Article BN_Kiranmayee_Oct16 BN_Rhythm_Karvai_Aug17 CrossCultureInfluence_May16 Donate_To_Dancers_May17 Kolkata_Classical_May16 Kuchipudi_Challenge_Aug18 Lakshmi_Swaminathan-Mar16 Making_Of_Manjari_Oct17 Nirmala_Paniker_2016 Odissi_Dancers_Films Poem_Dance_Pic_Vidhya_0718 Rahul_Photoshoot_Mar16 Rasa_Classical_Dance_Aug17 Sarvani_Margazhi_Jan18 Shandilya_Interview_Jan17 Sindhu_MargaNatya_Mar17 SK_Rajaratnam_Shoba_0718 Tribute_DrJayalalithaa_16 Tributes_DrBMK_Nov2016 YuvaBharati_A_Decade |
The Making of Manjari - Bharatanatyam Production 19th October 2017 She looks back and shares with us how Manjari took shape, the ceativity, the team that participated in the production and their contribution, and how it feels to have realized the goal. Introductio to She had the opportunity to explore the nuances of Kathak under renowned dancing couple – Karnataka Kalashree Sri TD Rajendra and Smt Nirupama Rajendra. During the training tenure under them, Divya has extensively performed with the Abhinava Dance Company as a principal dancer. Fluid grace, taut lines, neat Nritta, maturity and finesse in expressions mark Divya’s performances. Commitment and discipline personified, her deep understanding of music helps her bring out A graded artiste of Doordarshan and a recipient of the "Gutty Vasu Memorial Prize" from Music Academy Madras, "Natyasree" title from SABHA at Kuwait, "Nalanda Nritya Nipuna" from Nalanda Dance Research Centre Mumbai, "Nritya Varshadeep" and "Swaranand Kala Puraskar" awards, Divya has performed as a soloist at many coveted platforms and reputed dance festivals all over the country. The last decade has seen a renaissance in Bharatanatyam, with wonderful group productions, thematic features and contemporary stories taking centre stage. However the concepts of solo dancing and "Margam" or repertoire have perhaps fizzled out, due to various reasons. The question of how to take traditional solo repertoires to the mainstream audience as well as connoisseurs loomed on my mind for a long time. Stretching beyond limitations has always fascinated me and what ensued was an idea that I will cherish forever. FLOWERS. Flowers are among the most beautiful creations of nature that are indispensible in our lives. They transcend boundaries of religion, spirituality and gender and their universal nature insinuated my interest in researching about them. Through "MANJARI-Mystique Fragrances", a dream-come- true project, I was lucky to stage a full-fledged production that intended to highlight the mythological, philosophical and spiritual significances of Flowers. The Origin of Manjari: October 2014 - The idea of MANJARI germinated. An omnipresent yet unexplored thought that it was, I kept wondering whether it even made sense. If it was that simple, someone ought to have worked on it already. And then I learnt, sometimes the simplest of things are the most overlooked. Study & Research - The Timeline: November 2014 - In 30 days, the entire research about Flowers, their stories and significances was done. At that point, I didn't have the slightest idea that I would make a performance of it. The theme was intriguing enough for me to pursue learning about it, without the slightest thought of how it would turn out. 29th November 2014 - In a serendipitous meeting with acclaimed danseuse Ramaa Bharadvaj, I happened to share with her the idea behind MANJARI, and she took an immediate liking for it. She told me "Do it before anyone else does". That and of course her inspiring solo feature MITRA, set the tone for what would be the most exciting year of my life. The decision to stage MANJARI was taken. Scriptwork December 2014 - In the first 15 days we had the first draft of the script for MANJARI ready. Using all the research data, I collated and segregated the information, split it to form six different songs and structured the idea of what I wish to portray in each paragraph. Sharan Subramanian (who co- scripted MANJARI) constantly added, removed and modified content from my preliminary research, resulting in a final draft towards the end of December. As music lovers, we even took the liberty to courageously pen down the choice of Ragas for each segment. Music Composing The final document was convincing enough for me to take to the musical genius, Vocalist and Composer - Karnataka Kalashree DS Srivathsa for his inputs. A preliminary discussion with him, reinforced my belief in MANJARI, for he approved not just of the script, but the Ragas as well. I then brought it back to work on the loopholes, and tighten the loose threads. March 2015 - After waiting a good two months working on the script over and over again, the much awaited day dawned - the very first composing session with Srivathsa Sir. In three hours the biggest composition of MANJARI (The Varnam) was done. Each paragraph was translated from our English script to the chosen language to portray the meaning, mood and essence. I sat in awe while listening to the very first draft recording. Coordination April 2015 - I would like to believe this was the toughest part of the entire process - getting a common date from all my musicians for the performance. After a good number of phone calls, everyone agreed upon 28th November, a convenient Saturday. Meanwhile, we also worked on the promotional material. I wished for everything about MANJARI to be uniquely done. Quick photo shoots, video shoots, audio recording sessions and a big long YouTube tutorial on video-editing resulted in two promotional videos as well as posters and invites being ready. May 2015 - Towards the end of May two more compositions were done in yet another fabulous composing session with Vathsa Sir, one in Kannada and one in Telugu. Linguistic and artistic prowess at the peak! Another highlight was the discussion with the Rhythmic Genius - Srihari Rangaswamy Sir. In a quick half an hour briefing session, I explained everything about MANJARI, and in the next week he had all the rhythmic interludes (The first piece and the Jathis for the Varnam) sent to me. Choreography June to Mid-November 2015 - The most interesting phase of MANJARI - putting all those months of planning and thoughts into action, into dance, into choreography. I've always loved experimenting on choreography while keeping intact the structure and form of what I've learnt over my learning tenure, which continues to this day. The new theme and brand new compositions gave me ample scope to explore, and unleash the creativity. I was working a full-time corporate job through the day, so six months was ideal time to work on six new compositions. By August end, the last two segments were also ready - one in Tamil (which is one of his masterpiece creations) and another abstract piece. A long meeting with the mystical flautist - Mahesh Swamy Sir furthered my belief in MANJARI. It is a blessing to be associated with and have your project pillared by some of the most generous and warm people. Mahesh Sir patiently listened to my script and gave all his inputs not just with respect to music/dance but even the stage, lighting and ambiance. Towards mid-November all my choreographies were complete and I showed them all to my Guru Dr. Soundarya Srivathsa, who patiently mentored me throughout with her keen eye for detail, and gave all her corrections, approvals, disapproval even. Performance November 28th 2015 Taking her baby steps into the world of creative choreography, Divya has conceptualized and scripted an innovative, novel, unexplored yet extremely relevant theme into a full-length, solo production – "MANJARI - Mystique Fragrances". MANJARI premiered on 28th November 2015 in Bangalore to a packed auditorium and thunderous applause, and received widespread critical acclaim. - What started off as a dream was actually materializing before my eyes, and while I sat through the tech-run of the premiere performance of MANJARI, I couldn't believe that a singular thought came this far. As I sat in the green-room getting ready, there was an eerie feeling of tension, satisfaction, anxiety and everything else one would feel if they were doing something for the first time. The Premiere Show was received well and the paved the way for many more wonderful opportunities to share MANJARI. Pics Credit - Divya Ravi Key words: Manjari, Bharatanatyamn, Divya Ravi, Soundarya Srivathsa, Srihari Rangaswamy, Ramaa Bharadvaj, Kiran Subramanyam, Sandhya Kiran 2017, 1017-19-A1 - **A Worldwide Indian Classical Dance Report Sectioned & Proof- Bhavanvitha *** All views are of the dancer. ********************************** PriyaLasya Classical Dance Platform - Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam, Odissi, Mohiniyattam, Manipuri, Kathakali, Chhau, Sattriya Appeal For Support ** Please contribute for a worthy cause of promoting Indian Classical Dance. Join the membership. For details please visit www.priyalasya.org ******* |