Scintillating Kuchipudi display

Pooja Akanksha Reddy presented a scintillating display of Kuchipudi at CCRT Auditorium recently. The disciple of noted danseuse Deepika Reddy started her presentation with Ganesha Pancharatnam by Adi Sankaracharya in raagamalika. Whilst the great sage lucidly described the virtues of Ganesha in five verses, Pooja with her lithe and agile form enabled with her mastery over karanams, depicted Ganesha to perfection.

This was followed by "Vedalera Vayyarulu" of Devulapalli Krishna Sastri in Kedaragowla. The song describes seduction of Saint Vipranarayana by the dancer Devadevi. The charm and beauty of Devadevi is brought out in elegant stanzas showing her brisk and graceful walk resembling that of a Peacock and Deer. Her lissom body is compared to the tenderness of a creeper. Aided by excellent choereography by Deepika Reddy, Poojas’s performance was exquisite.

“Parullana Mata" in Kapi by Dharmapuri Subbaraya Aiyer, a Javali which was choreographed by legend Vempati Chinna Satyam was next on the menu. This is an abhinaya oriented piece where the emphasis is on facial expressions. Here the Nayika wishes to dissuade her lover from believing the words of envious people and convince him of the sincerity of her love and thus keep him in her thrall.

The final item was "Shiva Shiva Bhava Bhava Saranam", a Tarangam by Narayana Teerthais in Ragamalika, which depicts Gangavatarana. When Bhagiratha does penance to bring Ganga to earth to sanctify the ashes of his ancestors, Shiva is requested to break the force of her descent from the heavenly realm.

Curbing the pride of Ganga, Shiva locks her up in his matted hair and at Bhagiratha's prayer releases her. An enthralling execution of intricate and rhythmic sequence of dance steps by Pooja with masterly co-ordination in synchronisation with the percussion on the rim of a brass plate marked this Tarangam.

By:Anna Rao