Nritya-Pancham

I faintly remember winning a Trophy as a young girl dancing on 'Ek Do Teen' song from 'Tezaab'. It was a dance competition at my mom's office on the occasion of annual puja ceremony. As I danced without training however with no inhibitions on stage, my mother sensed that this talent needed a structure and discipline. So she took me to one of the most prestigious dance institute in Mumbai at that time and enrolled me for Kathak.

 At that time I remember; for me, it was just a dance class with a strict teacher who told me to stand in a certain way and place my feet in a specific pattern and my fingers to be held close together and hand gestures to be executed in a particular manner. Frankly at that age I had no idea what I was doing and why I was told to do what needed to be done. Dance at that time for me was more interesting onscreen and the class decorum made it absolutely boring. I would complain of feet pain and legs aching and stomach hurting and teacher scolding me. I gave all excuses I could to skip my classes, but my parents kept at it. They would carry me back from class , apply balm and oil after practice and they would wait outside my class as moral support  till my batch was done outside the dance hall just to ensure I kept at it. All that whining finally faded after I slowly but surely saw the difference in myself while dancing as well as otherwise as a student of Kathak.

From a dread hour to a time that I gladly looked forward to, it took me a few years to realize that I belonged to dance as much as dance belonged to me and that my Dance teacher was not just a run of the mill tutor who taught me how to move, but indeed my Kathak Guru who taught me to embrace art as a way of life...

The grooming began on all fronts, I saw my Guru's taking their job of teaching very seriously.

Punctuality was my first lesson, I remember My Guru Ashatai, Soniatai and teachers Babitatai, Anildada always coming before time in class. This inculcated the value of time which I am proud to have followed till date. I also remember them carrying their meals from home and as I grew observing them, I absolutely vouch for eating home cooked stuff on and off class schedule... I saw the amount of hours they took to compose and formulate the curriculum, choreograph new compositions and calculate accurately which student will appear for which exam at what time according to his or her capacity and Tayyari amazes me.

I remember; my Gurus always dressed elegantly and looked graceful for every single class that I have had with them. This made me value personal presentation in my professional life which has benefited me in all ways, All of them had a one on one bond with each of their disciples. I am trying my level best to nurture the values bestowed upon me beyond the aesthetics of dance in day to day living.

After being in this field for almost 28 years now and after attending numerous dance workshops, I happened to attend Kathakatha Antardhara , a 5 day residential workshop at Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini organised by Laayangikam Trust under the tutilage of the great Kathak Maestro Pt. Rajendra Gangani 2nd time in a row. As much as last year, this year was even more fruitful in terms of the entire experience from an artist's point of view.

Right from the commencement of sessions as per the given time schedule to unbiased method of treating every student as an equal, this workshop was a page turner in true sense... The very fact that there were almost no mundane chores of daily life there, we had all the time to devote to one purpose that is Kathak. With the various sessions on the power of expression, music , accompaniment, rhythm the Bloom bud of inquisitiveness was watered with a constant fluid flow of knowledge and experience which epitomised us as seekers of Art and it blossomed opening its petals one by one every day....

I have experienced a divine connection and a sacred moment of a very personal and a pure bond that happened as I bowed down over Guruji's feet every morning after Natraj pujan. That Guru pranam was of a different league altogether. A disciple surrenders his ego and touches Guru's feet with full faith and the Guru with full acceptance blesses the disciple and takes responsibility of his thirst for knowledge. This is exactly what happened between every student in the workshop and Guruji. He is a high vibrational soul of an artist at an extremely advanced stage of evolution. This is felt by the way he conducts every practical session in class and the way he interacts with accompanists, co-artists, seniors, guest speakers as well as his disciples off class... He is I would strongly say an ideal example of how an artist should be.

The sessions with Smt.Rajashri Pathak on vocal accompaniment for Kathak was full of lyrical, musical and witty anecdotes. We were lost in time as she explored the folklore music in semi classical flavor that's used in Kathak. Smt. Manjari Sinha patiently answered all our doubts on critical evaluation of any performance and changed many misconceptions about the way articles are or should be written about Dance or any art per say.

The session with Pt. Suresh Talwalkar focused on the intricacies of taal and the way rhythm must be explored and deciphered by exponants. We were blessed to have an evening learning from another great artist Shri. Haresh Gangani teaching some of the authentic heritage bandish's of taal paksh from Jaipur gharana. One evening was spent with our Guruji asking him tete-a-tete questions straight from heart about his journey, kathak, riyaz, teaching methodologies etc. The in house accompanists Shri. Fatehsingh Gangani on tabla and Shri Parihar on lehra and vocals was a daily treat to us students. This year we explored Dhamar taal in practical sessions and an exquisite thumri 'Khelan Hari nikase'...

One of the largest conclaves with kathak performers and students from all over India under one roof was like a truly rare occurance. Exchange of ideas stories and experience made it even more enjoyable. The Kathak comunity is now close knit and wider every year as we make new friends and connect with farther cities and places breaking down barriers of geography and language uniting with one purpose Kathak.

Spacious riyaz hall, excellent acoustic setting, comfortable stay arrangement, clean rooms, vegetarian wholesome food and excellent management made this workshop a memory to cherish forever. A huge round of applause to the founder of Layangikam Smt. Archana Sunjay for organizing this workshop so meticulously. A loud shout out to my contemporaries to come experience this next year by joining the Layangikam family and living a dream of Gurukul in reality.

- Prajakta Sathe