Heart in the
Kamalakshi movingly narrated the story of a devadasi but needed a little more attention to detail
he auditorium at Narada Gana Sabha reverberated with applause as the curtains rose to reveal an artistically crafted temple on stage for the play Kamalakshi. Shanmugham (stage decor and props) and Victor Paulraj (lighting) need to be complimented.
The English play written by Sujatha Vijayaraghavan and directed by P.C. Ramakrishna is set in the late 19th Century. It deals with the story of Kamalakshi (Sumitra Nitin), a devadasi dancer, and Sivaguru (Sikkil Gurucharan), a singer at the famous temple of Tyagesa in Tiruvarur.
The play opens with festivities in a temple. The men and women of the village await the arrival of
Kamalakshi for her ‘Potukattu’ ceremony (being dedicated to the temple for seva). She is decked up in finery and arrives dancing in front of a palanquin carrying the idol of Tyagesa. Those assembled there, especially Sivaguru and mirasdar Sugavanam are charmed by her beauty and dance. Kamalakshi performs two songs — ‘Tyagaraja yoga vaibhavam’ and ‘Theruvil
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From the English play ‘Kamalakshi’. varano’. Also present are her mother Arvathamma and friend Neela.
The bond that develops between Kamalakshi and Sivaguru; an infatuated Sugavanam aspiring to be the dancer’s patron and the dancer resisting the pressure from her mother; and her total surrender and devotion to Tyagesa, leading to her shedding her mortal remains, form the broad storyline.
The play reminds one of the popular 1968 Tamil film Thillana Mohanambal.
Kamalakshi brings together live music, dance and drama — a ‘first’ in English theatre, according to the brochure.
Being a Carnatic vocalist, Sikkil Gurucharan is at ease while singing, but doesn't seem to be at his best when delivering dialogues. Bharatanatyam artiste Sumitra Nitin dances and emotes with the necessary conviction. However, the characterisation of the lead roles could have been fleshed out better.
Anuradha Ramesh, who plays the mother, Parur Ananthashree as the friend, Hyma Ramakrishna as the rich woman, S. Ram (mirasdar), and Krithivasan as Sivaguru’s friend impress with their portrayals.
While recreating a specific historical time frame, the story should be looked at from an insider's perspective.
Also, the visual detailing in terms of costume, jewellery and sets should reprise the era.
Given that temple festivities would normally include people from varied strata of society, seeing all the male characters uniformly attired in dhotikurta rankles.
A coloured stole on musicians’ shoulders instead of an angavastram? And a Tiruvarur temple priest wearing a kurta?
However, some scenes stand out, especially the one where the rich woman seeks an extension of the dancer’s tenure to safeguard her from the mirasdar. Also, Kamalakshi’s outburst, raising questions about the status of those like her touches upon the core issues relating to the life of devadasis.
Towards the end, when Kamalakshi merges with Tyagesa, one experiences the spiritual significance of her art. However, this message could have been conveyed more strongly.
Moving deeper into the feeling of bhakti and surrender, Uma presented Gopalakrishna Bharathi’s ‘Varugalamo aiyya’ in Manji. Nandanar requests the Lord to cast his benevolent gaze on him so that he can get a glimpse, and asks if he could come in. Uma’s abhinaya captured the poignancy in the lyrics.
‘Parashiva’, a poem composed by Subramania Bharati in raga Sarasangi, dealt with the philosophical idea of the union of the body and soul, leading to an exalted state where the devotee merges with the almighty.
Uma concluded with a thillana in Nadanamakriya by K.S. Balakrishnan, who also did the nattuvangam. The orchestral team consisted of S.R. Praveen (vocal), Vedakrishnan (mridangam), Kalaiarasan (violin) and Sujith Naik (flute).