Sustaining the arts

Dance performances at Chhayanaut
With several arts institutions in Bangladesh running dance programmes for over a decade now, it is heartening to watch the remarkably high standard of performance by Bangladeshi dancers. A few have received recognition in India from prestigious institutions. However, making a living out of dance is still a struggle in Bangladesh. One of the major obstacles is the dearth of platforms that arrange regular dance performances.
In this context, ‘Shadhona’ — A Center for Advancement of South Asian Dance and Music — commenced its bi-monthly, ticketed performances of dance, ‘Nupur Beje Jai’ in November, 2009. Shadhona held the fifth instalment of this event on October 9, 2010 at the Chhayanaut Shangskriti Bhaban. This time round, the performers were Warda Rihab presenting Manipuri and Amit Choudhury presenting Bharatanatyam. Both have received the ‘Sringar Shiromani’ award from the ‘Kal ki Kalakar’ Festival of Mumbai, India.
The performance began with “Anjali”, a dance offering, not to the Gods but to the arts, that being at the core of every performer’s identity. The dancers very aptly blended the performance of the two forms of dance to allow the audience to appreciate the differences and similarities between each.
Amit Choudhury presented “Natanam Adinar” which evoked the image of Shiva, who is at once creator, preserver and destroyer of the world. This item required the exposition of various rasa or theatrical emotion, such as sringar (love), bhayanak (fear), roudra (rage) and karuna (compassion). Though Amit’s execution of the movements was much appreciated, his portrayal of the emotions could certainly be improved upon. Amit’s “Tillana”, a dance item, which emphasises pure movement, was enjoyable.
Warda Rihab is certainly one of Bangladesh’s finest young dancers, with her movements equally powerful and emotive. Her first presentation was the ritual dance of “Lai Haraoba” where the maibi or priestess narrates the story of creation. The performance had just the right amount of power and restraint. Her second presentation of Vaishnav poet Govind Das’ “Murati Sringarini” portrayed the inner and outer beauty of Radha, Krishna’s foremost devotee.
“Prokriti O Prithibi”, a duet, was probably the most appreciated piece of the evening, with both the dancers depicting Shiva as the preserver of this universe. The choreography very intelligently juxtaposed Manipuri and Bharatanatyam movements being performed together without creating any awkwardness, while exposing the beauty of both the dance forms.
The costumes for all the dances were well designed and attractive. All in all, an evening that left many craving for more.