The audience attending a Bharatanatyam recital by Padmashri Alarmel Valli sets very high expectations for the performance. The amazing thing is that every time, it seems like Valli does everything to go above and beyond our expectations. Paying attention to the minutest detail and bringing something new each time, it is clear that Valli never takes her audience for granted.

The performance held at the Cohen Auditorium in Tufts University sponsored by the Indian Students Association at Tufts (ISAT) and ASHA-MIT was no exception. Valli dazzled her audience with an interesting repertoire. Drawing from the works of great poets like Adi Shankara and the Sangam poets the repertoire set high performance standards.

Valli began the evening’s presentation with the Shiva Panchakshara Stotram written by Adi Shakaracharya. Each of the five verses of this shlokam uses a syllable from the prayer “Nama Shivaya”. Valli used interesting combinations of Pancha Nadais (the five rhythmic patterns set to three, four, five, seven and nine beats), which appropriately enhanced the beauty and the grandeur of the piece. The next item was a Tamil Varnam that was an adaptation of the famous Telugu Varnam Samiki Sari Evare. Why an adaptation instead of a translation? “It is difficult to translate a classic piece like Samiki Sari without losing out either on the music or the lyrics and hence I decide to adapt it,” said Valli. The sancharis were compact and yet imaginative.

In the second half, Valli presented three pieces based on Sangam poetry. Sangam poetry, as Valli informed us is divided into two parts – Agam and Puram. Agam deals with the realities of this world and Puram is more philosophical dealing with discussions of the outside world. While all pieces were very beautiful, I was very taken with “Num magal numakkum angu anaiyale" in rendered in Ranjani and Hamsanandi from Kalithogai. It was about a mother whose daughter had eloped with a stranger. The bitterness and pain of the mother was palpable. Her reflections regarding the daughter's secret liaison and deceit, were handled with feeling as were the memories of the happy times she shared with her daughter. The piece ended with words from three wise men who console the mother and ask her to let go. The concluding lines were “The sandalwood tree grows on the slopes of the mountain but does not belong to the mountain, pearls are born in the ocean but do not belong to the ocean. Similarly your daughter does not belong to you. She has made her choice in life and it is now her Dharma to live by it and you have to learn to let go”. This struck a chord within Indian American parents and children in the audience. To me it was the clear indication that this piece was a classic for it was relevant across the boundaries of time.

The musical score by Prema Ramamurthy was rich and melodious. “I have worked with Prema to make sure that the music follows the curves of the dance” says Valli. The impact was certainly visible. The vocalist, Gomathi Nayagan, and C. K. Vasudevan as the nattuvanar delivered a fine performance. Shakthivel Muruganandam’s mridangam accompaniment was powerful and yet complimentary to the performance. The feeling in the voice of Gomathi Nayagan gave the right support to the presentation. The young 19 year old Akkarai Subbalakhsmi awed the audience with her fabulous violin playing.

Valli is not just a fine performer, but also a wonderful person who cares about the people around her and about the art itself. Right after the performance many dance enthusiasts ranging from ages of 5 to 50 surrounded her and she found the time to talk to everyone and answered their questions with sincerity even if it came from young children. Students of Eastern Rhythms who had won $100 at a dance competition donated the money to ASHA and she took a special moment to thank them.

I have had the unique opportunity to host Valli at my home and also visit her home in Chennai. Here are some of thoughts she shared with me and my students at different times.

On why one should learn Bharatanatyam..

I think learning Bharatanatyam helps you get a peak into a cave full of amazing treasures which is hidden to the common person. Dancers often get the best opportunities to travel and meet the most interesting people. It also teaches you discipline.

Great experiences of life..

One of the greatest experience was learning music from Smt Mukta. As I learnt to sing Padams and Javalis from her, it was like a curtain was lifted and I was able to explore those items in depth in performances.

On marriage, home making etc..

I am fortunate to have a most wonderful non-demanding man as a husband. I have found that I can concentrate on one thing at a time. I cannot dance and be a home-maker at the same time. My husband is most understanding.

On the relevance of classical dance to the present day and fusion..

Every presentation is rooted in the present and the vocabulary of Bharatanatyam allows the artist to be extremely creative. About fusion, I am all for any artistic adventure. But fusion should be done because of an artistic need. Many works that I have seen have not appealed because it seems like they were doing it to get attention rather than for artistic merit. Often people who are unsuccessful in the traditional arts try such experiments. I do not think that is the right reason to do this.

Valli has a beautiful home in Chennai. She practices in the yard where she has built a a beautiful dance space, a space that has no walls.

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