Abhinaya in Bharatanatyam
PAPER 6 DANCE IN INDIA TODAY, DANCE-DRAMAS, CREATIVITY WITHIN THE CLASSICAL FORMS, INDIAN CLASSICAL DANCE IN DIASPORA (USA, UK, EUROPE, AUSTRALIA, ETC.) MODULE 19 THE EARLY FEMALE GURUS AND DANCERS OF BHARATANATYAM From early 1900 A D, some brave girls and their families started a journey, going where earlier it was a great taboo to go. The courage, conviction and love for dance prompted them to venture on a path which at that point had no direction and was beyond worldly gains. Also in such a tumultuous time, to be born to that tradition was really tough. We need to know, understand and get inspired by these women, due to whom millions are not only learning Bharatanatyam, but it has given dignity and purpose to the art. Here we study a few of them. SMT. BALASARASWATI Balasaraswati was born in 1918 and died at 1984. She rose on the solo Bharatanatyam horizon through her sheer genius. She belonged to the devadasi tradition and was extremely proud of it, though she was never initiated into any temple service. The only dancer to be conferred the prestigious Sangitha Kalanidhi title; she reacted sharply to compartmentalizing the dance into sacred and profane water-tight divisions. For Bala, Shringara / �रĂगार was an all- 1 encompassing mood which included all the other moods. In 1975, speaking at the Annual Conference of Tamil Sangam, Bala made the famous statement, "In Bharatanatyam, the shringara we experience is never carnal, never, never!" Bala came from a home where musicians like Dharmapuri Subbarayar / धरमऩुरी, Tiruvottiyur Tyagier, Hayagrivachari / हयाग्रिवाचारी (from Dharwad / धारवाड़), Govindaswamy Pillai, Ariyakkudi Ramanuja lyengar were frequent visitors, who came to meet and listen to Bala's grandmother, the inimitable Dhanammal, the veena player.
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