Contemporary classical
DEEPA GOPINATH on bharatanatyam star Shobana’s Sydney recital
Actor? Dancer? Storyteller? Shobana showed that all three characters can appear on stage together, in her Sydney performance at the Parramatta Riverside Theatre recently. The multi-talented artist has had a successful career as an actor in Malyalam, Tamil, Hindi, Telugu and Kannada films, and her popularity in this field seems to complement her career as a bharathanatyam artist. As a dancer, she has been the recipient of the Padma Shri and Natya Acharya awards and has performed to audiences worldwide.
Certainly no stranger to Sydney audiences, the artist delivered her repertoire to a somewhat divided audience in the concert organised by Soorya. Those who came to see Shobana the actor were enraptured with her particular style of bharathanatyam, with a generous pinch of showbiz. Others, perhaps the more purist classical dance lovers, found the twist less appealing, as was evident from the intermission chatter in the foyer. The music that the dancer used for the centerpiece of the recital, the Varnam, was one of the elements that triggered discussion. A beautifully unique piece on Goddess Kali, its music was interspersed with sound effects such as the eerie laugh of Kali, a variation that evoked mixed audience responses. The Varnam itself was thought-provoking, portraying little-known stories on the Goddess Kali’s life, a refreshing and innovative main feature of the repertoire. It was evident from this elaborate piece that Shobana’s strength is abhinaya, or the expressive component of the complex and demanding art form that is bharathanatyam.
Several expressive pieces followed the Varnam, and this is when the audience had the opportunity to further appreciate Shobana’s ability to tell a story and engage with them. The first of these was an emotive piece in ragam Anandabhairavi, in which we saw the dancer as a pining lover who beseeches her friend to take a message to her lover, while at the same time warning her not to flirt with him in the process.
The second purely expressive piece was in Tamil, Vishamakara Kannan. The cheeky Lord Krishna was characterised with finesse and Shobana’s portrayal of his antics even received a few giggles from the enthralled audience. Shobana’s creative take on Dhashavataram in the next item may well have been one of the highlights of the evening. The piece was set to instrumental music of nineteen beats, and this combined with Shobana’s unique ability to take on each character, took the well-loved story to a new level.
Shobana’s performance was followed by a short performance by another dancer, Savita Shastry. There was some muttering among the audience as this second performance was not previously announced, however Savita’s elegant presentation soon dispelled any discontentment. This dancer’s crisp nritta (pure dance), clean lines and flawless aramandi was a breath of fresh air for the evening, and truly inspirational for students of dance.
As for Shobana, her brand of bharathanatyam may not be for everyone but judging by the packed theatre, perhaps ‘filmy’ classical dance is the new way of bringing this art form to 21st century masses?
