Meera’s saga

The second day of the ‘Annual SICA Dance Festival’ on Monday at Ravindra Bharathi featured a Bharatanatyam Ballet, ‘ Meera - The Soul Divine’ by the renowned and eminent Padma Shri Awardees Chitra Visweswaran and her Chidambaram Dance Company Students.

The superb Music was by Bombay Jayashri who also lent her voice for the Vocal recording. The songs were in Hindi interspersed by English commentary to elucidate the unfolding story. The rich toned colours of the Rajasthani style costumes lent a splendid ambience to the production and the lighting effects highlighted the effect.

Mostly Abhinaya oriented the Ballet also contained some exceptional Jathis of Chitra performed by the students. The perspective was that of a Spiritual journey rather than a Historical one. The princess, born into the lap of luxury renounced it all to follow a spiritual quest and become a great Saint Poetess.

Young Meera was shown immersed in her love for Lord Krishna gazing raptly at his image in divine fervour. When she is married into a Princely Rajput Houshold in Mewar she continues her worship scorning worldly pleasures eliciting incomprehension, ridicule and finally wrath from the family she has married into. She becomes the target of attempts to be got rid off by her Royal Kith and Kin.

The students aptly displayed the sinuous dance of the snake sent to bite her. Singing the name of Giridhari, breaking all bondages of society and human relationships Meera leaves. Her spiritual journey takes her to Vrindavan.

Happily blending into the spirit of devotion which permeates that village, she inspires numerous followers who stepped along her path of surrender. But came a time, when she felt the need, as part of her soul's quest to leave it all and head towards Krishna's Dwaraka.

She lived there, an epitome of ‘Bhakti’ singing and dancing his praises. Here her search comes to an end, when she realises and experiences the Lord's presence within herself. Dwaita and Adwaita, Meera and Giridhari become one.

Chitra's abhinaya in the last item was of surpassing quality expressing the yearning and rapture of devotional ecstacy. Among the students who took part were Arupa Lahiry, Nandini Ganesan, Sharmada Vishwanath and others. The Governor and Vimala Narasimhan along with Justice Ramasubramanian graced the occassion.

By Anna Rao