Vyjayanthi Kashi, Kuchipudi exponent and member of Sangeet Natak Akademi from Bengaluru, was in the city as part of a dance festival at Shilparamam.
“My grandfather Dr Gubbi Veeranna was deep into the promotion of Indian theatre through his Gubbi theatre,” said Vyjayanthi, adding, “He was even responsible for inspiring Surabhi theatre in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh.”
Vyjayanthi is currently working on the project Eternal Kanya, based on the life of Devi Kanya Kumari. “There is a need to find out the reason why you were born and work towards achieving your purpose. For some time, I also helped people suffering from depression, down syndrome, etc., to stabilise their life through dance movements and therapy. Shastras have always talked about dance giving you many things in life in terms of fame, money including Sampoorna Aarogyam.”
Talking about the residential dance school Shambhavi School of Dance at Bengaluru, wherein Kuchipudi is taught to students from all over the world, Vyjayanthi said, “My daughter Prateeksha Kashi has been performing the dance production Rudrama Devi for the past two years. This production is all about the valour of Rani Rudrama Devi, who was a ruler of the Kakatiya Dynasty from the Warangal region. Sreelaxmi from Kerala, Yael Tal from Israel, Leelavati from Italy, Srivani from USA and Gururaju from Bengaluru are some of my disciples who are taking the art form to a larger audience.
“Today, the number of students learning traditional dance has increased tremendously. But, at the same time, the patience level of the students is on the decline. They do not have the time to understand the approach and philosophy of their guru. One need not try and become a ‘photocopy’ of the guru because there is a need to understand the larger gamut of art and create an individual style,” she concluded.
— The writer is a musician, creator of ‘Jaywant Guitar’ and a photographer
