Arangetram by Nitya Ramalingam

The Bharathanrityam Arangetram of Nitya Ramalingam was a delightful treat to the knowledgeable South Florida audience on Jul 14, 2012 at the Sunrise Civic Center in Sunrise, Florida.  It was our privilege and pleasure to have the presence of Sangeetha Kalanidhi Dr. Trichy Sankaran.  In addition to being present he has also reduced my workload by reviewing the performance as well.

(Transcription of Sangeetha Kalanidhi Dr. Trichy Sankaran's Speech)

From time immemorial, dance has been an important part of ritual in Indian tradition.  Bharatanatyam is grounded in bhakti besides other sentiments.  In fact bhakti is at the centre of all the arts in India.  Our music and dance are two important offerings to god.  As one gets involved in the art, with greater dedication, one can experience throughout the hours of dancing a greater joy, a complete well-being, especially when music and dance mingle indistinguishably.

Music and dance or any fine art for that matter, knows no barriers.  Although the roots of Bharatanatyam run deep into the culture of South India, it has a universal domain and acclaim.  So it is not surprising that Bharatanatyam is being taught and performed everywhere around the globe.  We have many dance systems, styles and banis.  The very life-breath of art is unity in diversity.  This is what I see in many of our dance systems.  I express my sincere admiration for all these systems, be it Bharatanatyam, Kathakali, Kathak, Manipuri, Odissi or Kuchipudi for which the divine god-centered aspect is common.

Tradition is a stronger force.  We must use tradition as a basis to develop art; otherwise the art will decline and disappear.  In this respect, innovations are an integral part of any great art.  Innovations and modifications are taking place all the time and our music and dance are evolving and changing.  But we want to make sure that these changes take place within the boundaries of tradition.  Dr. Padma Subramaniam, a dance legend herself is known for her unique style of dancing based on Natyasastra, under whom Smt. Sangita Sridhar has received her training in Dance.  It is quite evident in today’s arangetram of Kumari Nithya, how well she has trained her student and how wonderful a teacher she is.  The blending of Vazhuvoor Bani and Padma Subramanyam’s style showed beautifully in today’s performance.  Music is integral to a dance performance; particularly vocal music where lyrics become important for the portrayal of abhinaya and this has been followed very faithfully in today’s performance. Her choreography was excellent.  The Nattuvangam, the very essence and the bedrock of the whole concept of dancing performed by Sangita Sridhar herself showed her versatility on this particular aspect as well.

About the artists: 

Vocal:  Sudev Warriar, who is the disciple of Padmavibushan Dr. M. Balamurali Krishna, has enthralled us with his captivating music.  His music reflects on the experience he has gained over the years by singing for eminent dancers as well as his collaborative work with famous playback singers such as Dr. J. Yesudas, Sri S.P. Balasubramaniam and others.

Mrdangam:  On the mrdangam, we have Sri Sudhaman who demonstrated his excellent skill in accompanying the dance.  He has performed with eminent dancers like Dr. Padma Subramaniam, Chitra Viswesvaran, and others besides performing in regular Carnatic recitals.  His father K.N.S. Namboodhri was my disciple and I have known Sudhaman very well on a personal basis.  I wish him well in the future.

Flute:  On the flute, Sri Chitoor Pathanjali beautifully demonstrated his skills.  He comes from a family of musicians.  I have known and performed with his grandfather Sri. Chitoor Gopalakrishnan.  His melodious accompaniment was quite delightful.  My blessings and best wishes to all the artists on stage.

It was quite graceful to see Nitya Ramalingham dance and make her debut on this auspicious occasion at a young age.  Her coordination of feet and body movements to the rhythms of jatis, facial expressions and mudras in abhinaya, dancing to the tirmanams etc. were excellent.  Her training in vocal music, am sure, must have helped her dancing in many ways.  As I pointed out earlier, knowledge of vocal music is essential for the dancer as well as accompanying artists.  No wonder for a bright and brilliant girl like Nitya who is an honors students holding top rank in her high school studies, the art of dancing, singing, and piano playing must have come naturally, of course with arduous practice.  Once again, my hearty congratulations to Nitya for her successful debut.  

Arts are tremendous source of inspiration for any culture.  Arts and cultures dialogue in a number of different ways.  I am very glad to see teachers like Sangita Sridhar helping the community to get involved in learning the fine arts.  Similarly Dr. Ramakrishnan has been training many students in Mrdangam and am sure there are many others teaching different arts in this part of the world.  Holding on to their professional careers, these individuals have been devoting their time and for the propagation of arts, thus serving the cause of Carnatic music and dance, a fact that should really be commended.

With these closing remarks, I want to thank the proud parents of Nitya, Smt. Lalitha and Sri Prabhakar Ramalingham for having invited me to be the chief guest for the arangetram.  I wish Nitya a great success in all her artistic endeavors in future.  Thank you all.
(End of Dr. Sankaran's remarks)

I want to make a special mention of the choreography, it was absolutely stunning.  The Ananda Sandhya Thandavam describing the Prodhosham day and time (thirteenth moon day at sunset and moonrise) was just fantastic.  The composition of Smt. Vasumathy Swamy, choreograhy and the execution of Nitya - transported us Kailash.  My request to Sangeetha Sridhar is to choreograph a group dance for this song.  Also it will be great to sing this song during Pradhosha Kala pooja - great work.  Thanks to Nitya, we were able to witness a 45-min long solo varnam performance after a long time.     

Jayanthi aunty joins me in congratulating Nitya for a wonderful performance and blessing you in achieving everything your heart desires.