Shobana to showcase India’s vibrant humanism

Life Again to present ‘Trance-Dancing Drums’ on April 8

OBy Chaitali B. Roy

Special to the Arab Times

Dance can be a profession; it can lead to stardom. But it can also be a process of meditation. It can be therapeutic. It can be a way to grapple with our own inner fears and demons. It can be a purely physical endeavour. It can be a purely mental journey. It can be a self-realization of one’s cultural roots. It can lead to spiritual fulfillment. Indian classical dance is all this and so much more! Little wonder that even the gods danced in India. They too probably realized that it added value to their bliss in heaven!”

n Saturday, April 8, Life Again Foundation, a renowned nonprofit organization founded by Gautami Tadimalla, an Indian film actress, and cancer survivor to inspire and support people in the pre/post-transformation stage of terminal disease will present ‘Trance’ a celebration of Indian performing tradition in a highly nuanced presentation by Padmashri Shobhana Chandrakumar Pillai, an internationally acclaimed Indian dancer-actor at the American International School Auditorium Maidan Hawally at 6 pm. ‘Trance-Dancing Drums’ is presented by ‘Life Again’ in association with Kuwait Yoga Centre and Art of Living (Kuwait).

‘Trance-Dancing Drums,’ an evocative dance-theatre performance conceptualized and choreographed by Shobana has delighted audience members in different countries with live musicians, synthesis of rhythm, a kaleidoscope of colours, sensual poetry that explores and presents India’s religious and cultural tradition in all its diversity, delving into the mythology of Hindu gods, the spiritualism of the mystical Sufis and the continuity of biblical lore. On Saturday, the show will also feature Gautami Tadimalla, Founder, Life Again Foundation, Helen AlRahi, Reham Al Rashidi (Reham TV) and Zaina Al Zabin (Masar Consults).

Performances

Dancer, actress, choreographer, mridangam player and stage performer, Shobana Chandrakumar personifies the essence of her art form. A versatile exponent of Bharatnatyam, the doe-eyed Shobana, founder of Kalarpan, a noted dance school in Chennai, is a thinker-performer who tries to merge the past, present and the future in the philosophy of her art form. Her stage performances such as the ‘Maya Ravana’ ‘Krishna’ and ‘Dancing Drums’ are brilliant spectacles that explore and express Indian culture in its myriad forms.

An extraordinarily gifted person, Shobana Chandrakumar was born into an artistic Malayalam family from Kerala, India. She is the niece of the formidable Travancore sisters famed for their dancing and acting prowess. When asked whether making a choice between dance and films was ever a problem for a person adept at both, she replied, “There was no dilemma because I chose to do what motivated me at that time. Dance is a solo journey in contrast to films which is a collective process. With this kind of individualistic artistic traits that the two arts had, I was happy to pursue both.”

Shobana began working in films at the young age of nine in 1980 and went on to act in 200 films in five languages. Her film career has been stellar. Not only did she star opposite the giants of South Indian films, and held her own, she also won the National Award for Best Actress twice from the Government of India for the Mohanlal starrer ‘Manichitrathazhu’ (1994) and Revathi-directed ‘Mitr — My Friend’ (2001). Speaking of her experience with films, Shobana says, “Films have enriched me with patience and honed my ability to gauge and judge people. Working with some brilliant directors and scriptwriter, I had the opportunity to look into their minds.”

The classical dance forms of India embody the best of its civilization with the sheer beauty and grace of physical movements and the abhinaya through which the artiste tries to convey emotions bringing together the body, psyche, and soul into the stream of performance. Shobhana, an accomplished dancer of Bharatnatyam who is known for her abhinaya, was trained by Chitra Visweswaran, the illustrious Bharatnatyam exponent. The guru-shishya ( teacher-student) parampara, an integral part of Indian performing tradition is still

Above and below: Shobana Chandrakumar Pillai

maintained in India albeit in a different form. “My guru taught me to teach, which is the most important thing one can do for one’s students. Keeping your students dependent on you for learning on purpose is the worst thing a teacher can do. My guru gave me wings to fly.” Empowered by her learning and talent, Shobana has performed throughout the world including before the King and Queen of Malaysia. In 2006, the Indian government honoured her valuable contribution to Indian cinema and dance with the coveted ‘Padmashri.’

Devoted

In recent years, Shobana Chandrakumar has moved away from films and devoted more time to dance and other creative pursuits. ‘Dancing Drums — Trance’ is Shobana’s recent dance theatre production. “Dance is a spiritual practice at some point. Being a story-teller I have always been fascinated with our legends, which can be re-told time and again,” explains the danseuse. “I have noticed that art has the power to bring people together. ‘Dancing Drums’ aims at a communion of sorts. In ‘Dancing Drums’ I have touched on music that largely explores the ethos of religion other than my own. I feel this is a way to bring people together in however small a way in my performances. It is my thanksgiving to my country that is religiously tolerant.”

Art is open to interpretation and collaboration. Perhaps it is this flexibility which grants it resilience and longevity. The classical dance forms of India have stretched their boundaries and opened themselves to interpretations. Bharatnatyam, one of India’s most popular and ancient dance forms despite being governed by rigid rules has embraced experimentation.

In ‘Dancing Drums-Trance,’ Shobana, a performer who has had the courage to extend the confines has created a dance vocabulary with immense possibilities “Fusion is an experience of understanding art that you are not trained in; it is an in-exhaustive source for learning. It is a discovery of how and what you can contribute to existing and trusted energy. The face of traditional dance is changing. As artistes, we are just tiny stars under a large canvas of creative possibilities. I feel odd to lay down the rules and seal off creative growth since I don’t own any of my artistic pursuits.”

A collage of poetry, live and pre-recorded music with themes as wide-ranging as Hindu mythology and Biblical episodes, the 90-minute show transcends religious barriers to create an extravaganza that showcases both India’s vibrant humanism and its deep spirituality. Rhythm gives Shobana the freedom to explore the inherent abstract philosophy of spiritual oneness. “As a story-teller, I feel there are several mediums that can be used to convey a narrative. In the past, I have used characters, epic tales, poetry, and rasa. However, in all these mediums, the narrative is fixed because of lyrics or emotional quality of the melody. Because of the inherent abstraction in rhythm, the interpretative possibilities are more, but that also makes the work more challenging. In Dancing Drums, I interweave all my mediums into what I like to call “trance”. We have choreographed a wide canvas of ethos transcending religious boundaries of the world.” To celebrate Life Again Foundation and their star performer’s joie de vivre you can join them for ‘Trance-Dancing Drums’ this Saturday.