Art is independent of language

On 6-Aug-2010 Friday, I planned to attend the second day event of the Parampara Festival 2010 at Kamani Auditorium. I was keen to attend the Violin Duet of Ganesh and Kumaresh. However each day had a dance performance followed by a musical performance. The first one was an Odissi (a dance form in Orissa) Dance performance by students of Sri Guru Gangadhar Pradhan. Initially I was not much interested in it. Because I don't know much about Odissi as well as Oriya language. However I tried to follow it up and started taking some snaps. The first choreography was not drawing my attention. However the second item was a Dhasaavatharam performance, about which everyone has an idea. Now I was really engaged in looking up to their performance. The students did a brilliant performance. Among the students I found a father-son together performing (Sachindananda Pradhan) in Dhasaavatharam. The girls also did an excellent performance.

Last choreography was on a small spat between Krishna and Radha before their reunion, announced the anchor. Sachindananda played the Krishna character. He and his partner Lakshmi Rekha Menon bowled the audience with a classy performance. It was simply brilliant. Radha expressed her disappointment that she was unhappy with the separation and Krishna apologised. However Krishna apologised for a long time to give the best at the end to the audience. They expressed their love beautifully with a subtle divinity which should be felt. It was like a butterfly, dancing and circling to rainy tunes of a piano, is collecting nectar from a sunflower, which is oscillating to the gentle breeze.  (i.e., sunflower not allowing the butterfly). Krishna and Radha were crawling, dancing, kneeling, and fighting. But Radha was completely over control of Krishna in the spat. Krishna's plots didn't work easily. Somebody next to me murmured that people who really don't love are expressing love but people who love are not able to express it.  I guess it has to be debated. Meanwhile I noticed Sachindananda father, relaxing on the wall, on the right, in the audience side. He was watching his son's romantic performance. He was twisting his head to every expression and his eyes glittered with joy and pride.  As the choreography came to an end, Krishna and Radha reunited to give us an aesthetic feel of love. Their cuddle was felt. Krishna and Radha enacted Unjal Urchavam beautifully [Unjal is a wooden swing or a porch swing]. I guess many in Kamani Auditorium would have felt like themselves romancing with their beloved (if any or spouse or spouse to be) at the Valley of Kashmir on a dusk with little showers from heaven. And I really don't know how these ninety minutes went. Sachindananda and Lakshmi performance would definitely be in my minds for a long time. 

'ஊடல் முன் கூடலா' அல்லது 'ஊடல் பின் கூடலா' .. எது சிறந்தது ? பாப்பையா எங்கப்பா? 

Nothing but Chess .,

குறிஞ்சி - தலைவன் கூற்று 

அமிழ்துபொதி செந்நா அஞ்ச வந்த 

வார்ந்திலங்கு வையெயிற்றுச் சின்மொழி அரிவையைப் 

பெறுகதில் அம்ம யானே பெற்றாங் 

கறிகதில் அம்மவிவ் வூரே மறுகில் 

நல்லோள் கணவன் இவனெனப் 

பல்லோர் கூறயாம் நாணுகஞ் சிறிதே. 

                                                 -தொல்கபிலர்.

குறிஞ்சி - தலைவன் கூற்று

காலையும் பகலும் கையறு மாலையும்
ஊர்துஞ் சியாமமும் விடியலு மென்றிப்
பொழுதிடை தெரியிற் பொய்யே காமம்
மாவென மடலோடு மறுகில் தோன்றித்
தெற்றெனத் தூற்றலும் பழியே
வாழ்தலும் பழியே பிரிவுதலை வரினே.

                        -அள்ளூர் நன்முல்லையார்.

மழையே யார் மீது காதல் இப்படி பொழிகிறாய்

[Translation: Hey rain, on whom you want to rain]

ஏ மைனா அந்த நொடி நீ நானென்றால் நான் ஜென்ம சாபல்யம் அடைந்திருப்பேன் 

Independence Day coming 

 அரந்த வாலுங்க

வயலினில் லயித்தேன்

[Translation: Got immersed in Violin]

Since July 2010 I was reading all newspaper regularly looking for the Parampara Festival 2010. Fortunately I saw the advertisement last Thursday (5-Aug-2010). Paramapara is a three day annual festival organised by Sri Raja Reddy and Srimati Radha Raja Reddy, and Srimati Kousalya Raja Reddy on behalf of Natya Tharagani (A school for Kuchipudi Dance). This year the premise of the festival was duet. On the second day of the series they had an Odissi dance performance by the students of Sri Guru Gangadar Pradhan followed by a Violin duet performance by Ganesh and Kumaresh (G&K). I went mainly for G&K. However the Odissi performance was also a highlight which I have discussed separately.

After a divine romantic performance by students of Guru Gangadhar Pradhan, the stage was set aesthetically for G&K. Brothers started with a contemporary music (This piece was Ragha Prabhavam in Ragam Gambira Naatai in Adi Taalam) which is not a traditional Krithis, Varnams.  The performance was like a cut shot sixer  hit by Sehwag in the first over the match. After that they performed a Muthuswami Dikshitar’s Krithi,  an Alaapana, a Thyagaraja’s Krithis and Mangalam which had one of my favourite Harivarasanam (A song rendered while closing the Lord Ayyappa Temple @ Sabarimala). Their rendition of the Thyagaraja’s Kirthi showed their mastery. On the whole the Violin performance, which lasted for ninety minutes, had all ingredients of a fruit salad which everyone in the Kamani Auditorium enjoyed. For couple of minutes, audience praised  with a standing ovation.  Once the concert was over, I took the opportunity to get autographs from G&K as well as from Jayanthi Kumaresh (Venna Artist, her programme was scheduled for the next day). Here I got introduced to a friend Varun Koundinya from Hyderabad. We shared about our list of collections of G&K. We quickly shared a good wavelength. Varun happily accepted my request to take a photograph of G&K & I. Later I and Varun were discussing with G&K about their future albums. G said they are working on their new album in lines of CC. I am waiting for it …….. On the whole it was a unique unforgettable day for me.

About the relationship between RBA and G&K

In early 2007, I started learning Violin (Carnatic Classical Music). Around this time there was a hoarding, in Mount Road (aka/alias Anna Salai, Teynampet, Chennai] advertising the album ‘Carnatic Chills’(CC),  by Violin Duet Ganesh & Kumaresh (G&K), is released by AR Rehman. Only for the name AR Rehman I went exploring about Ganesh Kumaresh. But reading about G&K I was stunned by these child prodigies. In the subsequent week ‘The Hindu’ praised the album very highly.  Now I didn’t had a second thought to buy the album. I straight away went to Music World and purchased CC. It was the first CD album I have brought even though it was too costly for me at that time. But CC was worth buying it. Couple of the tracks [‘Dance like a Man’ and ‘Flights of Fantasy’] in the album are some of the best I have listened so far. This album is not regular classical stuff. It was neither a fusion nor Carnatic music with a western flavour. It was straight from heart to heart and it was fresh, scintillating. Since then I became a big fan of G&K. They have become an inspiration for me to learn Violin much better. While writing I guess in future I would try my hands on a duet performance. And would even try  a Jugal Bandhi with my friend Xavy playing Veena. It would happen one day

(RBA, Ganesh and Kumaresh)

(Varun, Ganesh, Jayanthi Kumaresh & Kumaresh)

மழலைப் பட்டாளம் - Kids Corner

[It is right to mention மழலை [Kids] as பட்டாளம் [Military] because, kids are like military people who corner you from all corners and keep you in arrest. We can't escape from them]

On one fine evening when I was in a park nearby my house in Delhi, I was tempted 1. to get married asap and have two three children, 2. to be as children itself throughout life because I can defer from board exams, marks, entrance exams, campus exams, project, deadlines, appraisals, love, marriage, responsibility, stress. Okay coming back to what made me tempted is the cheerful smiles, which is highly contagious, I found in children. These kids were/are always in a jubilant mood. I was interested in taking few candid shots, but in the dusk, I found it bit difficult to get some candid shots, especially when the kids are dynamic. And these kids somehow found me taking snaps and were much euphoric to give me the much required shots. And once I took few snaps there were some 20 kids buzzing like bees and the word they buzzed was UNCLE UNCLE UNCLE [Initially when I came to Delhi I hated this word UNCLE. I wished/loved them to call me Bhaiya [Elder Brother]. But I never succeeded even with my neighbor Behan [Younger Sister]]. It is a great feeling when those kids beam with complete joy in their eyes and looked at me and put their soft hands up and asked me take them some snaps, a honor, they gave me, which I didn't refuse. [Few things I found difficult, the ladies and grannies in the park were probing me with many questions such as are your reporter?, where are you from? why you are taking snaps? have u come for survey? Are you a journalist? Oh! ]. And it is really very happy when you are surrounded with kids, you forgot everything. I realized what one of my friends sister [a Teacher] said about the joy she gets from unconditional love she gets from her children/students. Be amidst children, Be amidst happiness. Have fun. Cheers!