An evening of Bharatnatyam and Kuchipudi

The University of Hyderabad (UoH) under the Campus Concert Series organised a dance recital on April 19. The concert revolved around one of the most aesthetic cultural repertoires of India classical dance.

The evening was made to be a memorable one through the fascinating performances of four very capable students of the Department of Dance, University of Hyderabad; namely, Anju Aravind and Abanti Banerjee, belonging to the genre of Bharatnatyam, and Saranya Murali and Priyanka KS, belonging to the Kuchipudi genre, respectively.

The one-and-a-half hour long show comprised of a brilliant combination of these two classical dance forms. A total of eight items were presented through a set of well-coordinated group, duet and some varied solo performances.

The programme began with ‘Namaste Veena’, where all the beautiful dancers vividly expressed their praise towards the Goddess of knowledge and rhythm – an ode to Goddess Saraswati. The second item called ‘Kailayil Varnam’ was a Bharatnatyam presentation in praise of Lord Shiva and the story of ‘Manmadha Dahana’ was expressed through some striking postures.

The third item ‘Kavadi Chindu’ that was in praise of Lord Muruga, Kartikeya was also exquisitely represented through the same dance form. The fourth piece was from the Kuchipudi repertoire and involved a mesmerising solo recital, where the dancer, through ‘Tarangam’ retold the story of Lord Krishna and his childhood friend, Kujeyla.

The fifth item ‘Amma Yashoda’ was also another highly expressive solo performance wherein Lord Krishna’s childhood tales and mischiefs were highlighted through Kuchipudi. The sixth piece stitched together the ‘tandav’ of Lord Shiva and the ‘lasya’ of Goddess Parvati into one form ‘Ardhanarishwara’. This item on oneness was performed in Bharatnatyam style.

The second last item ‘Aigiri Nandini’ was a group performance in praise of ‘Shakti’ and ‘Asuravinashini’ – a story about how Goddess Durga won the battle against the demons and established the power of good over evil. The concluding piece for the evening was again a very vibrant group performance in Kuchipudi style, called ‘Muddugare Yashoda’ that spread around the essence of Lord Krishna’s playful gestures and his love for Radha.

The whole recital was a great pleasure to the eye of each and every spectator seated in the auditorium that evening. Although the event ended, with a formal felicitation of the extremely talented and charming dancers of the University by Dr Zahidul Haque, Cultural Coordinator and faculty in the Department of Urdu, but the essence of the enthralling performance lingered on in the minds and hearts of its viewers for the rest of the night.