chooses partners of her choice and there is always a competition between men .I will stop this here and move back to the topic “Avalum NokkinaL”
Avalum nokkinal is about identity loss in woman and what is women’s liberation after all told from a feminist’s point of view.So it is not smoking,drinking or having multiple sexual partners but transcending the image imposed on women for the ages that has permanently enslaved them denying them chances to expand.
The epic character Sita was taken up for this idea by creator Gowri Ramanarayanan.(But why do they still use husband’s or father’s name with them?just kidding.nothing serious)
Sita was depicted in different stages like an young sita leading a happy life in Mithila as Janaka’s daughter,an ecstatic sita after her love at first sight with rama,an angry sita questioning rama on his decision to leave for forests bowing to orders from kaikeyi,sita in forest enjoying the life over there and answering mischievously to the prying qns.of the villagers,a dejected sita deserted by rama on doubting her chastity and asking her to go with any one of his close aides like sugriva,hanuman or vibhishana,the final stage where sita is being questioned who is she where she answers she is the thataka,she is everything you and me and all(adaptation of writer Ambai’s beautiful poem ‘Attrai kadandhu (crossing the river) here)realizing her omnipresence and real powers .Here crossing the river symbolizes transcending the barriers and obstacles the womanhood is facing for the ages.
Priyadharshini Govind very beautifully portrayed and just lived as Sita with those varied emotions.I am really falling short of words here.
The music was excellent.Savita also on her part brought the anguish of Sita be it in in Eppadiman thunindharo swami (Huseni,Arunacala kavirayar) or in the song tuned and sung by her soulfully in the ghana panja ragas where sita is told by Rama to part ways with him and go with any of his men.
There were other songs like Thyagaraja’s Sahana kriti Dehi-Thaya-Pada-Bhaktim-Vaidehi,Ennarum aru nalathinal of Kambar beautifully tuned in Kalyani with nadai changes.Also there were poems of Tulasudasa,Valmiki and Vinjamuri in folk tunes.
Akkarai swarnalata on the violin was very mature and provided very good BGM with Vadivel on mridhangam apart from accompanying Savita like a shadow.
Vadivel on mridhangam and Balakrishnan on nattuvangam were very good.
Kudos to GRN for the excellent theme and a very novel idea.The selection of songs and music went with the flow of the theme.
A thought provoking program.