MY JOURNEY WITH BHAGAVATA MELA

This is an excerpt from my book ‘Bhagavata Mela My Tryst with Tradition’ which was published in 2018. This excerpt gives details of my decade long work with Melattur Bhagavata Mela Natya Vidya Sangam.

MY JOURNEY WITH BHAGAVATA MELA

A DECADE OF SUPPORT & COLLABORATION, 1992–2002

My first exposure to an authentic Bhagavata Mela performance was in Mumbai in December 1992. The high standard of pure classical music and sparkling artistic talent shone through their obvious discomfort on the sterile environs of a modern stage. The actors appeared like an anachronism, archaic characters from ancient times standing bewildered in an alien environment. The vast theatre with more than a thousand seats was empty but for ten enthusiasts.

As a regular freelance writer on arts for The Times of India and The Hindu, I approached the artistes for an interview. I took a few photographs inside the green room. They were a little unnerved by their experience of performing in Mumbai. They asked me to meet them again the next day at the guest house they were staying.

It was here that they poured their heart out about the problems they face every year. They asked me to attend the festival the following year to witness Prahlada Charitram. They discussed their problems of keeping the tradition going and requested help and guidance.

I was nonchalant and knew that going to Melattur during summer holidays was quite impossible. I wrote a piece for The Times of India and forgot about the invitation.

Three months later, on 12 March 1993, S. Gopalakrishnan, the secretary of Natya Vidya Sangam, and Srinivasan, R. Mahalingam’s father-in-law, visited Mumbai again (amid the riots) to persuade me to attend the Melattur festival that year and take over as honorary chairperson. I was hesitant and unsure of the extent of involvement my commitment would entail. Among those present at home was the legendary violinist Shri T.N. Krishnan who persuaded me to accept the request. He promised to help me in any way he could. He later kept his word.

May 1993

Travelling with me to Melattur in May 1993 were my parents and Smt. Shanta Gokhale, the eminent theatre personality, author, and historian.

The play Prahlada Charitram was truly a splendid presentation and I was mesmerised by the young dancer Nagarajan who played Leelavathi and R. Mahalingam (Mali) who donned the fearsome crown of Hiranyakashipu. The Manifestation of Narasimha avatar was a spine-tingling experience.

The next evening there was no performance as it was rest day at Melattur. I went with a group to Saliyamangalam, another village where Bhagavata Mela was conducted regularly, to watch Prahlada Charitram. There was a fascinating difference in the music, dialogues, and presentation.

Bhagavata Mela’s scripts had been safeguarded from the general public so far. There was no awareness of the greatness of this special genre of literature and style of music. Dr V. Raghavan of the Music Academy (Chennai) had earlier published the script of Prahlada Charitram with music notation after extensive research and study of various versions.

The Natya Vidya Sangam revived and staged a new natakam the following day. Mali’s son Vinod had his debut as Seetha in Seetharama Kalyanam.

For the first time, the Sangam’s pandits, N. Viswanathan and Thanjavur N. Srinivasan, collaborated with Sarasvati Mahal Library to publish Melattur Venkatrama Sastri’s Seetharama Kalyanam. The manuscript only indicates the ragas and talas for the darus and credit for reconstructing the music goes to L. Venkatesa Iyengar. The script is printed in Devanagari, followed by transcription in Tamil. Explanatory notes for each scene are provided in Tamil. This book was released at the festival.

The Sangam decided to announce my name as the chairperson and I was given a formal welcome in a speech by B. Herambanathan. Arulthiru Sayimatha Siva Dr Brinda Devi was the chief guest. R. Mahalingam and his father K. Ramalinga Iyer were on the stage. Thus began a tumultuous decade of activity punctuated with my annual visits to Melattur and the Sangam’s visits to Mumbai.

I returned home to Mumbai with a heart full of possibilities and a head full of ideas. The first interview was with Melattur Ganesa Bhagavatar, a prominent personality in Mumbai. At his home we spoke at length about the history of the tradition and the people behind its revival. Here I met G. Krishnamurthy Sarma, musician and Sanskrit scholar, who had assisted Balu Bhagavatar in his heyday as a singer and conductor. As a youngster, Ganesa Bhagavatar said he had played the role of Bhoomi Devi.

The appealing music, sincerity of the artists, and the charm of the technique compelled me to accept this challenge in October 1993. I had no experience of working with an organisation. The distance was a concern. But here was a precious living art tradition which was obviously dying. The emphasis is on the devotional aspect, but how can we allow a potentially rich art to become defunct through neglect?

My priority therefore was to initiate serious research in the history of Bhagavata Mela. The team had erudite scholars like Pandit N. Viswanathan of the Thanjavur Maharaja Serfoji Sarasvati Mahal Library. He is the author of several publications which include translations of Tamil, Telugu, and Marathi lyrics. He has published a compilation of “Five Marathi Natakams” which includes the Marathi natakam Sakuntala by Ekoji II. He initiated the idea that we should perform a Marathi natakam. Sanskrit Pandit Thanjavur Shri N. Srinivasan has been enthusiastically involved in historical research and scrutiny of manuscripts. A popular Harikatha artiste, he is also the lead singer on the stage. The second priority was to create awareness among the connoisseurs and dance scholars about this dance tradition. I spoke to many scholars and patrons and asked them for guidance.

I consulted legendary musicians like Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, M.S. Subbulakshmi, D.K. Pattammal, Shri T.N. Krishnan, Shri G. Venu (Kudiyattam), T.S. Parthasarathy, and Smt. Shanta and Shri V.P. Dhananjayan, my gurus at Kalakshetra.

The Central Sangeet Natak Akademi responded to my petition and doubled the annual allowance from that year not only for the Melattur sangams but for all the villages. They had no funds to continue the tradition of celebrating a ten-day festival. In 1994, I recommended that we prune this to three days, to the great relief of the artistes and their families. I also encouraged them to revive one forgotten play every year.

I was associated with the artistes of one group in Melattur called Natya Vidya Sangam. The other group in the same village, Natya Nataka Sangam was run by Shri. S. Natarajan. It was my privilege that I could meet Natarajan’s father G. Swaminathan, the legendary actor and doyen of Bhagavata Mela. Though he was frail due to age-related issues, I was accorded a warm welcome in his home. I attended the Prahlada Charitram natakam performed by Shri Natarajan’s group. I was impressed with the performance of the two brothers Natarajan and Kumar as Leelavathi and Hiranyakashipu respectively. The music was excellent and the sincerity and devotion of this group was palpable. They perform on a stage in front of the temple entrance and the audience sit on the road leading to it.

When both groups perform Prahlada Charitam on the same night, the same Narasimha mask has to be used for the last scene. In such a situation, one group begins two hours earlier and hands over the mask at the temple in time for the next group. If Shri Natarajan, who lived and worked abroad, was unable to perform on the Narasimha Jayanti Day, his group’s festival would be held at the earliest suitable date.

January 1994

I was formally appointed as chairperson in October 1993 and the first five-day festival in Mumbai was organized in January 1994. Within those two months I persuaded four organisations to sponsor the performances — Kala Rasika Sangam (Sion), Gana Kala Vidya Nilayam (Goregaon), Andhra Mahasabha (Dadar), and N.C.P.A. (Nariman Point). An invitation to city dancers and the print media brought in much publicity.

One of the most beautiful events was a traditional welcome to the Bhagavatars by T. K. Mahalingam Pillai and Kalasadan Mani, respected Bharata Natyam gurus of Mumbai. They felt that, as the artistes of this tradition were coming here for the first time, they must express their respect and admiration for them. The artistes were greeted with nadaswaram (temple pipe instruments) players and traditional poorna-kumbham (tray with coconuts, fruits, and betel leaves). The committee of Kala Rasika Sangam presented the Melattur artistes with a purse and a citation. A travelling suitcase for every member of the troupe was sponsored by a well-wisher. Hundreds of the city’s dancers were present to welcome the torch-bearers of this ancient tradition. Ganesa Bhagavatar offered all guests the customary panagam (spiced jaggery drink), the traditional Lakshmi Narasimhaswami prasad (offering) from the Bhajana Samaj Sri Rama temple. The visiting artistes were enthusiastic and cooperated whole-heartedly. They performed an excerpt from a natakam for the audience.

I must confess that it was not roses all the way, for thorns were scattered by prickly local bandicoots with vested interests and other “traditionalists” to stall this first Bhagavata Mela festival in Mumbai. The first blow came from the main conductor of the troupe who refused to join at the last minute, so a substitute was urgently summoned. The dancers rehearsed with him during the train journey. In Mumbai, some staged a door-to-door campaign and threatened those who supported the festival with ostracism from religious functions.

I realised then that my mission must be significant and important enough to provoke such a reaction. It is to the credit of Guru Kalasadan Mani and the Melattur Sangam that they stood staunchly by me and my efforts. I was determined to continue my work regardless.

There were two full-house performances at the Gana Kala Vidya Nilayam at Goregaon, and the audience was spellbound by the Sangam’s performances. The other two performances in Andhra Mahasabha at Dadar and N.C.P.A. at Nariman Point were also well-received.

I must express my immense gratitude to my husband Ramnath Raman who supported my involvement with the Sangam. He designed and printed flyers, posters and playlists, and arranged the transport to all corners of the city every time the troupe visited.

April 1994

Sruti, a magazine for the arts requested me to write a cover story about the tradition for their April 1994 issue to time with the annual Narasimha Jayanti festival. This was an honour for the Natya Vidya Sangam which had been languishing without popular support or appreciation. At that time, the magazine was considered a dignified supporter of artistes and encouraged research-oriented articles from scholars. In the feature, I covered many aspects of Bhagavata Mela and included a report on the Saliyamangalam tradition as well. The front cover featured the Narasimha mask.

May 1994

This special issue of Sruti drummed up great interest and a record-breaking one thousand strong audience attended the festival at Melattur that year. Shri V.P. Dhanajayan and Smt. Shanta Dhananjayan inaugurated the festival. Journalists from Mumbai, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Chennai like R.G. Krishna of the Illustrated Weekly of India, R. Sethuraman of Sruti, and V.A.K. Ranga Rao, eminent dance critic and scholar, witnessed the natakams.

December 1994

In 1994, the next three-day Bhagavata Mela festival was held in Chennai. The pandits, N. Viswanathan and N. Srinivasan, and some other artistes came with me to personally invite eminent personalities.

For the first time ever, Bhagavata Mela performed Parvathi Kalyanam inside the precincts of Sri Kapaliswara temple in Chennai during the peak “music season” in December. This was possible with the kind courtesy of Shri Nalli Kuppuswami Chetti. More than three thousand people turned up in the audience. The chief guests were D.K. Pattammal and Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer. It was attended by scholars, dancers, and musicians, my Guru S. (Peria) Sarada, Dr Arudra, T.S. Parthasarathy, A.S. Raman (former editor, Illustrated Weekly of India, who promoted the arts through this magazine), Smt. Vani Jairam, Nirmala Ramachandran, Malavika Sarukkai, U.S. Rao and his wife Chandrabhaga, to name a few. A souvenir was released by Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer and T.S. Parthasarathy received the first copy. A local television channel gave full coverage to the event.

The next day I was invited to give a presentation at the prestigious Natya Kala Conference at Krishna Gana Sabha. Shri V.P. Dhananjayan was the convenor that year. He invited me to present the Bhagavata Mela artistes as the subject of an illustrative lecture-demonstration “Then and Now”. I spoke about the changes in the costume, make-up, and presentation of Bhagavata Mela in the last century. The lecture ended with a dance demonstration by the artistes. After a panel discussion with Dr Arudra, my gurus S. Sarada, and Shri Dhananjayan, there was an interactive session with the jury, critics, and journalists in the audience.

On the third day, T.S. Parthasarathy, secretary for the Music Academy, had invited me to present a demonstration about “Dance Music in Bhagavata Mela” at the prestigious annual Experts Committee Conference. I requested Shri R. Mahalingam (Mali) to take the opportunity. He used the music of Usha Parinayam, Harishchandra, and Prahlada Charitram to augment his lecture with a demonstration by Bhagavata Mela dancers.

May 1995

The next script to be published was Markandeya in May 1995. The publication of the Natya Vidya Sangam was sponsored by my husband R. Raman. In the Foreword to this book I have mentioned the unique versatility of this tradition which “encompasses music, dance and theatre. The structure of the play includes a rich variety of poetic devices which ensures its status as outstanding literature.” The play was staged for the first time at the annual festival.

October 1995

 In October of the same year, the Sangam was back again in Mumbai in full strength. They participated in the Kuchipudi Conference organised by Kuchipudi Kala Kendra. At another venue, I presented a lecture-demonstration on “Patrapravesha in Bhagavata Mela”, with a demonstration by the Sangam artistes.

The breathless pace of activity of the preceding year left us all exhilarated and determined to continue the lucky phase. There was no stopping the juggernaut which had started to roll.

May 1996

The annual festival at Melattur was a great success with the revival and staging of Krishna Leela Jananam.

After the festival, a group of us went to Madurai and organised publicity for the event through Dinamalar, the daily newspaper of Madurai which had issued a supplement for the 1994 festival.

January 1997

It was my husband’s suggestion that the Sangam should perform in Thiruvaiyaru during the 150th Aradhana of Saint Tyagaraja in January 1997. It would be a tribute to Tyagaraja, who belonged to the Bhagavata Mela tradition.

For the first time ever, the temple authorities of the Panchanadiswara temple gave permission for performances inside the vast precincts for two nights during the Aradhana week. The Sangam selected the plays Harishchandra and Rukmini Kalyanam, to be staged in Thiruvaiyaru, both noted for its excellent musical values.

My entire family including my husband, children, parents, and sister went on this week-long pilgrimage to Thiruvaiyaru. Thanjavur was the base camp. We were also celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary.

We visited my father’s home in Thirumangalakudi, my mother’s birthplace Tiruchirappalli besides Thiruvarur, Thiruvidaimarudur, Mannargudi, Kumbhakonam, and Melattur. We rented a house near the Panchanadiswara temple which could accommodate us, the artistes, and other guests. The popular Tamil weekly magazine Kumudam had sent a senior journalist to interview us. Dinamalar brought out a supplement on the Aradhana and Bhagavata Mela. Other magazines wrote extensively on this unique event which almost overshadowed the Aradhana concerts. There was talk that the Aradhana organisers might prevent our shows from taking place. Five thousand people thronged the spacious temple on both days as the Sangam performed the plays in full length. Umayalapuram Sivaraman, the mridangam maestro was the chief guest on the first day.

May 1997

I missed the annual festival in May 1997 as my father-in-law had passed away and I had to refrain from temple visits for a year. In December, a personal tragedy changed my family’s future. I pulled myself together and brushed it aside to conduct the arangetram of my student in January 1998.

May 1998

I was not sure whether I would be able to attend the Narasimha Jayanti Festival that year, but at the earnest request of the members of the Sangam I decided to attend the festival.

It was at this meeting, in 1998, that we renewed the discussion about the possibility of making the Marathi natakam. I was not confident about the organisation of such a big project, as at that time I had no infrastructural support or funds to pull this off.

I could not visit Melattur in 1999 and 2000. I was working full time at N.C.P.A., the prestigious art institution, and later at a software company related to the arts. Many domestic issues like relocating to a new house, my dance performance, renewing cultural activities, and being at home for my children became priority. Of course, I had already begun work and planning for 2002.

May 2000

In 2000, a tragic event left us all devastated. A fire broke out on the stage of the Natya Vidya Sangam just before the performance of Prahlada Charitram. They called at midnight to inform me. Electrical equipment, costumes, props, and much else was burnt to ashes. Fortunately, no one was hurt. They wanted to know what should be done. I had no idea. Stopping or leaving the festival incomplete is considered sacrilege, so the festival was postponed to the next month.

I was quite shaken and petrified of the religious implications and superstitions that abound such traditions. I had a purifying bath and recited the slokas of Vishnu Sahasranamam (Thousand Names of Vishnu) and Lakshmi Narasimha stotrams till dawn. In the past, the Sangam faced many incidents when attempts were made by local vandals to sabotage the festival. Once, snakes were left loose as the play began, scattering the audience. On another occasion, I personally cleared the stage of glass pieces from a broken tube light on the stage. This was during Prahlada Charitram and Mahalingam, the actor playing Hiranyakashipu, had a large piece embedded in his heel. We removed the glass piece, bandaged the heel, and he continued to perform despite the pain.

January 2001

In January 2001, I attended a two-month residential workshop at Natanakairali, the Kudiyattam centre (Irinjnalakuda) run by G. Venu. It was an international effort and artists from Japan, China, and Sweden participated. I conducted the workshops on Bharata Natyam.

I returned refreshed and more determined to make the Sakuntala natakam a success.

In September, I went to Central Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi to garner support for the festival. It took a year of hard work and constant communication with the Sangam to compose the music, train the actors, design costumes, finalise the venues, and collect funds for the next Mumbai festival in January 2002.

Our destiny is written in the ancient books, our karma designs our life, and the journey is full of omens and signs, whispers and nudges, incidents and coincidences. I look back at my tryst with tradition and the string of coincidences that led to my spending ten years in the service of the art. It was now clear why I was ordained, by the grace of the Universe, to become a small part of the history of twenty-first-century Bhagavata Mela.

‘Bhagavatamela My Tryst with Tradition’ published by Indus Source Books, Mumbai (2018)

ISBN978-93-85509-08-7 [Includes Digital Resources]