It is rare to see male dancers take to classical Indian dance in the United States.  Natya Anubhava Academy of Classical Dance recently presented Abhijit Nagaraj in his Bharata-Natyam debut in Ridgefield, Connecticut.  Abhijit, a senior in Ridgefield High School, is a student of Smt. Nalini Rau, a reputed dancer, choreographer and teacher based in New York.  He has been learning the Dandayudapani Pillai Bani from Ms. Rau for the last 9 years and has been an active participant in her recent dance dramas, the Nauka Charitramu and the DaSha-avatara.  Smt. Nalini Rau had chosen a range of items that required Abhijit to deliver a mature performance and he did. 

Abhijit began the recital with a Pushpanjali choreographed by Nalini Rau in Raga Hamsadwani and Rupaka tala.  Abhijit danced the Pushpanjali with exuberance and anga shuddha.  This was followed by Ponnayya Pillai’s Jathiswaram in Ragamalika Misra Chapu, choreographed by Kalaimamani Dakshinamoorthy Pillai.  The piece de resistance was the forty-five minute long dramatic Varnam.  Smt. Nalini Rau has visualized and choreographed Jayadeva’s verses on Vishnu’s DaSha avatara in a Varnam format.  Dramatic jathis heightened the fierce aspects of avataras such as that of Parushurama, the slayer of corrupt rulers.  Smt. Saavitri Ramanand has set to music with a different raga to each avatara of the Varnam.  Abhijit’s performance was outstanding as he did full justice to the theme of the battle of dharma and adharma in each of the ten avataras.  In particular, he brought to life the ferocity of Narasimha, the intelligence of Vamana, the fierce courage of Parushurama, the underhand act of Ravana in kidnapping Sita, and the serenity of Buddha.  The Varnam received a spontaneous standing ovation from the packed audience.

The Varnam was followed by a Dasara pada in Arabi Raga, choreographed by Gurus U. S. Krishna Rao and Smt. Chandrabhaga Devi.  Here Abhijit brought into play the joyful spirit of Krishna engaged in dangerous combat with Kaliya, the serpent.  Abhijit danced the piece extremely well, covering the space with ease, and showing the contrast between a playful Krishna and an arrogant serpent slowly accepting defeat.  This item was followed by the beloved classic ‘iddadu padam tuki’ in Kamas, choreographed by Padmini Ravi, describing the beauty of Lord Nataraja and his dance in Chidambaram.  Here again, Abhijit reveled in the Tandava style of dancing with intricate rhythmic patterns, abhinaya, weaved with complex jathis and poses.  This was followed by a beautiful Dasara pada on Narasimha describing the confrontation of Prahlada and his powerful father Hiranyakashyapu culminating in the gruesome slaying of the King by Vishnu as Narasimha.  Abhijit excelled in portraying the three characters, with his expressions ranging from the innocent faith of the child, the arrogant fury of the king, the ferocity of Narasimha, and the fear of the onlookers.  Abhijit concluded the recital with Shri Lalgudi Jayaraman’s melodious Thillana in Madhuvanti, choreographed by Guru K.N. Dakshinamoorthy Pillai.  The Thillana was complex and Abhijit performed it with dexterity.  The recital ended with an unusual but apt Kanakadasa’s Mangalam, and with a second standing ovation from the large crowd.

The orchestra offered an excellent professional performance, with Smt. Nalini Rau on the Nattuvangam, Smt. Saavitri Ramanand, the vocalist, Shri Murali Balachandran on the Mridangam, Shri Balaskandan on the violin, Shri Raman Kalyan on the flute.  The interludes performed by Shri Raman and Shri Murali were of high quality and greatly appreciated.  The show had been well organized, with Shri Veni Madhavan, the reputed Veena artist, providing well researched explanations for each item, and Rohini Rau-Murthy offering the visual explanations of the abhinaya and the storyline.  The arangetram had an extra touch as Abhijit had two gurus watching him with pride: Nalini Rau, his teacher in Bharata-Natyam, and Veni Madhavan, his teacher for Carnatic music.
 
Abhijit is son of Drs. D.R. and Jyothi Nagaraj of Ridgefield, CT.

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