Watch Mallika Sarabhai showcase a unique Bharatanatyam performance in Mumbai

Dance is more than just a performing art for Mallika Sarabhai The director of Darpana Academy of Performing Arts Ahmedabad tells this writer ldquoIt is to me one powerful language and I speak manyrdquo The theatre maker and danseuse will be taking the stage tonight at G5A to showcase her latest creation Past ForwardA nayika transformedldquoThe show traces the evolution of the agency of the nayika or those of us who perform the nayika today It is also an example of what I use Bharatanatyam to speak about This is traditional Pandanallur Bharatanatyam but its expression is completely differentrdquo she remarks The performance conceptualised in 2023 as part of the Kolkata Literary Festival is almost a mixedmedia performance with Carnatic music and jazz accompanying the poetic verses dating from the 13th century to modern times It is also the first time she is bringing it to a Mumbai stageThe verses Sarabhai reveals follow the journey of the lsquonayikarsquo or the heroine of Indian performing arts ldquoThe nayika is often a woman depicted in wait or pining for the Lord Her life is centred on the male character Yet by the 18th century you begin to witness change One varnam I found had the nayika telling her friend lsquoKartikeya was promised to me in marriage If he decides to take up asceticism now I wonrsquot have itrsquordquo she sharesThe performance utilises poetry music and even visuals as a tool to enhance the expression of dance Sarabhai points out ldquoThe limitations are often in the performer not the form You can use the English language to craft a limerick or use it the way Shakespeare did It is the same with all art formsrdquoThese influences can also traverse across languages One example is the JamaicanEnglish poet John Agard ldquoThe piece I perform alongside Aditi Ramesh is titled Yes or No While we do not use Agardrsquos verses it emerges from his concept in the poemrdquo she saysDance to changeVocalist Aditi Ramesh who collaborates with Sarabhai in the piece shares ldquoI have produced the core music for the piece Yes or No and we improvise the rest on stagerdquo This improvisation requires her to add movements to her vocals ldquoThe movements reflect the idea of womenrsquos progress mdash one step forward and two steps backrdquo she says Ramesh adds that the use of visuals in Sarabhairsquos act is one of its highlights saying ldquoIt is unlike most Bharatanatyam performances where the audience has to interpret solely by expressionrdquo The performance is not set though ldquoThis is not the same performance as before The act evolvesrdquo she saysIn the current context of women rising up in angst across societal lines the performance acquires a different colour In that sense Sarabhairsquos drive to push the dance form beyond shringara beauty is a lesson learnt early in life She recalls how her mother the late Mrinalini Sarabhai turned to Bharatanatyam to shock a conservative audience and former Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru into awareness about dowry deaths ldquoI was a very little child but that influenced my thinking that dance and music are used to talk about societyrdquo she saysToday will be a chance for the audience to rediscover this experience As the danseuse says ldquoThe surprise for the audience is always that they cannot imagine that Bharatanatyam could be like this or say this while staying within the boundaries of the alphabetrdquoON October 2 8 pmAT G5A Warehouse G5A Laxmi Mills Estate Shakti Mills Lane Mahalaxmi WestLOG ON TO insiderinCOST R749 onwards