Trained in Bharata Natyam from Rukmini
Devi’s Kalakshetra, Chennai (1966-70), Indu has been Teaching, performing and
composing new repertoire since 1970. Chairman of Tanjore Brahmin temple dance-theatre
Melattur Bhagavata Mela Natya Vidya Sangam (1993-2002), Indu focussed her
efforts to preserve, promote the art and sponsored performances of this ancient
art in metros, temples, and art conferences. Indu published research papers in
art journals and wrote features on music, dance, theatre and film in leading
newspapers. Indu Raman was Producer, sponsor, part- choreographer, designer
costumes and stage settings, of a new Marathi Bhagavata Mela play ‘Sakuntala’ in 2002. She
initiated research on Bhagavata Mela and a publication is under way.
The history
of art is the history of revivals: Samuel Butler
Keep Dance
Heritage Alive
Is the urban
audience is losing its sensitivity and taste for the rich, slow and elaborate
theatre which is precious dance heritage?
Is this snob attitude adversely affecting the existing traditions
causing them to hit the heading –for-extinction list? Ritualistic and classical
theatre of the older civilizations like Greece, India & China are
losing out rapidly to dazzling slick proscenium presentations of the modern
entertainment world.
In the name of sophistication, influenced by
snobbish city attitudes, the traditional performers are being influenced to
forget their roots and heritage. Are we losing our rich cultural roots and
identity?
How important is preservation of ancient theatre
traditions? How do we ensure it is not lost to posterity? We must not forget
that modern presentations are based on
(a) tradition (b) are transient and (c) are not expected to last for
centuries.
Time is
running out……..
1. Introduction to Indian Theatre
The ancient
civilization of India
is recognized as highly developed and sophisticated beyond our comprehension.
Theatre is the traditional repository and the treasury that preserves and
integrates rituals, rites, folk cultures, and customs. Theatre is the throbbing
pulse of countryside India
where there is a song and dance for everything from the birth of a child to
marriages, harvest, seasons, and even death. The panorama of Indian Theatre is
vast and complex and fall into various genre like classical, folk, devotional,
and ritual. The rites and rituals enshrined in the Vedas are acted out in
everyday life. Hinduism offers three paths, i.e., action, knowledge and
devotion that lead to or salvation (moksha) from the cycle of birth and death
(Karma). Devotion is considered the superior path with music, dance and theatre
as the medium through which the actor and the spectator can reach the Divine.
Many plays normally reach an ecstatic climax where the entire audience is
transformed into a mass of human souls yearning to reach the Higher Self. The
spectators get so involved in the event that they transcend their role of mere
spectators and become participants.
Every corner of the country has theatre rooted in the temple tradition.
Theatre and the arts originate in religion in many countries, more so in this
land of many tongues and a hundred alien invasions.
The farmers, wandering nomads and hill-tribes have no
formal training but yet can sing and dance in unison. Music and rhythm flows
through their veins. But the temple theatre is a strict and formal ground where
the training is long and arduous. There are voluminous texts to be learnt and
scriptures to be studied. The royal patrons supported the temple and its art
and thus theatre enjoyed a high status. Tradition was enforced and change was
strongly discouraged. Dance, music and theatre were an integrated artform. Mythological stories formed the core of the
content. The stories served to teach moral principles, educate and unify the
community.
2.History.
There is no historical evidence of the origin of dance
and theatre in India
where the arts are considered to be divine blessings and celestial gods like
Shiva and Vishnu are the fountainhead of all inspiration. Sanskrit drama
developed around 2nd century BC. It was at its peak till 15th
century AD . It continued to influence and spawn a dozen regional variations
for another three centuries. While Greek and Roman theatre is known to have
existed in 6th and 2nd Century BC respectively, it is
interesting to observe that Medieval theatre in Europe began around 9th
century AD while Noh of Japan, and Chinese Opera were developed in 15th
century AD.
3. Important Aspects of Classical Indian Theatre.
a) The Structure of the Play
Bharata’s Natya Sastra dated 2nd or 3rd
century BC is the most comprehensive text on theatre. From the architectural
aspects of a theatre structure to body movement, music, costume and inner
emotional states, the Natya Sastra covers every aspect of performance. These
rules are followed uniformly throughout the country with every regional
language and customs lending their hue to create an astonishing variety of
theatre and dance forms. There is a
vibrant synergy connecting verbal dialogue and vocal music, pure movement and
expressive dance, story-telling and dramatics An ensemble (Mela) of musicians,
instrumentalists, dancers, actors come together in a performance. In the multifarious
cultural scene in India,
theatre forms reveal interesting similarity even between geographically and
linguistically distanced styles.
Classical Indian dance has three aspects, Nritta,
Nritya and Natya. Nritta is pure dance movement which is performed to
preset intricate rhythmic patterns in a song or melody. It does not have
significance or meaning, but may be used for such a purpose. Nrtya is
interpretative dance used when conveying the meaning of the lyrics or content
of a song. It involves a codified language of hand gestures and expression of
the face. Natya is the dramatic enactment of the story. A theatre or dance form
may combine these aspects in varying ratio. For example, Bharata natyam , a
solo dance , has nritta and nritya in
equal proportions, while Kathak may have more emphasis on Nrtta or rhythmic
movements and some natya. Bhagavata Mela Natakams have an equal proportion of
the three aspects. The essence of Kudiyattam is the astonishing use of the eye
with minimal movement and music.
b) Aesthetics: The Concept of Rasa.
The most significant contribution of Indian aesthetics
is the analysis of the basic eight sentiments; erotic, comic, pathetic,
furious, heroic, terrible, odious and marvelous and the corresponding the eight
emotional states; love, humour, sorrow, anger, valour, terror, disgust and
astonishment. There are thirty-three transitory states and five vital
involuntary states of the mind; Numbness, horripilation, change of voice, tears
and loss of consciousness. Perspiration and change of colour may be included in
this list.
The Natya Sastra describes Rasa as the emotional
response of the spectator to whole theatre experience. Did the actors convey
the story effectively? Was their emoting convincing enough to pull at the
heart- strings? The text even compares this experience to that of a gourmet who
has been served a fine meal. It is not whether he enjoyed the soup, the main
course or the dessert more but what the total experience meant to him. A
holistic purview of the theatre experience that the spectator carries with him
is Rasa.
c) Literature
The classical theatre uses written scripts, thus
generating a vast literature tradition in every language and form. These plays
have an array of poems in varied metres that are recited, sung, dance or
enacted. The literary structure of these plays imparts a richness and texture
to the play and is an important built-in artistic device. The scripts offer
historic evidence and much information on the social customs of their times.
The playwright includes a mention of his family tree, names of his teachers,
the date of writing, and the name of his patron.
*1.This introduction is spoken by the
Sutradhar in ‘Sakuntala’ a play in Marathi, written by Ekoji II, a Maratha
ruler in Tanjore.
“Sutradhar: Thus commences the play called Sakuntala
after praising Chandramouliswara, goddess Bhavani, Khanderayya and all other
family deities and praising favourite gods.
With a prayer to Shahendra , here follows a
description of the Bhosale lineage.
I bow to you, O Full Moon of the Bhosale family,
father Maloji Purandra, Shahji Maharaja, his son Eka Maharaj, whose elder son
Shaha Maharaj and Sarabha Maharaj’s younger brother, grandson of Dipakambika,
Ekoji Maharaja’s work Sakuntala is being presented for the pleasure of all.”
In a play ‘Markandeya’, we have the only evidence of the
date of Melattur Venkatrama Sastri in
the introduction.
“ Written in the reign of the great warrior Sri
Sivaji (II)…. ”
d) The Performance- With Particular Reference to Bhagavata Mela
Natakam.
While the classical theatre has overlapping functions of
devotional, literary presentation and technical achievements, it is invariably
a part of ritualistic commemoration. It may not be performed for mere
entertainment or profit, but it is part of rituals to propitiate the gods. The
rituals are integrated into the performance. For example, many artforms include
an onstage appearance of Ganesha (remover of obstacles and therefore worshipped
before any life activity by all) in an elephant mask. He dances a blessing and
is worshipped with fruits, coconut and flowers and camphor is lit . This
burning camphor is then symbolically
shown to the spectators and orchestra. Everyone responds by accepting the
flame, muttering a silent prayer and joining the hands above the head in a
prayerful attitude. In Bhagavata Mela , the story of a small boy named Prahlada
is enacted annually on a fixed day in the village. The story is of the
appearance of Vishnu in his incarnation of Narasimha, a man-lion. The actor who
portrays this character purifies himself with prayers and fasting before
wearing the mask of Narasimha. The mask itself is considered so holy and
powerful that it is worshipped in the temple. The spectators bow down to the
actor in costume as he makes a dramatic appearance at the climax. Devotees are also known to commission a
performance as thanksgiving for prayers granted and wishes fulfilled.
____________________________________________________________________________
*1. Originally Tamil speaking,
Tanjore was the melting pot of three cultures. The Vijayanagar Nayaks (1565)
introduced Tamil and the Marathas (1684-1855) wrote in Marathi. The royalty of
both cultures were scholars of music and literature. They encouraged local
talent without bias. Shahendra was a king who is considered the first Marathi
playwright and hence worthy of salutation.
The Performance Area
Bhagavata
Mela was earlier performed on the street in front of the temple. Spectators sit
in two rows leaving an aisle in the middle. The narrow street had row houses on
either side with their open verandahs (sit-out) facing the street. This offered
extra seating. With the generally low noise level during the night, sound of
music and dialogue carried through to the hundred or so in the audience. The
performers and the spectators were on the same level. The musicians stood
around the actors. Large oil lamps and blazing torches lit up the performance
area.
f) The
Community
Melattur Bhagavata Mela is a Brahmin tradition. *2
The actors belong to the highest caste whose duties are to interpret Vedas,
conduct religious ceremonies, teach and sing the praise of the gods. Each family dedicates one of the sons to the
tradition. In Melattur, only the natives of the village are allowed to participate.
The son inherits the roles from the males in the family. These roles become the
cherished property of the family.
The community
comes together as one and contributes cash, offer food and welcome visitors in
their houses who stayed for the entire festival. The date is fixed on a
particular day each year, so the actors and spectators schedule their
commitments and ensure that they are present. They are not professional or
itinerant groups. All the actors are male so the wives lend their personal dresses
and jewelry for their husbands or sons to wear.
g) Preliminaries
The Natya Sastra describes rituals pertaining to the
performance like placement of musical instruments, the singers enter and begin
warm-up, alignment of drums and musical instruments, dancers warm-up, and then
a long complicated drum playing which also serves to indicate to the villagers
for miles around that the play is ready to commence.
h) Invocation
Officially, the ‘play’ commences late in the night with
invocations to the pantheon of both male and female deities, among whom Ganesha
and Indra , (the king of gods and patron of
actors) are important. Many of the verses sung before the actors enter
relate to the stage Director (Sutradhar) announcements of the content of the
play, description of the playwright, and the thanksgiving to the patron who in
most cases is the ruling royalty.
Sakuntala
i) Entry
The main protagonist makes his entry with a song. In
fact all characters are introduced with a song to which they execute rhythmic steps.
These songs are set to rhythmic cycles and are sung in a melody (Raga) most
suited to the character’s nature and appearance. The lyrics describe his
costume, his manner of walking, the effect his entry has on other beings and
Nature, the mannerisms of his entourage and generally indicate whether he is
evil, good and noble.
*2. The other three castes in the
Hindu social system are Vaishya-merchants, Kshatriyas-warriors, and
Sudra-menial workers. Though the government has declared the caste system is
invalid, there is discrimination in society on the basis of caste and religion.
*4In the play ‘Prahlada’, the evil demon king
Hiranyakashipu’s entry is a good example.
“Hiranyakashipu entered with a fast gait.
Asura(demon) courtiers accompanied him with demonic actions and gestures. The
earth trembled with the firm footsteps of the valiant, unrivalled warrior. His
face reflected his pride and self- importance. Ministers and generals stood by
his side. The king rested his arms on
their shoulders as he walked majestically. People an all directions extolled
his virtues.”
These interludes do nothing to take the story forward,
but are the most interesting and establish the status and characteristics of
the character. They are important because of the actor dances intricately
choreographed rhythmic phrases and uses elaborate interpretation. Such
compositions have been handed down from father to son and are valuable heritage
to be treasured. Interpretation of a line means dancing the same line about 50
times expanding its meaning each time. It is fascinating to see the dancer
intensify his emotions in stages and give several layers of meaning to a single
idea. The Bhagavata Mela actors are particularly expert in these passages and a
scholarly dancer can truly appreciate the heightened feelings and deep
understanding shown by these actors. Some lyrics are sung to rhythms, which
vary from slow and medium to fast. Some are sung in a free melody with a slow
elaboration. There are prose passages that the Director may speak or appear as
dialogue between two characters. This variety offered rich texture and great
aural pleasure. There is an air of informality and it is not a slick or sophisticated
presentation in the modern sense. The make-up is natural and the costumes
reflect the attire of the ruling royalty. There are more than four singers and
a dance conductor who actually controls the entire orchestral team and
coordinates with the actors. There is a double –faced drum (mridangam) and an
Indian lute (Veena) and a flute to accompany and support the singers. The
voluminous script and the length of the performance take its toll on the energy
and voices of the singers. Thus, the play has much to offer to lovers of music,
dance and theatre.
After the major characters of a scene enter, the story
unfolds. The story is told in elaborate detail and in reference to the context
leading to this incident. The actors are trained in the basic technique and are
knowledgeable about the scriptures; know music and the lyrics so they improvise
on the stage. At times a hero or heroine may take an entire hour to
complete the entry. If it is a dancing
heroine, she may use this entry to establish herself as an accomplished dancer
and show off her skills and technique. The play lasts all night. When the play
ends with the appearance of the relevant god and the sky is pink with the
rising sun. Prayers of benediction and thanksgiving are chanted and the actors and
musicians go in a procession to the temple.
_______________________________________________________________________________
This translation is taken from Raman Indu: Vanishing
Traditions-Bhagavata mela-Special Edition Indian Music Journal, Baroda.
This play is the most significant for Bhagavata Mela which is found in Tanjore district of
southern India.
Five villages were granted to the tradition in 1577 by Achyuthappa Nayak,
Besides Melattur where there are two groups, Saliyamangalam, and Teperumal
Nallur also have annual performances. Each village has a special mask for
Narasimha. The scripts are different as is the presentation.The other two
villages . Soolamangalam and Oothukadu only perform the rituals.
3.The Changes in Performance Today
The narrow street in front of the temple in Melattur is
too narrow and when the crowds became unbearable and suffocating, a well-wisher
gifted an acre of land. This also split the troupe into two factions. The
original group moved into the open land and build a temporary stage for the
annual festival. When the village was connected to electricity the oil lamps
went out. There is sound amplification, and the musicians now sit on the left
in a long line. Bright incandescent lamps strung in rows light up the stage.
This writer’s association with this group began in 1992
they performed in a modern proscenium theatre in Mumbai. Clearly, they were
overwhelmed by the vast stage, enormous but empty theatre, the chill of the
air-conditioning, and the absence of identifiable exit and entry points. They
had edited the play to accommodate the 120- minute time limit given by the
organizers. They were uncomfortable and put up a pitiable performance. But it
was the absolutely divine music and the intrinsic talent that shone
through. At their insistence I took up a
more formal role in their organization. Research was initiated, regular
practice was insisted on and awareness of the formality of performances.was
created. We took greater care about the colours and textiles used for costumes.
The make-up for female roles was improved and better wigs were procured.
Actually, a little guidance went a long way and the actors worked very hard.
Till then they performed only once a year. Now more performance opportunities
were created and presentations in conferences for scholarly audiences gave them
much confidence and made them realize the value of their art.
4. Areas
Where Problems Arise.
- The
Time Factor.
The plays are performed in the complete version at the
village festival. This means approximately five hours as we have seen earlier.
When performing outside in proscenium theatre for an urban audience, the play
is edited to 120 minutes. What parts of the play gets edited? The grand entry
songs, rich interpretative dance elaboration, and the peripheral characters.
With this the respective musical compositions, rare melodies, and the intricate
rhythmic dance passages are also edited.
Soon these portions will be forgotten and the next generation will be
deprived of the pleasure of performing them and viewing them. The three
hundred-year old format of the play is shrinking and may become misshapen
beyond recognition. Like teeth pulled out randomly, there are gaping holes
instead of a beautiful smile. This means a great loss to our dance heritage.
B. Effects of
Modernity
The proscenium theatre experience can be seen to bring
in uneasy and acute awareness of time, audience response and personal
appearance. There is loss of spontaneity and the freedom to improvise. The
younger generation is missing out on inspiring role models to emulate. The
satellite invasion brings shocking images from across the globe attacks the
roots of their simple life and beliefs.
C. Lack of Sophistication
Informed critics claim that traditional dancers compare
poorly with professional dancers where technique, polish and presentation is
concerned. The sophisticated technique
of the institution- trained dancers raise the expectations of the urban
audience But the traditional actor has this innate ability to immerse himself
in his role. It is not material gain that has brought him on the stage. He transforms himself into the role and these
strong vibrations evoke great Rasa, spectator response. The seasoned,
professional actor’s self-consciousness blocks this spontaneity and
involvement. Does this indicate that the actor’s traditional inheritance and
basic mind-set works for more real theatre?
D. Dwindling
Community
The actors are confined to a small community. These
families are growing smaller and modern education and better prospects lure
sons away from the family tradition. Some do not realize the historical and
social value of the art. Peer pressure and fear of ridicule for donning female
make-up may be a cause for keeping away from the art.
E. Musicians-financial
drain
The musicians of the large orchestra are professional
artists. The actors are dependent on them. The fees to be paid to them are a
drain on the resources. The Bhagavata mela cannot use recorded music.
*5Melattur Bhagavata Mela music is precious heritage that carries the secret
links of a grey area of the chronological map of Southern Indian music. The
orthodox style of singing is difficult and very few
singers have the energy and ability to hold their own for five hours.
F. Limited Repertoire
There are only 12 plays written in Telugu language by
one Bhagavata Mela playwright, Melattur Venkatrama Sastri. An effort to
surmount this limiting boundary was made by producing a play in Marathi, the
language in which many Bhagavata Nataka plays have been written. It was
envisaged that enlarging the repertoire in would create more performing
opportunities, a new audience, and re-kindle interest in the art. The event
drew a positive response from the public and the press. The government’s cultural
agencies now recognize the scope and potential of the art. Unexpectedly,
it also attracted future sponsors .
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
*5. Melattur was the birth place of many music composers.
They were pioneers in original compositions like Shabdams and Swarajatis. There
has not been much research or acknowledgement of their contribution to Indian
music.
Other Similar Artforms: How do they cope?
Kutiyattam:
Kutiyattam was once the preserve of the Chakyars and
Nangiars , an orthodox community of
Kerala. The performance was strictly performed in the temple theatre known as
‘Kutambalam” to be witnessed only by the Brahmins and royalty. This art form is
entirely in Sanskrit, and Prakrit. Some of the scenes use the local language,
Malayalam. It is so elaborate and stylized that it attracted only the learned
and intellectual scholars. Kutiyattam is now performed in theatres and in
kutambalams not connected to temples. Temple coffers have dwindled and today
there are rarely any performances in the Kutambalams. . Many of the present
actors do not necessarily belong to this community so a newer, younger generation
is being trained. 6*A training institution, which has a research bureau
and annual festivals has helped to revive this art. Most performers have to
turn to other means of livelihood if there are no performances. Most urban art
lovers are treated to fragmented scenes in public performances that limit
performance time to 60 or 90 minutes.
Kuchipudi:
The Brahmin males-only dance theatre of Andhra is today
better known as a solo dance form.
When the art was
languishing, a senior guru threw open the bastions of the art and declared that
women and any one else can learn and perform this art. Today it has survived as
a solo art though there are dance drama performances too. In fact, sometimes
women dancers don male roles!
Ankiya Nat:
The temple dance tradition was created in the 15th
century as an expression of devotion by
Sankaradeva. Originated in the north-eastern Indian state of Assam, Ankiya
Nat (literally one-act play) has neither ventured outside its state, nor has ambitions
to be recognized as a performing art. But it is practiced on a regular basis in
its native state. Unlike the other forms, this theatre has an elaborate
mis-en-scene and use larger than life props to denote trees, mountains etc.
Yakshagana:
It has a
continued tradition of over 400 years and is performed in the open fields at
night with fire torches for lighting. The actors wear striking red, yellow,
black, and green costumes with a splendid headdress and stylized make-up. Dr.
K. Shivarama Karanth worked to bring cohesion to the performance and his
research has contributed enormously towards the amelioration of the dance
theatre form. The several existing troupes have been fortunate to receive help
from the state and the central government besides invitations to perform
abroad.
*6. There are two Centres for Kudiyattam in Kerala. Ammanur
Madhava Chakyar , the oldest guru teaches at Natanakairali, Irinjalakuda. Margi
in Trivandrum
is a later offshoot with most of the teachers trained by Madhava Chakyar. It is
not confined to the Chakyar community, but Chakyar youngsters are being
encouraged to come back into the fold by G.Venu, Director, Natanakairali.
Kathakali:
The elaborate
mask like make-up and bejeweled crowns are immediately identified anywhere in
the world. Among the first of Indian performing arts to be appreciated world
wide, Kathakali was traditionally a male
bastion. A single scene from the epics can last a whole night. The only lighting was a large oil lamp in the
front of the performing area. The combination of drums, slow poignant music and
elaborate mimetic interpretation transports the viewer to a world of magic and
fantasy. Kerala Kalamandalam was set up early last century to revive and
preserve manyy artforms of this area. Today women actors take on both male and
female roles. The urban performances feature just one episode or one character
from a play on any kind of platform under neon and electric lights. The art
continues to flourish both at home and globally, but this overexposure
sometimes results in jaded performances with little merit or aesthetic
fulfillment.
5. What loss
of indigenous culture can mean. A Westerner’s view.
I met Peter and Inger, authorities on theatre from
Sweden, at the Kudiyattam Center Natana kairali, Irinjalakuda, Kerala. Peter
had worked with World Theatre where the cast comprises actors from India,
China, Africa, Sweden and Germany. They were there to coordinate with
Kudiyattam theatre and attend an International workshop. Reproduced below is a
verbatim excerpt from a taped interview where Peter speaks of the problems of
trying to find one’s roots. I asked Peter what brings him to study other
cultures in this journey.
Peter says,”
We try to understand our culture better. It is hard
enough. Especially if you are a westerner. So many of our traditions are gone.
Or broken. Or only on paper. Not body to body as the guru and pupil who are
making the tradition alive. But of course, the others also wanted to develop
their own, but for a Chinese actor the question was how can we come out of an
old tradition that was come to stagnation? Where it is not any longer
communicating with the audience. It is only a forum. What can we learn from the
others? Africa had been occupied for 500 years. Not a similar situation as in
India because you kept your culture. But in Mozambique language was forbidden,
religion was forbidden and so on for 500 years. It is a very long time. *7You
were saying here that theatre here lost its power for an intermission of 60-80
years. But 500 years! So they tried to find out. What is our roots? What is our
culture? If we see beyond these 500 years of European influence can we make a
theatre tradition that is built on our own? Because, it was a splendid culture.
So when they meet Indian Kudiyattam theatre they could have a kind of vision of
how their theatre could have been, if there was one. Then there are elements of
course. They have the dance, they have the music, costumes, rituals… Many
things that survived. From these fragments, they are trying to put something
together. As we are doing.
________________________________________________________________________
*7. There was a discussion of the Devadasi Act in
pre-independence India when the British ruled that all dance in temples and all
payment to such artists be stopped.
The natural living with religion is very difficult in so
called developed countries. Even if the longing is there. But many don’t find a
forum for this longing for wholeness. We do things like New Age and coming to
India….”
“We had some golden ages in Western Theatre history.
Greek theatre, Shakespeare theatre, for example. But no one can say how did
they act on the Shakespearean stage. We know very little about it. Could you
imagine if you wrote down a text from a Kudiyattam play? Only the text? 10
lines for six hours? And that was all that remained? What would you do? Even if
you had the manuals for acting and direction, it would be very difficult to
reconstruct if that was the only thing you had and did not have a guru. Kudiyattam
has changed, of course, in the past years, but the guru can tell with a 90%
accuracy how an actor acted in the sixteenth century. Remember, Greek theatre
is 4th century BC!”
6.Why Revive?
A performance of a new play in Bombay in January this year raised many
questions and *8 some informed critics and
influential connoisseurs struck at the very roots of the immense and
important revival efforts . Excerpts:
1. “It is the
common people that these dramas address, their express purpose being to
familiarize the general populace with the legends and their lessons in moral
and ethical values.”
Art lovers
must learn to respect the traditional artist for the contribution of his art to
the country’s culture. This is a matter of concern to all heritage lovers.
2. Many of the
viewers were left wondering why Bhagavata Mela natakams had to be staged at all
even if their themes are non-religious.
According to this writer, creating awareness of the
artform is of the highest priority. Many forget that these artists have made
many sacrifices and preserved the art not for material gain but with a sense of
responsibility.
3. “Would the
offering have been better in a local temple or as part of annual festivals?”
This is a vanishing tradition and it was expected
that serious art lovers would sit up and take cognizance of what the culture is
losing. The purpose of holding these performances in a city is the hope that
enlightened critics and scholars will come forward to encourage and support the
efforts positively. This is not mere entertainment for groups of illiterate
audiences-in-transit.
4. ‘Perhaps
traditional Bhagavata Mela can be led through a transformation with stagings
outside the temple precincts taking on the character of an art form rather that
of a religious rite.’
These comments seem to miss the forest for the trees.
It is possible to perform the religious rites only in the village. The
devotional fervour will come through only in the village ambience which takes
on a special festive air during the annual festival. The exercise of bringing
the artists to perform outside is to garner support and sponsorship. Thousands
of spectators would not have been able to view this dance-theatre if they did
not perform in cities. They need recognition and acceptance from society and
through them from the government agencies.
*8 See Sruti Issue 213, May 2002
7.Possible
Solutions for Survival
After studying the options chosen by other arts in the
same classification, we can conclude that there are indeed choices, but will
they destroy the essence of Bhagavata Mela?
1.One solution is to open the doors for all communities
and women at the risk of destroying the religious sanctity for propagation of
the art. A training school that will teach the music, dance and the theatre to
all must be established. These students could be used for performances outside
the village.
2.The urban performances must be edited but the village
performances should be complete in all respect.
Only traditional performers should participate. This will ensure that
the tradition is carried on.
3. Documentation of the performances by senior artists
will ensure that the original choreography is preserved for future reference.
4. Music must be recorded in a studio with modern equipment.
The music must also be written down in notation.
5. A research bureau should be constituted to collect
photographs, information, tape interviews and collect manuscripts, books and
memorabilia for reference.
6. Private sponsors may not support what does not
generate publicity for their brands. Therefore cultural clubs, central and
state government agencies should be requested to fund the efforts.
References
1. Richmond/Swann/Zarrilli- “Indian Theatre
Traditions of Performance” Motilal Banarsidass –1993
2. Raman Indu-“Bhagavata Mela-Vanishing
Traditions” Special Edition, Indian Music Journal, Baroda.
3. Wilson Edwin ‘The Theatre
Experience”-Mcgraw-Hill Book Co. 1976
4. Vatsyayan Kapila : Traditional Indian
Theatre : National Book Trust, 1980
5. Raman Indu : Editor, Commemmorative Issue ,
Bhagavata Mela Nataka Utsav-Mumbai 2002.
