For the first time, the city saw maestro Ilaiyaraaja perform for a dance production — Swapnam, which was directed and conceptualised by the renowned classical Bharatanatyam dancer Krithika Subrahmanian. After the successful production, Krithika is all set for a huge dance conference, Natya Darshan. The convenor of the event for this year, Krithika opens about her experience working with the legendary musician, and Natya Darshan, which has been planned on a grand scale.
She describes her collaboration with Ilaiyaraaja in one word — “Unbelievable,” and goes on to say, “Swapnam is mainly based on Shaivism, dreams and how people thrive more in dreams than in real life. So, when I discussed the production with him, he readily agreed. He was incredible in terms of knowledge and intuitive when it comes to scoring music. I can’t put it in words.It was a fantastic experience.”
Talking about Natya Darshan, she says, “I would say it is one of the important dance conferences in India. It was started by Kartik Fine Arts in 2001 and is always conducted with interesting attendees from the global dance community.
She then lists out the things in store for the audience this time in Natya Darshan — “This year I have curated artistes of extraordinary merits from all over India. We have Mrs Vyjayanthimala Bali and Shobana, who will share their respective style and experiences in this field.”
Two panel discussions on dancers Rukmini Arundale and Chandralekha will be part of this grand conference. “We are exploring Rukmini Arundale as a renaissance revivalist because she was not just a dancer. These days people are trivialising dance and believe it is just the aramandi. But it is a most potent form of communication,” she quips.
She then adds, “We also have a panel discussion on Chandralekha. She is more of a modern dancer who took all the classical dances and converted them into a more expressionist form. That discussion will be concentrating on the contemporaries.”
The event will also have presentations from actor-dancer Mallika Sherawat. In an attempt to bring in audiences from other fields, a photography exhibition by many popular photographers is being held as part of Natya Darshan. “We want it to be an event which brings together talents from various fields of arts, not just dance. It is impossible for a sabha to organise these kind of events. We would like audiences to flock this event.” Krithika says.
