The entrance of the Mylapore Fine arts club auditorium was
decorated with tiny pretty looking tots clad in pattupaavaadais possessing
lamps along with few others ready with the kolaattam sticks.(Well…it made me
wonder why was this arrangement made?!). The Chief Guests arrived and they
witnessed a unique welcome (by kids holding lamps and the others performing a
small piece of kolattam) to the Nritya Samarpanam, a celebration of
Prayathnam’s yearly milestones and events. Following the lighting of the lamp
by the distinguished guests there was a medley of performances by the toppers
of the YATNAM level exams (conducted by them) beginning with Chakkani thalliki
to which rhythmic kummi was performed by the students of Vani Kalalaya…. to the
neat perfect Bharatanatyam presentation by the students of Divyanjali, kolattam
by Kanagasabai dance school, kavadi chindhu by students of Smt. Sai Kripa thus
showcasing multifarious styles of dancing. A special performance by Subhashini,
a student of Smt. Sai kripa was an inspiration to all the other students with
her having cracked all the three levels of the YATHNAM exam with the highest
score. Then was the time for the performance by the two guest artistes for the
day, Sri.Shanmugasundaram and Sri.Rakesh, (teacher at Kalakshetra). The
performance started off with Misra Thriputa Alarippu, “thodi” jadiswaram and
the Kshetrayya’s padam rendered by Sri.Rakesh. The rhythmic Shankarashrigiri
and the devout Tulsidas bhajan, Sri Ramachandra kripaalu bhajamana by
Sri.Shanmugasundaram also was carried out with perfect blending of the moves
and expressions. The coordinated effort of their renderings choreographed by
the legends ended in a vivacious thillana. The record of the events from the
start of Prayathnam was summarized by Smt.Sreelatha Vinod in a well thought-out
fashion interspersing textual content with relevant clippings and video bits.
She even emphasized their interest in creating their own webpage and to get
active in facebook/blogging and even about releasing newsletters. Following
that the YATHNAM COURSEBOOK VOLUME I was released by Smt.Nandini Ramani (art
critic) and the first copy was received by Smt.Radha Krishnan (Principal,
Little Oxford Matriculation Higher Secondary School). The book contains all the
necessary study material required for the preparation for the YATHNAM exams.
Then was the turn of the VARNAMANJARI (Audio CD compilation of the legendary
pada varnams) to be released by Bhagavathalu Sree Seetharama Sharma
(Director-Kalapeetam) and the first copy of it was received by Smt.Nandini
Ramani. All were in praises for Sri. Srikanth Gopalakrishnan’s voice in the
audio CD that completely muted the audience when a small portion was played.
Bhagavathalu Sree Seetharama Sharma appreciated the integrated effort of team
Prayathnam whereas Smt.Nandini Ramani spoke on the exchange of traditions and
the astounding effort in the confluence of various traditions of Bharatanatyam.
Smt. Radha Krishnan meanwhile promised that her School would always be a pillar
support to the team and even urged the audience for a standing ovation. Kids
who eagerly waited to receive their certificates and gift hampers were in all
smiles when they received them (surprisingly in the most disciplined and non
chaotic conduct) from the guests. The teachers and also some exceptional people
who supported the Prayathnam in this endeavor were also honoured. Well! All’s
well that ends well….. The Nritya Samarpanam ended there with members of
Prayathnam, patting themselves for their good work. They now carry even a sense
of accountability for going ahead with the ongoing and future projects as
promised for which they always seek the blessings of the Lord Almighty and
legendary dance gurus! The effort continues……..
