Acharya Parvati Kumar's Abhinaya Darpanam-

 

Acharya Parvati Kumar’ Abhinaya Darpanam- A Treatise In Audi-Visual Form

(This article by Indu Raman was first published in SRUTI 91- April 1992 with contribution by Ram Aslesha)

 

Nandikeswara’a Abhinaya Darpana, believed to have been written between the 10^th and 13 C is a slim volume of 324 shlokas in Sanskrit, which contains the essence of the scientific technique of gestures and movements of dance which underlies Bharat Natyam. In 1917, the Harvard University Press published an English translation of the work by Ananda Coomarswamy and Gopalkrishnayya Dusssirala called the Mirror of Gestures. The translation (later republished in India by Munishram Manoharlal Pvt Ltd) was based on a Devanagari transcript of the second Telugu edition of Abhinaya Darpana published under the editor ship of Madabushi Thiruvenkatachari of Needamangalam in 1887. The English translation made the legendary Nandikeswara’s work accessible to a larger universe of readers. So did the later translation of commentary of Manmohan Ghosh. But it is an old saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. It is the truth of this saying that must have moved Acharya Parvati Kumar of Bombay to attempt a visualisation of Abhinaya Darpana on the stage once again on 27 February.

 

Acharya Parvati Kumar had the credentials to undertake the challenging task. He studied Kathak, Kathakali and Bharata Natyam and obtained a thorough grounding in these art forms. Between 1947 and 1965 he choreographed over 20 dance ballets including the very well received Rhythm of Culture, Dekh Teri Mumbai, Discovery of India and Krishna Leela. He had also choreographed compositions for children. In the event Bharata Natyam has becomes Parvati Kumar’s passion. In 1965 he founded the Thanjavur Nritya shala, an academy whose training programme reflected his interest in teaching theory as well. He devoted himself to a study of the Nirupanas composed by Serfoji II, the Maratha ruler of Thanjavur and this resulted in his book Thanjavur Nritya Prabhanda and the choreography of the dances based on the compositions which were performed on the stage by his disciples. It was this bent for research that led Parvati Kumar eventually to a study of various treatises. Like Natya Sastra, Sangeeta Ratnakara and Abhinaya Darpana. He was particularly keen to discover the textual basis of Bharata Natyam. He recalled, “I reached the conclusion that the key text for Bharata Natyam as it is practised today is Abhinaya Darpana. My findings are upheld by the fact that many of the hand foot or standing poses I had learned were to be found exactly in the same form in Abhinaya Darpana. It bolstered my belief that Abhinaya Darpana alone qualifies as the text for Bharat Natyam.”  Acharya Parvati Kumar faced many problems in putting into practice his idea that the contents of Abhinaya Darpana should be presented on the stage. He disclosed that since each of the 324 shlokas contained in the work has a wealth of meaning. The effort needed to capture the profundity of each shloka was like trying to gather the ocean in a tiny vessel.

He added, “Since my intention was to bring to the lay person not merely the essence of each shloka but sometimes also to suggest the depth and shades of its meaning. I found the traditional musical setting restrictive.” With the help of Sumathi Parvati Kumar, his wife, disciple and teaching partner, he therefore composed music most appropriate to enhance the meaning of the shlokas. His objective was to present the highlights of the treatise in a way that the impact of the audio-visual presentation will be pleasing as well as instructive.

“In presenting the entire text,” Parvati Kumar explained further, “Our attempt has been to attain perfection.” Yet he is humble enough to volunteer that there could be other interpretations also. The programme book produced in connection with the latest stage presentation which took place in Bombay in February, had this concluding statement:

This dance composition of the Abhinaya Darpana by Acharya Parvati Kumar is his personal interpretation according to his understanding of the text.

There could be other treatments also. The same text could be worked upon and interpreted differently by others according to their needs and techniques their area or province. This dance creation of Acharya Parvati Kumar is only a beginning.

 

Acharyaji’s Abhinaya Darpanam was first performed on the stage in 1986 in Delhi under the aegis of the Indian Council of Cultural Relations and in Madras under the auspices of Sri Krishna Gana Sabha. The recent staging in Bombay coming after a gap of six years, was the third. It coincided with the Guru’s 72^nd birthday. The dancer presenting Acharya Parvati Kumar’s visualisation of the work on the stage on all three occasions, was Sandhya Purecha (seen in all the accompanying photographs). A student of folk dance at first, she later learnt Bharata Natyam under Acharya Parvati Kumar while simultaneously studying Sanskrit and earning an M. A. degree from the University of Bombay. She participated in the research work carried out by her Guru. That actually led to the creation of the stage presentation of the Abhinaya Darpana. Today, besides pursuing a career as Bharata Natyam Artiste, she also teaches young children. The credit for the success of the stage version of belongs as much to the disciple as to the Guru.

 

P. S. Bombay is now Mumbai and Madras is Chennai.