Nikhita Athipathy presented her Bharatha Natyam arangetram at the Sutton High School in on 31August, 2019.  Nikhita, a junior at the Advanced Math and Science Academy, has been a disciple of Guru Smt. Sapna Krishnan of the Lasya School of Dance in Shrewsbury, MA for the past seven years. 

Nikhita delivered a recital that thoroughly engaged the audience for every minute starting from the invocatory Ganesha Vandana to the Thillana.  With bright faced charm and graceful form, Nikhita occupied the stage with ease.  Nikhita’s love for Bharatha Natyam was evident in every movement and sparked an infectious joy in those present for the occasion. 

The recital opened with a sprightly invocation to Lord Ganesha. This was followed by a Nataraja Kavuthuvam by the contemporary composer Sri Madurai Muralidharan.  The piece was packed with movement and rhythm as characteristic of Sri Muralidharan’s compositions but also studded with myriad depictions of the dancing Lord and His cosmic dance

The Shabdam featured pretty movements showing Muruga atop His “Aadum Mayil” and nritta passages different from the traditional format.  It was in this piece that we first saw Nikhita’s penchant for Abhinaya and story-telling, especially in her effective portrayal of the slaying of the demon Soorapadhman.

Following a musical interlude by the musicians, Nikhita presented the Meera Bhajan, “Hari Tum Haro” as the varnam for the evening.  In a departure from the popular version, the lyrics were set to an interesting and effective Ragamalika format by the esteemed vocalist, Sri Sudev Warrier. Nikhita effectively conveyed the bhakthi rasa in this piece as she described Lord Vishnu as the universal savior.  Abhinaya is clearly Nikhita’s forte and she depicted the tales of Draupadi, Prahalada and Gajendra Moksham with involvement and great enthusiasm.  Her portrayal of heroes and villains created a high sense of drama and gripped the audience.  The last stanza “Daas Meera, Laal Giridhara” was conceived as the joyous rapture of Meera’s devotion to Krishna and effectively portrayed through the choreography.  The nritta passages explored creative use of angle and movement and were neatly executed by Nikhita.  The varnam had many special flourishes such as the arudhi which effectively incorporated depictions of the poetess Meera. 

The second half of the recital commenced with a lovely garland of Devi Ashtakam in Raga-Tala malika, which wove together verses taken from the Rajarajeshwari, Ardhanaareeshwara and Annapoorneshwari Ashtakams. The piece was creatively set with chollu kattus of “Om Hreem” interwoven with the Sanskrit lyrics. Nikhita portrayed an array of forms of the divine Goddess, from fearsome to graceful, masculine to feminine and destructive to compassionate.  The creative use of theatrical elements throughout the recital, but especially in this piece, elicited gasps of surprise and spontaneous applause from the audience!

This was followed by the popular Purandhara Dasa krithi, “Chandra Chooda Shiva Shankara Parvathi” which described Lord Shiva, adorned by the moon and wed to Goddess Parvathi.  Nikhita continued to delight the audience with her story telling, depicting the Lord Neelakanta- He who imbibed the deadly   poison from the churning of the ocean, as He who torched Kamadeva to ashes for disturbing His penance, He who is the divine Lord of Goddess Sati and He who saved Markandeya from the clutches of Lord Yama.  Nikhita inhabited the range of characters without hesitation; especially noteworthy was her portrayal of the youth Markandeya holding onto the Shiva Linga as he pleaded with Lord Shiva to save him.

Nikhita then portrayed the antics of the mischievous Lord Krishna in the crowd pleaser, “Vishama Kaara Kanna”.  One could see that this was perhaps Nikhita’s favorite piece!

Nikhita concluded her recital with a thillana in Jonpuri, a joyous crescendo that was an apt close to the recital.

The orchestra was ably led by Nikhita’s Guru, Sapna Krishnan on Nattuvangam, accompanied by senior musicians Sri. Sudev Warrier on vocal, Sri Sudhaman Subramanian on mridangam and Sri. Ramani Thiagarajan on flute. Their experience and understanding of the role of music in a Bharatha Natyam recital was evident in all the pieces.

The very special bond between Nikihta and her Guru, Smt. Sapna Krishnan was evident throughout the performance- especially in the pieces Nikhita’s Guru set for her disciple, tailored for Nikhita’s capability for Abhinaya.   A very special moment the evening was when Nikhita’s Guru referred to her disciple as “Abinaya Princess" ; Nikhita glowed with pride at her Guru’s recognition, the ultimate achievement for any shishya.  Nikhita’s palpable devotion to her Guru touched the heart of every person in the audience.

 In her vote of thanks, Nikhita’s mother, Anitha, mentioned how Nikhita spent hours watching episodes of the Mahabharatha- seeking to understand the tales that provide endless scope for story-telling. Indeed, this dedication was evident in Nikhita’s recital. Nikhita, we wish you much success in your continued exploration of the boundless joys of this art form.

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