It was a special evening on June 26th, 2022 when Mohan Ram ascended the stage to perform his Arangetram at the BU dance theater. It was special in many ways. It was the first Arangetram performed after the golden jubilee celebration of the Triveni dance school. Not often does one get to see a six foot tall male dancer perform Indian classical dance. After more than a decade of voluntary learning and rigorous training, Mohan sought the blessings of his beloved guru, the iconic Smt. Neena Gulati, to perform a variety of dance items in Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi styles.

It was also special that Mohan’s father, Dr. Ram Naidu accompanied him on the veena. The orchestra, complete with flute, violin and veena chose to rearrange itself so that his father could sit next to the mridangist to watch his own son dance! The audience was graced by many musical stalwarts and Boston veterans, notably Smt. Ranjani Ramaswamy and Kalaimamani Smt. R. Ramani of the Karaikudi veena tradition.

The first half of Mohan’s performance was a beautifully rendered Margam in Bharatanatyam, which consists of dances increasing in musical and rhythmic complexity. The program opened with an Anjali to Nataraja in raga Nattai and a brisk Alarippu. Next, the Pancharaga Jatiswaram of the Tanjore Quartette featured passages in ragas Kalyani, Begada, Atana, Thodi and Surutti interspersed with jatis (rhythmic patterns) in Misrachapu talam. In a lilting sloka in raga Vasanta, Mohan gracefully depicted how Shiva danced to the divine music of Saraswati, Brahma, Narada and Nandi. This was followed by a classic rendition of Gopalakrishna Bharati’s ‘Natanam Adinar’ where Mohan effortlessly presented jatis in Ata talam. 

The pièce de résistance was the Varnam ‘Maye’ in raga Simhendramadhyamam in praise of Goddess Meenakshi of Madurai. Mohan enthralled the audience with an exquisite performance that combined powerful stories with complex jatis in three speeds while highlighting the five rhythms of Tisram (3 beats), Chatusram (4 beats), Khandam (5 beats), Misram (7 beats) and Sankeernam (9 beats). The audience responded with delight, appreciation and applause as he executed each theermanam to perfection.

The second half of the program switched to Kuchipudi beginning with Kalinga Narthana in raga Gambheera Nattai. This dance recounts the story of Krishna dancing to mesmerize the evil serpent Kaliya. Mohan beautifully showcased the difference between the defiant serpent and the young, playful Krishna who skipped over water while holding his flute. Next, in Pallavi Doraiswamy Iyer’s ‘Adenamma’ set to raga Pharas, Mohan brought Shiva’s cosmic dance to life with energy and intensity. Following vibrant jatis, he portrayed the Navarasas (nine emotions) of Sringara (love), Veera (valor), Karuna (compassion), Adbhuta (wonder), Hasya (laughter), Bhayanaka (fear), Bibhatsa (disgust), Raudra (anger), and Shanta (peace) beautifully. The subtle, intricate detail with which Mohan presented each emotion was deeply reminiscent of the elegant style of Neenaji’s dancing. Mohan then danced the Kalyani Thaya Ragamalika Tillana of M. Balamuralikrishna. That was followed by the grand finale: Narayana Teertha’s Balagopala Tarangam. This brilliant piece aptly chosen for Mohan in raga Mohanam is quintessentially representative of the Kuchipudi repertoire. In a grand rhythmic ending, Mohan matched the increasing tempo of his guru’s vocal jatis while dancing on the rim of a brass plate to a dramatic climax.

Mohan concluded his Arangetram with a Mangalam in raga Saurastram by thanking Lord Nataraja for giving him the strength to perform, his guru Neena Gulati for giving him the inspiration, knowledge and training, the musicians who accompanied him and finally the audience for coming to watch his dance on this special occasion. The audience was filled with a lingering exhilaration created by his magnificent performance, which was the result of years of dedication and enthusiasm. People were greatly impressed by Mohan’s outstanding ability to vividly convey the story and essence of each dance through his deep understanding of abhinaya, rhythm, lyrics, languages and emotions. Smt. R. Ramani stated that the program was like a professional performance rather than a graduation Arangetram!

The scintillating musical atmosphere for Mohan’s dance was created by the Triveni Dance Orchestra, which included Smt. Neena Gulati (Nattuvangam), Smt. Bhuvana Ganesh (Vocal), Sri Gaurishankar Chandrashekhar (Mridangam), Smt. Hema Balasubramanian (Flute), Sri Surya Sundararajan (Violin) and Dr. Ram Naidu (Veena).

I am honored to have emceed this beautiful bounty of talented offerings to the dance Gods and Goddesses. THANK YOU is a pair of small words to encompass the gratitude I feel.

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