Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Golpark, Kolkata, in its recent Vivekananda Music Festival, in its afternoon session, presented Guru Thingbaijam Chourjeet Singh and his troupe in a Manipuri recital.

Their first presentation was Guru Vandana, where they professed in the soft language of Manipuri dance the contribution of the guru.

Implanting the light of wisdom, dispelling the dark corners of their hearts. Thus did they offer their salutation to the lotus feet of their spiritual master (guru Deva). Guru Vandana was a way of showing their gratitude for being the source of their inspiration and guiding them. The dance choreography was by Guru Th.Babu Singh, who was awarded the Padma Shri award. The music for the piece was composed by Guru Th.Chourjeet Singh. Dancers Kh. Ranjan Singh, N. Prabin Singh, and S. Thoiba Singh were well-trained performers and provided a fitting start to the festival. Pung artist Guru Th. Chourjeet Singh himself, vocalist Oinam Kalyan Singh, flautist Guru Iron Joychandra Singh, and violinist Tonambam Sandip Singh were the pillars whose musical accompaniment provided its uniqueness.

The second piece, Krishna Biraha, was taken from “kanasarirapi sangsare besan” of the 1st part of the 3rd canto of the Geet Govinda. It’s a description of how Shri Krishna, after spending happy moments with Chandrabali in the grove, suddenly remembered the trust promised to Radha and hurried towards her with much concern, and how he was full of remorse and disappointment when he could not find Radha. This one-of-a-kind dance and music choreography was by Guru M. Amubi Singh, a Padmashree awardee. This dance was rechoreographed by Guru Th. Babu Singh, who was also a Padmashree awardee. This was rendered solo by Sudip Kumar Ghosh. The Bhagavad Gita professes that whenever there is disorder and calamity on earth, Lord Vishnu appears to restore peace and order. The next piece, Dashavatar, refers to the 10 incarnations of Lord Vishnu, the Hindu god of preservation. The 10 incarnations are Matsya (fish), Kurma (tortoise), Varaha (boar), Narasimha (lion-man), Vaman (dwarf), Parashuram, Ram, Krishna, Buddha, and Kalki.

Thus, the 10 incarnations of Lord Vishnu, as described by poet Jayadeva in the invocatory verse of Geet Govind, were rendered to the choreography and composition of dance and music. Guru M. Amubi Singh later rechoreographed Guru Th. Babu Singh. Performers Kh. Ranjan Singh, N. Prabin Singh, and S. Thoiba Singh did justice to the piece. Tanum is a dance piece performed as an integral part of Nritya Raas, which is one of the five principal classical Manipuri dances. The other four are Maha Raas,Vasanta Raas, Kunja Raas, and Deeva Raas. The tala of Tanum is also played in Manipuri nat Sankrirtana music style, which is a composite version of both vocal and instrumental music with body movement and mimesis; in fact, it is a drishy kavya, or visual poetry. This was a pure dance performed with several body kinesis to the laya of “ta-na-de-re-na” to evoke aesthetic bliss. Dance and music The composition of the piece was by Guru Th. Babu Singh. Kh. Ranjan Singh, N. Prabin Singh, S. Thoiba Singh, and Sudip Kumar Ghosh performed with authenticity.

Pung: Guru Th.Chourjeet Singh; Vocal: Oinam Kalyan Singh

Flute: Guru Iron Joychandra Singh played the violin, and Tonambam Sandip Singh accompanied all the dances.

A garland of four dance forms

Samagama, a presentation by the Padatik Dance Centre in association with Nrityakala, curated an evening of dance based on the Indian tradition of Guru-Shishya Parampara. Kathak dancer Souvik H. Chakraborty was at the helm of affairs. The uniqueness of the series lay in the fact that Pandit Birju Maharaj’s self-composed Vandana was used to pay homage to the guru who was the source of their knowledge. Both disciples and Souvik’s mentor, Guru Madhumita Ray, paid their obeisance to Guru Birju Maharaj, followed by their disciples. It was much like praying to the holy Ganga with its own holy water.

The evening showcased four different styles of classical dance, which were recreated from our existing and ancient dance traditions to uphold our national identity in colonial and post-colonial times. The Bharatanatyam form itself has brought in a sea of changes in our social values, and ever since, it has indeed changed our mindset. Today, there are an uncountable number of aspirants seeking to make a name in the field. Learners in Calcutta, now known as Kolkata, have been singularly lucky to get Guru Kalamandalam Thankamani Kutty to settle and teach in Kolkata. She is a guru with a difference. Her pupil, Jhinook Mukherjee Sinha, presented Ananda Nartana Ganapatim, a keertana composed by Guru Thankamani Kutty. The guru’s flawless composition was marred by music (recorded), which was not up to par. After all, the success of a dance piece depends on the accompanying music. Jhinook’s second piece, Jaladodhare, was a Kriti by Purandhara Dasa, choreographed by Leela Samson. Through the strains of Ragam Kapi, she sailed through Vatsalya Rasa, much to the delight of the audience.

Manipuri Practitioner Ivana Sarkar is a disciple of Bimbavati Devi in Manipuri style. Her presentation of Lasya and Tandava was aesthetic to the core, and she regaled the audience with her rendition. Kalavati Devi’s vocalisation, along with that of the accompanying artists, was a source of pure joy. Odissi dancer Arnab Bandyopadhayay performed Shiva Tandava with his students Nikita Das and Anusmita Bhattacharya. This was a piece that kept in mind the Karana poses of Shiva. It has to be kept in mind that giving power to the eyes can convey a whole gamut of emotions, and the emotions to be highlighted have to be spelled out in the language of dance. It was a neat presentation.

The Kathak duet by Arindam Roy and Sania Das was again on Shiva. It was a Shiva stuti in Jhaptaal, complete with the techniques of the form.

Arpita Roy, who is practically a long-distance Kathak dancer with a strong passion for her genre, rendered the 16-beat Teen Taal of Kathak with zest, rounding it off with a Birju Maharaj composition on the eternal love and dalliance of Radha and Krishna. Veteran Kathaka Madhumita Roy, who has mentored many ace performers, ascended the stage with the charm that comes with years of practice. With student Souvik Chakraborty, she went duet with the intricacies of taal dhamar for 14 beats. With their interplay of the taal, they succeeded in creating ripples that elevated aesthetic enjoyment. Two thumris followed one another, merging with the famous poem “Kanupriya.” It portrayed the love feelings of two souls for Krishna, depicting their shades of love so uniquely. Accompanying artists Chadrachud Bhattacharya, Biswajit Pal, Joydeep Sinha, and Sashikant on the sitar, percussion instrument, vocal, and flute set the stage on fire.

The writer is a senior dance critic