Natya Circle of New England: Grand Inauguration 2025

by Amritha Pai

“Indian classical dance is the place where the three major art forms converge to form a whole production: dance, theatre, and music”. 

This statement was along the lines of Smt. Aparna Balaji’s opening remark at Natya Circle of New England’s grand inauguration event on Sunday, November 16th at the Om Hindu Community Center. It is indeed true that Indian classical dancers are as much actors and musicians as they are dancers, and it was especially befitting to describe the talented, young dancers that performed on this particular day. 

The Natya Circle of New England is a monthly in-person series of dance performances hosted by Smt. Jeyanthi Ghatraju and Sri Siva Santhanakrishnan, aimed at providing a platform for local dance students to further their artistic exploration. Originally started in 2021 as an online platform, with a goal to provide a long-form platform  advancing dancer,  NCNE is moving to in-person performances by partnering with the Om Hindu Community Center in Billerica, MA, an inter-generational center for learning, devotion, and connecting with the local community. 

Smt Jaya Astana of OMHCC and Smt Aparna Balaji lit the “Kuthuvilakku” to mark the inauguration of Natya Circle. Shri Abhaya Astana, President of OMHCC discussed the importance of intellectual giving in preserving our culture and pass it on to future generations. 

The first segment of the inauguration program was a beautiful Bharatnatyam margam, presented by disciples of Smt Jeyanthi Ghatraju, the director of Natyanjali School of Dance. Smt Ghatraju emphasized how important it is for advanced dancers to present technical pieces such as pushpanjali, alarippu, and jathiswaram, crucial in building skills for larger pieces such as varnams, much like the musician starting each practice session with saralivarusai. 

Following suit, Tanmayee Patil opened with two stunning pieces which set the tone for the rest of the evening, maintaining a delicate balance of soft grace and rhythmic precision. The first was the ragamalika pushpanjali, by Sri Palghat Ramprasad, where the dancer invokes the Lord by offering flowers. 

The second was an alarippu in sankeerna jathi, a 9-beat rhythmic cycle, arranged by Smt Jeyanthi Ghatraju herself. The alarippu is already a demanding piece which involves both isolated and compound movements of the eyes, head, neck, shoulders, hands, knees, etc. While it is generally performed in thisra jathi (a 3-beat cycle) or khanda jathi (a 5-beat cycle), the sankeerna jathi alarippu was intricate, challenging, and a treat for the rasikas in the audience. Tanmayee followed the complex rhythm all while sporting an effortless smile on her face - the precision with which she performed this piece was impeccable! 

After the bar was set high by Tanmayee, students of Natyanjali continued to shine. The next piece was the classic Saveri jathiswaram, presented by Anwitha Alla, Rianna Ashly, and Ryana Popli. The three girls were enthusiastic and very well coordinated, truly working together as a team for the entirety of their performance. 

Moving from the technical pieces to ones with more storytelling, next was Durge Durge, performed by Dhruthi Kondamareddy. I was surprised to find out that Dhruthi is a young high schooler, since her portrayal of Goddess Durga was that of a fierce, self-assured, and compassionate maternal figure. Her vivid expressions brought the stunning choreography to life, demonstrating the dancer’s ability to emote while performing complex rhythmic footwork and movements. Continuing the theme of powerful characters, Dhruthi and Tanmayee presented Adenamma in the soul stirring raga Paras. This piece showcased the Cosmic dance of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi, as well as the navarasas or nine primary emotions in Indian classical dance forms. At multiple points in the performance, the two girls shifted through various one-legged poses depicting the Gods, which showed their incredible balance, strength, and grace. 

Towards the end of the margam, Dhruthi and Tanmayee presented the iconic Brahmam Okkate. This composition speaks to the oneness in all by presenting various analogies, asserting that the sleep of a King is equal to that of a servant, and so on. The beauty of Indian classical arts is how profound and seemingly abstract philosophical concepts are presented with clear imagery, such that anyone can understand. The two dancers did a fantastic job of encapsulating Sri Annamacharya’s analogies.

To conclude the Bharatantyam portion of the program, Dhruti presented a brisk Yamunakalyani Thillana, composed by none other than Sri Lalgudi G Jayaraman. Dhruthi took a turn from playing the role of the powerful Durga to that of playful little Krishna, tending to his cows and making beautiful music with his flute. Dhruthi seamlessly switched from piece to piece, taking on different characters throughout the entire evening, often making the audience forget that this was all being presented by the same young girl. All of the performances by Natyanjali school of dance showed the young dancers’ strong dedication to this art form, as they put together this entire margam while preparing for their upcoming arangetrams as well.

The second segment of the inauguration program was an enthralling Kuchpudi performance by Anushka Chilukuri, a discipline of Smt. Sailaja Tummala. Prior to this day, I was not familiar with Kuchupudi dance, apart from the tarangam, a unique feature of the dance form wherein the artist dances on the edges of a brass plate. Within the first few minutes of her performance, Anushka made me very excited for the opportunity to learn about the Kuchupudi style. 

She first presented Pranavaakaaram by Sri Oothukaadu Venkata Subbaiyer, choreographed by Guru Sri Hari Ram Murthy. Anushka portrayed Lord Ganesha, the remover of all obstacles, showing him in his joyous form as the “living embodiment of the Cosmic Om”. She started with an invocation of Lord Ganesha, Vande Ganesham, describing him as being adorned by snakes and the protector of his devotees, leading into an intricate jathi which built up to the start of the song. Emulating the large and weighty stride and the giant flapping ears of an elephant, Anushka’s flexibility and energy brought the dancing Ganesha to stage. She effortlessly spanned the length of the entire stage, giving us a glimpse into how the Lord Ganesha would scale the whole universe in his enormity. 

Anushka’s other piece was also by Sri Oothukaadu Venkata Subbaiyer: Maragatha Manimaya Chela. This tarangam, composed by Dr. Sri Vempati Chinna Satyam, consists of multiple segments. It depicts the ethereal beauty of Lord Sri Krishna, said to be more handsome than one crore Manmathas put together. Completely immersed in her art, it seemed as if Anushka was singing to the audience herself while showing us how Sri Krishna mischievously stole butter from his fellow villagers, and whisked away the Gopikas during the Raas Lila dance. Throughout her whole performance, Anushka was moving around all planes with unbelievable ease and joy, and only seemed to gain more energy as she continued dancing. Later on, she performed a sanchaari, a segment where the dancer shows a story within the larger song. She enacted how Lord Krishna generously relieved Sudama of poverty after eating a few bites of the poha he brought him, embodying the Lord’s compassion for his friend. To conclude this stunning performance, Anushka brought the house down with the iconic brass plate dance, performing complex rhythmic sequences at various tempos, bringing Sri Krishna’s Kalinga Narthanam to life. Through her dance, it was evident that Anushka fully surrendered herself to the art form, letting the divine shine through. 

Overall, the Natya Circle of New England’s inauguration event was a grand success. The very first program spoke volumes about this initiative’s ability to provide wonderful and talented young dancers a platform to further their careers in dance, while also providing an opportunity for members of the local community (like myself) to learn more about this divine art form. I hope to see more and more young dancers blossom into artists through this program, and humbly thank the Billerica Om Hindu Community Center, Smt. Jeyanthi Ghatraju, and Sri Siva Santhanakrishnan for being the driving forces behind this effort.  The full inauguration and more details on upcoming events can be found at Natya Circle of New England’s Facebook page and  Youtube channel.

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