Tuesday 12 March 2013

Nandini Eshwar from Mysore

Very quietly, backstage five dancers follow a guru - sishya tradition. Even as a recital goes on on stage and other artistes bustle around.
They seek the blessings of their guru and warm up.

Guru Nandini Eswar looks very much a professor of the old school. And clearly, she sticks to tradition that she believes in.

Her sishyas tell me that she started her dance school in Mysore some 50 years ago. Hers has been a quiet record - which will be recogised later this week at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in Bangalore.

The Raas Indian Arts Foundation that Eswar also manages is the professional performance wing - made up of five trained dancers who take up dance productions.

Eshwar's son Dr. Rohita teaches archaeology at Mysore University and is a dancer too. He says that they follow a discipline his mother has set. Practice and planning is key. His colleague says that they practised for about 3 months for the three items that they presented here for the Natyanjali.

They danced to recorded music - of Karaikudi Mani, Ravi Shankar and D K Jayaram's rendition of a pancharatna kriti. And this was their first Natyanjali.

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