MIT Natya, the Indian Classical dance group at MIT showcased a few unique choreographies that were set to unique music including music by the MIT Christian a capella group Cross Products.  The event was held at the Little Kresge Auditorium at MIT on March 2, 2012. Dancers Nikita Consul, Anisha Gururaj, Keerti Shukla, Lasya Thilagar, Amita Gupta, Laya Rajan and Anjali Thakkar created interesting pieces that depicted the impact of natural disasters. 

The event opened with Pushpanjali choreographed by Padmini Ravi. Laya Rajan, President of MIT Natya, did a excellent job with the complicated rhythms and delivered a fine presentation. A few fusion numbers including “A Happy Village” set to “Village Dance” by Ravi Shankar, “Rain Coming” set to “Ruth Aagayee Re” from 1947 Earth, and “Storm Hits” set to “Red Sun” by Anushka Shankar depicted the transition of a happy place that transforms when the storm hits.  

In the second half there was a unique piece where Indian classical dance was performed to the live accompaniment of an Christian a capella group singing a Swahili song. 

It is a wonderful delight to see the dancers allow their imagination to take flight  while using Indian Classical Dance as a medium of expression. We look forward to more performances in the future. 

MIT Swara, the Indian Classical Music group at MIT presented a Carnatic concert featuring the Panchabhoota Kritis of Muthuswamy Dikhshitar.  The event was held on Feb 25 at the Wong Auditorium in MIT.  Vocalists Mathura Sridharan, Swethasri Dravida, Divya Srinivasan, Saloni Jain, Priya Ramaswamy, Aishwarya Ananthabhola, 

Varun Ganesan,  Ishwarya Ananthabhotla, Ram Bhaskar , violinist Arvind Thiagarajan, Mridangist Arun Saigal and Flautist Sisir Karumanchi did a terrific job presenting the complicated Krithis with wonderful Alapanai and Kalpana swarams. 

The presentation was a reflection of the amazing talent in these youngsters. Many of the  Alapanais and Krithi renditions were not only technically sound but also filled with Bhava. It is no surprise that some of the members of the team have won major Carnatic music competitions in the country. It was a delight to see the classic work of Dikshitar brought alive at MIT. 

Haribabu Ananthanari, President of MITHAS presented an in depth introduction to these Krithis that made the audience appreciate them in depth.  We look forward to more such presentations in the future.

About the Panchabhootha Sthala Krithis

(From http://www.templenet.com/Tamilnadu/panchabhuta_kritis.html)

 

Not often do you encounter personalities who create classic works of art that survive beyond their lifetime.

It is even less often that a composer creates such a classic that integrates history, tradition and musical sophistry in a complex and intriguing portrait.

It is even less often that we encounter a composer creating a group of such classics in a premeditated planned manner that integrates so many elements of culture, yet showing a thread of continuity between the individual classics.

The Pancha bhuta stala krits of the revered composer Muthusvami Dikshitar are a stunning example of such a portrayal of the stalapuranas of five distinct temples located miles apart from one another in South India, primarily in the Tamil speaking region.

Each phrase in each of these classics has a story to tell; this feature limits itself to a very brief introduction to each of the kritis and the reference to the five elements.

In his classic chintaya maakanda, Dikshitar venerates Shiva as Somaskanda (as the trinity of Shiva, Uma and Skanda) enshrined in Kanchipuram. Indeed, the juxtaposition of the Kumarakottam temple in the space between the Ekamranatha and the Kamakshi temples is a spatial illustration of the concept of Somaskanda. It is a known fact that none of the Shiva temples in Kanchi has a shrine dedicated to the mother Goddess. A Somaskanda panel adorns the sancta in a representation of Shakti united with Shiva along with Skanda. It is in Kanchi that Shiva is venerated as a representation of the element earth, that constitutes one of the five bhutas or elements that is vital to creation. It is in this composition that Dikshitar venerates the beauty of the image of Shiva in the form of Shiva, with a beautiful smile and a brilliance that shadows Kama the lord of Love. The raga mudra is brought out with the phrase 'bhairavi prasangam' in the madhyama kala phrases of the composition as is the phrase prithvi lingam.

The kriti Sri Kalahastisa in the raga useni is an offering to the veneration of Shiva as 'Vayu lingam' and an acknowledgement of the element 'air' as one of the five elements that constitutes life. Shiva's consort here is Jnanaprasunambika and the shrine at Kalahasti is considered to be on par with Kailasha (one of the most revered places of worship in the Saiva tradition). The reference to the element air comes in the form of sameeraadhaara (the basis of the element air). The kriti also draws attention to the stalapurana that celebrates Kannappa Nayanar's devotion to Shiva. The reference to Shiva as a personification of nothing other than true bliss (sat chit anandam) is a theme that occurs both in the prithvi linga kriti as well as in sri Kalahastisa.

Arunachala Natham is a classic that at once invokes a sense of majesty associated with the shrine at Tiruvannamalai. Shiva is venerated as the Lord of Apitakuchamba (Unna mulaiyaal). smaraNAt kaivalya (i.e. access to liberation from the cycle of birth and death upon meditating upon Tiruvannamalai) is a phrase that marks the beginning of the anupallavi of the kriti. Again the phrase 'chidanandam' makes an appearance in this kriti. Shiva is referred to as 'Tejomaya lingam' (a fiery Shivalingam as symbolified by the hill and by the annual kartikai deepam that is lit at the culmination of the bhrahmotsavam atop the hill) and the raga mudra 'sarangam' appears in the phrase 'kara dhrita sarangam' referring to the deer adorning Shiva's arm.

Jambu Pate is a classic in the raga Yamuna Kalyani and it has reference to the water bodies such as Yamnua, Ganga, Kaveri, the ocean and it venerates Shiva as pancha bhuta maya prapancha prabhu. It also refers to the legend of the elephant that renders the name Tiruvaanaikkaval to the town, through the phrase 'saamajaatavi'. Again, Shiva is referred to as the personification of true bliss (nijaananda).

The fifth in the series of these kritis is Ananda Natana Prakasam in the raga kedaram. Set at a leisurely pace (as are the rest of the kritis), this kriti in a seven beat cycle salutes the brilliance of the cosmic dance of the Universe and the cosmic dancer Shiva, the Lord of the chit sabha. Needless to say, the theme of supreme bliss occurs right away as the opening phrase of the kriti extoling the glory of the hoary temple at Chidambaram. It is in this kriti that an explicit reference to the non dual nature of existence (advaita pratipaadyam) occurs, although this nature of being has been implicitly referred to in the other kritis. The phrase daharaakaasam refers  to the fifth element aakaasha or space.