The living masters of intangible Indian cultural heritage Asian Age Jan 23 201820190527 85514 1boem7v (original) (raw)

Indian Masters of the Performing Arts Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards It make me feel something is still right in this world when I see puppeteers, folk and tribal as well as classical performing artists, being honored by the President of India in the magnificently formal setting of Rashtrapati Bhavan. Wearing dhotis and Kanjeevarams, Himachali caps and lungis as well as smart modern attire, our living masters of intangible culture proudly walked up the three historic steps of the Durbar Hall dais, many needing a helping hand, to receive a nation's gratitude for their contributions in dance, music and drama with Sangeet Natak Akademi awards. The same maroon velvet drapes and 5th century Buddha statue that framed the transfer of power at Independence backed the President as he heartily rose again and again for each awardee. After the ceremony, I had to pause at the doors open to Delhi to relish the view. The red carpet below my feet matching the top of India Gate and the breathtaking sight of the illuminated Jaipur column, a fitting tribute to the Maharaja who gave Raisina Hill for the new capital over 100 years ago. In addition to 2016 awardees, four Akademi fellows were awarded for overarching contributions to Hindustani and Carnatic music, Shri Arvind Parikh and Shrimati R. Vedavalli respectively, Shri Ram Gopal Bajaj for his contributions to Indian theatre and Shri Sunil Kothari for his outstanding contribution to Performing Arts through as author and critic. I have not had the privilege to know the music fellows but it was a joy to congratulate the friends who became fellows and awardees and applaud the others. The performances and talks by all of these national treasures were a treat for residents of the National Capital Region and I can never get over my good fortune to live in the only capital city in the world where great performing arts can be seen gratis simply by walking in. Anyone with a metro card, uber/ola number or car, can attend virtually any production in multiple theatres daily. These annual Sangeet Natak Akademi award programs should be high on the list of anyone with an interest or even curiosity in the arts or who has a desire to nurture cultural awareness in their children. Anita Ratnam, awarded for Contemporary Dance, opened one evening’s dance offerings with her solo presentation on Ahalya, created by Brahma as an experiment in perfection and cursed by her husband Sage Gautama for infidelity when she and god Indra, disguised as Gautama, are discovered. Anita is a strong feminist performing artist who is inspired to interpret shared cultural myths to shift the paradigm of understanding a woman questioning the injustice of women living as a stone and then to become one. The pulsating grey and gold draped figure of Anita was mesmerizing as she was far more than a lifeless stone but more the Bala Kanda description of remaining invisible for thousands of years, fasting by subsisting only on air, suffering and sleeping in ashes. The woman from the stone emerged first as a mouth, vividly framed inside the dark contours of “stone”. Sandhya Raman’s first-rate costuming of stretch lycra was the perfect modality for a use of the body covered and changing shape immortalized by Alwin Nikolai’s 1953 Noumenon and Martha Graham’s 1930 Lamentation. Milind Srivastava’s lights were a good reminder of how essential lighting is to the performing arts, something often neglected.