The repertoire was created by Guru Sridevi to challenge Sanjana on every dimension - and how Sanjana surpassed every expectation. Guru Sridevi’s creation was tailored and embellished with painstaking care to fit Sanjana as might a gown of magnificent hues.  The splendid result was a debut performance of unusual caliber.

Sanjana opened the recital with a Pushpanjali in the ragam Gadhyothkanthi, followed by Jaya Jaya Swami, in praise of Lord Ganesha.   From the first step to the last, Sanjana’s presentation was flawless- graceful of form and perfect in technique. 

The Jathiswaram in Nalinakanthi was buoyant as Sanjana effortlessly leapt and pirouetted through intricacies in movement spanning the entire stage.  Sanjana gave form to her Guru’s fierce mathematical imagination- not only in the Jathiswaram, but throughout the recital- with utmost ease and often at lightning speed.  If Guru Sridevi is “Laya Puli”- and those of us who have witnessed her make short work of “kanakku” will attest to that- Sanjana is most certainly a “Puli Kutti”.

Next followed “Thaye Tripura Sundari”, a kirthanam in praise of Goddess Parvathi, extolling the virtues of the Mother Goddess at Thiruvanmayur.

Sanjana then presented the Varnam, “Gokula Bala”, a composition of Guru Smt. Rajee Narayan, in praise of the myriad forms of Lord Krishna.  The varnam was substantial in content and delivered by Sanjana without slightest compromise.  Every jathi reflected Guru Sridevi’s skill with nritta – layered and unexpected patterns of movement and rhythm that could not be anticipated.  Sanjana equally demonstrated her capability in Abhinaya, effectively portraying the petulant and troublesome little Krishna, the exasperated Gopis, a troubled Sudhama, the fearsome Puthaki and the valiant vanquisher of Kaliya.  In the second half of the varnam, the sancharis and even the arudhi itself brought form to He who is “Neela Mega Vanna”.  In a very effective departure from the usual story- telling format, the sancharis focused on depictions of the Almighty as the savior of Drapaudi and Gajendra and as the Supreme Lord of the Bhagavad Gita.  

The second half of the recital commenced with the Shiva padam “Pradosha Samayadi”, which was especially notable for the perfection of Sanjana’s poses.  The next padam, “Ka Va Va” in Varali was a delightful surprise.  “Va Va” was depicted as Muruga atop His Peacock with varied use of lilting movement and speed that was not intuitive to the song’s slow base tempo.  In the next padam, “Rama Mantrava Japiso”, Sanjana’s portrayal of Jatayu Moksham was touching and revealed capability in abhinaya that has been internalized rather than replicated.

Sanjana concluded her recital with a Thillana in Misra Sivaranjani, leaping through the piece as energetically as she started.  She looked as if she could have gone on dancing for a few hours more- which we would have happily watched. The recital was brought to a close with a mangalam in praise of Lord Ayyappa.

The orchestra comprised of veteran musicians- Sri Mathur Srinidhi (vocal), Sri Srihari Rangaswamy (mridangam), Sri Narasimhan Murthy Ramamishra (flute), Smt Tara Bangalore (violin), Sudarashan Ajai Thirumalai (rhythm pad) and Guru Sridevi (nattuvangam). The performance was elevated by the music; of particular note was Sri Srihari’s support on the mridangam, each beat in perfect unison with the choreography. And of special note were the spontaneous bursts of applause for our very own Guru Tara- for who else could move an audience with but a minute of Sivaranjani?

Sanjana held us spellbound that afternoon with the virtuosity of her dance.  May she reach great heights under the guidance of her Guru.

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