A Time for Tradition

If it rains outside,how can Pt Vishwa Mohan Bhatt not break into Raag Malhar on his Mohan Veena? And who can stop the Kuchipudi maestros Raja and Radha Reddy from dancing with abandon...

The bigwigs of classical dance and music will come together at the Parampara festival

If it rains outside,how can Pt Vishwa Mohan Bhatt not break into Raag Malhar on his Mohan Veena? And who can stop the Kuchipudi maestros Raja and Radha Reddy from dancing with abandon,never mind the cloudbursts? As for Kathak exponent Kumudini Lakhia,who stopped performing 20 years ago,there is no greater joy than watching her disciples dance in harmony. All of them,along with some other of the biggest names in Indian classical dance and music,will get together this week at Parampara,the annual festival organised by Natya Tarangini,the Reddys school of Kuchipudi in Delhi.

Parampara,a three-day festival,began more than 10 years ago. We wanted the future generation to know about their tradition by presenting some of the best exponents of the arts, says Raja. Apart from the Reddys,Bhatt and Lakhias troupe,the line-up this year also includes Odissi maestro,Guru Gangadhar Pradhan from Bhubaneswar,and violinist Ganesh and Kumaresh from Chennai.

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The festival will open with a performance by the Reddys,their first major show in the Capital this year. As Raja gives details of the pieces he is rehearsing,it is evident that the dancers focus is still on the future generation. One of our pieces is called Dance for the Future, he says. It is pure Kuchipudi but set to western music with English lyrics. Few people know that the Natyashashtra,the bible of Indian classical dance,allows a dancer to use the language of the audience but without compromising on the grammar of the dance form. The traditional tales of Krishna and his gopis too feature in his repertoire but its the former piece of choreography that he is looking forward to presenting to the audience.

Bhatt,on the other hand,is enthusiastic about the jugalbandi with Ronu Majumdar (Hindustani flute). We dont meet until we go on stage. We have not rehearsed together,so there will only be an impromptu jugalbandi. Theres no fun in a rehearsed show. Creating something live on stage as the audience watches is what makes Hindustani music performances memorable, says Bhatt.

Parampara will be held at Kamani auditorium in Delhi from August 5 to 7.

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