Classical
dance and Me! I still remember as a kid never caring much for it. I was totally a Bollywood brat till the day
the Chennai Music Academy festival became a part of my portfolio at work in 2001. I still remember the first year of coordinating it. I sat in the audience totally
blank with my Chennai colleagues not understand a word. The language was new, the music was new, the
lyrics? Lyrics, what were they singing. Chitra, my Chairman's secretary
understanding my predicament would whisper the meaning in my ear and by the end
of the evening I was mesmerised. To say the least, the next ten years of
co-ordinating and attending those beautiful classical dance and vocal
performances became something I looked forward to each year. I actually did not
need an interpreter anymore.
So it
was not surprising when I saw a post in my #BeHappy group asking if anyone
wanted to attend a Kathak event "RIVAYAAT", my hand went up
instantly. Of course I googled the word and it means "tradition or
customs".
"RIVAYAAT"
an initiative by Shalini Thackeray presented by Kalki Foundation and Pooja Pant Dance
Company promised an evening of this age-old traditional dance form in a contemporary
light and relevant with the changing times. A full house and lucky
to have been seated closer to the stage (thank you dear Shalini M'am), I knew I
was in for a treat of a lifetime and it was. The Nehru Centre auditorium was
full of an audience so mesmerised that they just could not leave. The event
hosted by the beautiful Pooja Kanwal
Mahtani boasted of celebrities and dignitaries such as Kiran
Shantaram, Saroj Khan, Eli Avram (of course got selfies with them), Dr Vitthal
Kamat, Pandit Murli Manohar Shukla, Pandit Shailesh Bhagwat, Annabel Mehta,
Shilpa Shinde, Ajit Bhure, Anita Kanwal, Nirbhay Wadhwa, Vaibhav Arekar
and many more.
Not to forget my very own aww! moment when I
saw dear Rajashree Shirke, exponent of Kathak and Bharatanatyam being called on
stage. Memories of her gracing my bank's Chennai Music Academy Festival years back and my
connect with her came rushing back. I immediately smsd her saying I was in the
audience and whether she remembered me and touched to know that she did even
though we hadn't connected for months.
"RIVAAYAT" was
sheer poetry with beautiful solo performances by Pooja Pant, choreographer and
founder of the Pooja Pant Dance Company (now in its 10th year). The contemporary
touch of weaving Aesop Fables and Mobile Games into Kathak performed by her
students was a delight to watch...and what can one say about the fabulous one
and only Aditi Mangaldas and her performance "Seeking the Beloved"
about the constant search of life portrayed through compositions of Meerabai,
Amir Khushru and Kabir. Aditi Mangaldas just mesmerised
us to a spiritually high energy space with her
fingers drawing innumerable patterns and moods and just about everything with
her voice and dancing. She
was something else indeed and I have no words to express what that feeling was
watching her perform.
Thank
you Shalini M'am for this wonderful opportunity and I must confess that I never
knew much about your Kalki Foundation till today. It was indeed heart warming when you said
that "my daughter asked me 'why do we say save the girl child' and not
'why do we not say love the girl child". Even more so that you chose to take
Muskaan's thought a step further through this foundation that addresses all
aspects of a woman from health, hygiene, safety, education, empowerment and culture by organising "RIVAAYAT" to inspire youth to appreciate this exquisite dance
form of Kathak. It is indeed laudable. "RIVAAYAT" truly is a
great beginning and a much needed step towards connecting youth with our culture and traditions.
