Krishna: the man for all times
A Dance and Musical Extravaganza
Artists from the dance and music field came together in a unique presentation that was a blend of classical and contemporary dance and music. Is Krishna there amongst us today? This was the theme of the show that examined his life and relevance to the present times. Drawing upon his various roles in mythology, Krishna the eternal god was shown manifesting himself suitable to the present age of technological advancement and materialism.
Music: Suma Sudhindra on Veena, Anantha Krishna Sharma on Mridangam/Vocal, Praveen Godkhindi on Flute, Jyotsna Srikanth on Violin, Manjunath on Mridangam, Uday Karpur on Tabla, Praveen and Divya on Veena, Arun Sukumar on Drums and special effects, Zarad Machado on Guitar and Umesh on Keyboard.
Dance: Sanjay Shantaram, Shama Sanjay, Anuradha Vikranth, Abhilash, Shirisha, Chetana, Hari Nath, Soorya, Shekar and Jasma
One appreciates the concept and efforts but better co-ordination between the musicians and the dancers would have made the programme more impressive.
Strings & skins
Guitarist/ Composer Amit Heri presented an evening of Contemporary Jazz & World Music with renowned Drummer/Composer Ranjit Barot and Bass Guitarist Jacob William from Boston, USA.
Drawing from various musical cultures of the world including Contemporary Jazz, Indian, Funk, African, Latin and Blues, the group performed original compositions that ranged from mellow and pretty to fiery and funky. Tightly woven compositions interspersed with intricate improvisations in a high-energy performance made the evening an enjoyable listening experience.
A Magical Voice that Moved Bangalore
Hariharan’s live concert
“Without soul there is no music,” says Hariharan
Bangalore got to hear the silken voice of Hariharan on 20 September 2003. He was here to raise funds for Vyasa Vidya Peeta, a school for the underprivileged, which is being constructed by the Jeevana Dharma Yoga Trust, a registered charitable trust, run by Poojya Gurumatha Amma who was also present in the audience along with Hariharan’s mother-teacher Alamelu, Dr. L. Subramaniam, Kavita Subramaniam and many others.
His background of being trained in Hindustani and Carnatic music and his mellifluous voice make his concerts special.
Hariharan, who is equally good at classical music, ghazals and fusion music, rendered as many as 20 numbers, mostly ghazals and some of his popular movie songs. He was accompanied by Rajeev Mahavir on Tabla, Ustad Liyakat Ali Khan on Sarod, Pradeep Pandit on Harmonium, Chintu Sing on Guitar, Stephen on Key board.
He began the evening’s concert at 7.30 p.m. with a beautiful ghazal, Bahuth bechen he dil, thum jahan bhi ho followed by another beautiful ghazal, Kash aisa koi manzil hota. He also sang a new ghazal Galath hemuskurana chahatahe, vo apna gham chupana chahatahe from his latest album. Masti got the audience foot tapping. Patha patha boota boota, Aiyene se akele me, Me khayal hun kisi aur ka muje socha tha koi aur he, Ye lamhe ye pal ham barso yaad karenge, Rajastani folk- Kesaria balam in raag mand where some of the compositions he sang.
Krishna nee begane baro, Hariharan’s popular number got the audience clamouring for more. Hariharan too, responded to their enthusiasm, singing some of his popular film songs. It was almost midnight when the curtains came down and an enthralled audience reluctantly left.
Hip hop accrorap
Anokha-Dance Performance by Franco-Indian Dance Group ‘Accrorap’
Performance which had the audience spellbound !!!!!!
Alliance Francaise de Bangalore in collaboration with the Embassy of France in India and AFFA (French Association for Artistic Action) presented the well-known Franco-Indian dance group “The Company Accrorap-Kader Attou”, consisting of both Indian and French dancers.
Accrorap presented ‘Anokha-The dance of Gods and men’; a meeting between Hip-hop, Kathak and Bharatanatyam. The Indian dance relates to the gods’ history and dancers are in service of the performance. The Western dance expresses the personality of the dancers and is related to man and his position in the world. Introducing emotion to hip-hop, this performance tried to make hip-hop more spiritual and bridge the gap between the East and the West.
The theme was aptly depicted referring to the non-violence message of Mahatma Gandhi in order to put hip-hop in a historical perspective. Through the Swastika symbol, not only was harmony and stability referred to but also diversion and negative force.
Watching the performers in Anokha, one was amazed at the flexibility displayed by the hip-hop dancers. They moved like an eddy. Everyone responded to the energy created by the rhythm. The music was also a blend of the East and the West.
The group has been touring India through the network of Alliance Francaise since 15 September 2003 and has performed in Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Thriuvananthapuram before coming to Bangalore. The group will also perform in Hyderabad, Delhi, Kolkata, Bhopal and Chandigarh.
Accrorap comprises five hip-hop dancers from France: Kader Attou-art director and choreographer of the group, Jose dos Santos, Habib Benziane, Cristelle Blanc, Pierre Bolo; two disciples of Kathak maestro Kumudini Lakhia-Prashant Shah and Vaishali Trivedi; and Rukmini Chatterji, a Bharatanatyam dancer, a disciple of Mrinalini Sarabhai.
Hip-hop started as a street dance in the US in the 1970s. Soon, Europe adopted it and today every European country has a distinct style of its own. The dance style which celebrates the free spirit, started as a reaction against the violence pervading the American society of the 70s and is mostly used to spread the message of non-violence throughout the world.
ART for a cause
FORHID-Foundation For Restoring Human Dignity
Registered and recognized as a wholly charitable organization, FORHD’s concern is children and women in distress, as dependents of prisoners. When an offender goes to prison his child stops schooling, his wife gets exploited by unscrupulous persons and the aged parents may not get even food and shelter. A harsh and hostile society makes them either victims of crime or participation in crime. FORHD tries to prevent this.
FORHD chose the means of art to raise funds and give a better life to dependents of prisoners. Let us salute the effort of L. Revannasiddaiah, former police commissioner who is the man and force behind FORHD.
About 100 well known artists from all over India exhibited their work to support this cause; a week-long exhibition-cum-sale was organized at Windsor Manor and then it was open to the public at the Chitrakala Parishath. Right Lines Art Gallery and Chitrakala Parishath coordinated the show. There was also a seminar on the topic Art in the contemporary world, which was attended by eminent personalities from different fields of art.
A dance ballet Savitri by actress-dancer Hema Malini was organized on 27 June 2003 at Dr. Ambedkar Bhavan, Bangalore. Savitri was played by Hema Malini and Sathyavan was played by our very own Bharatanatyam dancer Kiran Subramaniam.
Hema Malini looked gorgeous on stage; the audience was held spellbound by her beauty. Classical dancers could have been upset for what one got to see was a cinematic ballet rather than actual Bharatanatyam or Odissi or Kathak. While Kiran Subramaniam also had to compromise on the style he gave a dignified performance.
One does wish that speeches take up less time on such occasions.