Passion and Perseverance on Display at Outstanding Debut by Kum. Harini Jeyaraman

By: Sripriya Natarajan Moorthy, Artistic Director, Abhinaya Natyashala (Framingham, MA)

Kum. Harini Jeyaraman, disciple of guru Smt. Sujatha Meyyappan (Kolam Academy of Dance), entered the stage for her Bharatha Natyam arangetram to applause by the enthusiastic audience. Harini’s passion, dedication, and talent are well known to her friends and family, and the audience eagerly anticipated her debut. She delivered a performance on July 13, 2025, at Keefe Technical School Auditorium in Framingham, MA, that exceeded expectations, presenting a program that was impressive for its technical precision, unflagging energy and depth of expression.

Following an auspicious invocation, “Sri Ganesha Charanam”, by the live orchestra, Harini performed a precise Pushpanjali in Ragam Vijayavasantham, set to Adi thalam, composed and choreographed by Guru Madurai R. Muralidharan. The Pushpanjali was remarkable for Harini’s large eye movements well-synced with her footwork, the bhakthi (devotion) expressed in her facial expressions during the rhythmic movements, the height of her leg lifts and her precise control of thalam at fast speeds, especially in the ending pattern of footwork. The Pushpanjali was followed by a Ganesha Stuthi composed by Guru Muralidharan in Ragam Kanakangi set to Adi thalam. Harini continued to shine with excellent aramandi, sharp movements, energetic jumps, and masterful poses. Her expressions were remarkably mature and her nuanced head and eye movements channeled the traditional style of this ancient art form. In the third piece, “Muralidhara Kavithuvam”, another composition of Guru Muralidharan, set to Ragam Arabhi in Adi thalam, Harini continued to showcase her technical prowess with crisp mudras and dynamic jumps, and her expressive gifts, switching seamlessly from the wide-eyed mischief of young Krishna to a deep bhakthi as she praised his divinity.

Harini’s varnam showcased not only her skill as a performer, but the depth of her ownership of her chosen art form. She wanted to perform “Innam En Manam”, Sri Lalgudi G. Jayaraman’s varnam on Krishna in Ragam Charukesi, and with Guru Sujatha’s support, pieced together the song from different recordings, with jathis composed by Guru Muralidharan and choreography by Guru Chitra Muralidharan and Kolam assistant teacher Ananya Venkatesan. A piece centered on sringaram (a romantic mood) is challenging for a 14-year-old to present, and not something one would readily associate with Harini’s playful nature—yet, she showcased her versatility by leaving her audience spellbound with the depth, maturity and versatility of her expressions. In detailed sancharis, she depicted Krishna saving the panicked residents of Govardhana from the torrential rains sent by an outraged Indra, a gopika waiting for Krishna and choosing her sari and jewels with deliberation, and a breathtaking depiction of despair and grief as Krishna does not come to her at the end. It is a bold artistic decision to end a varnam on a sad note, especially for an arangetram, and Harini did full justice to that choice with a moving performance that truly touched the audience.

After intermission, Harini made a majestic entrance as Shiva for the keerthanam “Shankara Srigiri”, a classic composition of Maharaja Swathi Tirunal, in ragam Hamsanandhi set to Adi thalam. Highlights of this piece were her poses that were simultaneously sharp and graceful,  the height of her leg lifts and kicks, the discipline of her eye movements that enhanced all her steps as well as cleanly executed knee spins (a hallmark of her guru Smt. Sujatha). The choreography of this piece included interludes that showcased the pancha nadai (5 different counting patterns) and a jugalbandhi between Shiva and Parvathi where the orchestra cleverly alternated the nattuvangam between Guru Sujatha and vocalist Sri E. P. Sudev Warrier to provide male and female vocals.

In “Kaalam Kaalamai”, a Ragamalika composition of Guru Muralidharan set to Adi thalam, Harini extolled the beauty, spirit and power of this art form that has flourished for centuries. Again, Harini’s depth of aramandi and depth of expressions, including a presentation of the navarasas (nine key expressions) were remarkable, and she slid into her final pose with exceptional control and grace. This graceful piece was followed by the powerful “Maha Kali”, a composition of Guru Muralidharan in ragam Gowla, set to Adi thalam. The red lighting set the mood for this fierce piece. The choreography included beautiful details that were also executed well by Harini, such as a Kali pose in which she depicted 8 different weapons held by Kali’s many arms, and a swaram with movements punctuated with elegant poses and a powerful depiction of Kali riding on her tiger.  By request, Harini worked with Kolam assistant teacher Shilpa Narayanan to choreograph the final sequence in which the classic Mahishasura Mardhini slokam was added to show the Goddess Kali’s fierce defeat of the demon Mahishasura. Combining power and grace, Harini embodied Shakthi in this piece.

Harini concluded her excellent performance with a thillana, a composition of Guru Muralidharan in ragam Nasika Bushani set to Sankeerna Triputa thalam. Harini’s unflagging energy was showcased by her full energy throughout her last piece. During the stage rehearsal, again at Harini’s request, Guru Sujatha collaborated with the orchestra to add a jugalbandhi between her and Harini. With just a single practice, they executed the jugalbandhi beautifully before wrapping up the program with Harivarasanam, the Ayyappa lullaby, as the Mangalam. As Harini finished to a standing ovation by the audience, she was feted by a surprise shower of petals falling from the ceiling— a fitting end to a truly stellar debut performance.

Harini’s passion, talent and dedication have been nurtured by Guru Sujatha Meyyappan, who, before awarding Harini with a plaque commemorating this event, commended Harini’s curiosity and commitment, and said she was proud of Harini “to the power of infinity”. Harini’s energy and precision were a direct reflection of her guru Smt. Sujatha. Sujatha’s strong nattuvangam also complemented the rest of highly experienced and talented live orchestra: vocalist “Sangeeta Ratna” Sri E.P. Sudev Warrier, mridhangist Sri Nagarajan Shanmugalingam, flutist Sri Ramani Thiagarajan and violinist Sri Anandhu Lal, whose music was a delight for the audience. The well-paced program was compered by a pair of dynamic MC’s; Shilpa Narayanan provided insightful explanations and commentary in English, complemented by Jayshree Suryanarayan’s beautiful summaries in Tamil.

Suja both thanked her Guru Muralidharan for his creative guidance, compositions and choreography, and credited Kolam Dance Academy’s assistant teachers, Shilpa Narayanan, Ananya Venkatesan and Adhithi Venkatesan, for their help in teaching & polishing pieces. Harini and Suja both spoke warmly about the incredible support from Harini’s parents, driving over an hour for classes each way, as well as her brother, who generously shared his birthday with her arangetram day, and her grandparents, aunt & uncle who travelled to be present for this milestone. Harini and her parents were also grateful for the support of many New England dance gurus who graced the occasion with their presence.

Harini’s alankaram was performed by talented makeup artist Smt. Anu Metra, and her traditional and vibrant costumes and jewelry were from Praveena Tailors of Coimbatore and Akshetha Temple Jewels. Other credits for this successful debut include Sri Jawed Bhai for audio and lighting, Kolam Media Creations (Sri Saravanan Meyyappan) for the photoshoot, brochure design, and event videography and KrispFotos (Sri Krish Velmurugan) for event photography, and Swagat for catering.

Several of Harini’s friends spoke about Harini throughout the program, and their words all echoed the same themes- Harini’s passion, her authenticity, her curiosity and her unwavering determination. She herself spoke about the important life lessons of commitment and perseverance that she has learned through her arangetram journey. Harini sprained her ankle a month before her arangetram – despite the pain, dancing with a brace, she delivered an outstanding performance without any compromise of her form or energy.  Her unwavering commitment to growth as a dancer was apparent after the program as, instead of chatting about the rest of her summer plans with friends, she sat watching the recording of her own performance, critiquing herself in preparation for improvements for the future. It is this extraordinary commitment to reaching for perfection that resulted in such an excellent performance. Harini deserves to be immensely proud of herself for her passion, her effort and her talent.

As the speeches were coming to a close, playful Harini picked up one of the flower petals that had showered down upon her during the Mangalam and blew it across the stage. I hope she made a wish that her arangetram is truly just her ascent to the stage. I am sure that she has decades of growth and fulfillment as a dancer ahead of her.

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