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Dancer Lakshmi Viswanathans talk was heard with raptattention by connoisseurs and students alike PAGE 2

K.S. Rajendrans Aurangzeb brings alive therough edges of our past PAGE 3

CALENDAR

Fans of Dev Anand have a lot tocheer about Amir Garib PAGE 4

one hand huge panchayatswere being held againstmarriages violating themarital codes of gotraexogamy and casteendogamy, inter-religiousmarriages would obviouslybe considered sacrilege. Itwas this social conservatismof Jat identity politics thatfound a resonance in thepolitics of Love Jihad, etc.that the Sangh Parivaar waschampioning. When themassacre broke out, andspecially when we heard thatit was around a rumouredcase of molestation of aHindu girl by Muslim men, Icould sense what hadtranspired. This was on thecards. In that sense, this filmis a sequel to Izzatnagari KiAsabhya Betiyaan. Soonafter news of the massacrebroke out we visitedMuzaffarnagar and Shamli.

How did you arrive atthe conclusion that BJPand its ideological allieswere responsible for theriots and that SP hadvested interest in notcontrolling them?

It required seriousinvestigation. We discoveredthat there had been a series

The nationalmedia might haveforgotten thewounds ofMuzaffarnagar

riots but there are intrepidfilmmakers who continue toquestion the divisive agendabehind the developmentnarrative. After lateShubhrodeep Chakrabortytimely documentary EnDino Muzaffarnagar,director Nakul SinghSawhney has come up with acogent and cohesiveinvestigation to dissectanatomy of a riot in ruralIndia that many saycatapulted Bharatiya JanataParty to power in the last LokSabha elections and pushedthe supposed Muslim votebank away from SamajwadiParty.

Cut from the same cloth asRakesh Sharmas much fetedFinal Solution that delvedinto the truth of Gujaratriots, Muzaffarnagar AbhiBaki Hai rubbishes theLove-Jihad theory and makescogent observations on howonly economically weakersections of Muslims wereaffected in the riots. HowDalits kept away from theconflict, the supposed role ofmill owners in dividing thefarmers on the basis ofreligion and above all how ithelped one party to win acrucial Lok Sabha election.

Excerpts from aninterview:

What was the catalyst? My earlier film,

Izzatnagari ki AsabhyaBetiyaan was about crimesand killings in the name ofhonour and KhapPanchayats and theresistance against this feudalpatriarchy by young Jatwomen. Though the film waslargely set in Haryana, I hadalso travelled toMuzaffarnagar in late 2010 aspart of my research to get anidea of what was happeningin the Jat belt outsideHaryana. Jat identitypolitics, which, in itsmanifestation in the revivalof Khap Panchayats, hadacquired a strong anti-Dalitand anti-woman posturing.So, when we made this trip itwas evident to us that inWestern Uttar Pradesh, Jatidentity politics will soon slipinto Hindutva. Thesedistricts had a high Muslimpopulation. Where on the

of riots in the districts five-six months preceding the bigmassacre in September, 2013.Coupled with that wereseveral incidents of Muslimboys being beaten up inrandom acts of violence intrains passing throughWestern Uttar Pradesh.Remember, these aredistricts which didnt see anymajor violence even after thedemolition of Babri Masjid,specially the rural areas inthese districts.

The smaller riots too wereusually around cases ofmolestation. Even randomincidents of violencebetween two individualsfrom different religions werebeing fuelled to give them a

communal colour. . Andwhen we began to investigatethese riots, we realised thatlocal RSS, VHP, Bajrang Daland BJP units would getinvolved . Finally, evenaround the Kawal incident,which is often considered tobe the immediate cause, localHindutva organisationsimmediately jumped thebandwagon. In fact, the firstFIR filed by Gaurav andSachins parents (the Jat boyswho were killed, whose sisterwas allegedly molested) hadno mention of molestation.Local politicians got that FIRchanged to includemolestation. And in thePanchayats that followed,BJP and other Hindutvaleaders took over thePanchayats, including themaha Panchayat which wassupposedly called byBhartiya Kisan Union.

As for Samajwadi Party,well, there were reports ofover 200 riots that hadbroken out in UP beforeMuzaffarnagar, sinceAkhilesh Yadav became CM.Big Panchayats were beingorganised by bothcommunities between 30thAugust and 7th September,2013. Was the governmentsleeping? In fact, thePanchayat on the 7th of

September, 2013 (in whichover one lakh peopleassembled and after whichthe violence erupted) tookplace when Section 144 hadbeen announced. Clearly, theSP government had overseenseveral small riots, and theydidnt expect this one tobecome so big either. Theyevidently wanted thepolarisation to build andwere hoping to consolidateMuslim votes . This riot wentout of their control.

Did you go into the shootwith full understanding ofhow the documentary willshape up?

No, the events wereconstantly unfolding beforeus. Though, I did have a senseof how the gender and castepolitics had played out, butseveral other issues wererevealed to us over theseveral months of stayingthere. We were often asked toswitch off our cameras.There is a scene whereSangeet Som, BJP MLA, tellsus to switch off our cameraswhile hes addressing anelection rally . However,what came to us as acomplete surprise was whenAmit Shah came to make aspeech at Shamli during theelection campaign. Till then,it was the local BJPleadership that was makingthe vitriolic speeches. It wasdistressing. And only ourcrew consisted of people whowere clearly not from thearea in that meeting. Thatmade us very vulnerable attimes.

Also, what struck me wasthe empathy with whicheconomically backwardMuslims and Dalits spoke ofeach others pain andsuffering. How they wereboth at the receiving end of

film.As far as the role of the

media is concerned, wewerent targeting any onejournalist in particular butthe institution as a whole. Ifyou look at the coverage ofseveral reports, particularlythose around sexual violence,from roughly six monthsbefore the massacre, youll bestruck at how irresponsiblythey were covered. The filmeven shows some of thoseheadlines.

What were thechallenges during theshoot? Did you have tohide your identity?

While there was the feararound our security, but itdidnt amount to hiding myidentity as much as thecamera persons identity,who is a Muslim. In fact, hispresence in the crew was aconstant reminder for usabout the degree ofpolarisation in society.

But, another big challengewas the politics ofrepresentation. We had to becareful to not show theaffected Muslims as justvictims. My big concern wasfinding a way to preserve thedignity of the survivors whohad lost everything. I wantedto show them as more thanjust victims, as real people.

According to you whatare the takeaways for thesociety from the riots?

These riots took placemainly in the rural areas. Theviolence may have lasted acouple of days but its impactand the polarisation itcreated is long term.However, there is no reasonto believe that there is nospace for moderate voices.People are already angrywith BJP in the districts.They can see how the riotshave ruined many of themeconomically. The farmersare not getting money fortheir produce. People arealready beginning to seethrough the larger politics ofthe riots.

How will you take thefilm to the audience? Willyou take the CBFC route orwill you like to release itdirectly on the Internet?

The way the governmentfunctions is veryunfortunate. People whomake the most vitriolicspeeches from Ramzaada-Haramzaada to speecheswhere people are instigatedto dig out Muslim womenfrom their graves and rapethem are roaming aroundscot-free.

Whereas people who offercritiques of this madnessthrough films, plays, songs,paintings and forms ofcultural expressions, aremade criminals. We aretaking the film to peoplethrough private screeningsand also plan to release it onthe Internet soon.

the oppressive castestructure.

Amidst the polarisedatmosphere, NaujawanBharat Sabha brings in theflicker of hope. Have youoveremphasised theirrole?

Their organisation also haswork in areas around Delhi.They had screenedIzzatnagari Ki AsabhyaBetiyaan in working classarea a couple of years back .Thats how I met them andlater discovered that theyalso had worked in areas inWestern Uttar Pradesh.When I saw them working inthese riot stricken areas, Iwas very impressed by theircourage and theinterventions, howeversmall, that they were making.How could the film ignorethem? Naujawan BharatSabha, in the film, representsmore than just theorganisation. It represents aprogressive idealism that,however small, keeps theresistance against oppressionalive. In fact, they were evenable to stop the riots fromspreading in some villageswhere they have influence.

Some might counter thefilm as one sided whereediting skills have beenused to support oneparticular argument.

Yes, the right wing isexpected to do that. But Ichallenge them to disproveeven one fact in the film.They talk about Love Jihadbut when you ask them togive you examples, theyllgive you some vague names.When you follow up on someof the supposed Love Jihadcases you realise that thesewere all consensualrelationships and the girlswere not deceived . In fact, inthe film it is young Hinduwomen who counter theclaim. Young Dalit activistson the ground talk about howthey feel BJP is essentially aBrahmanical, Manuwadiparty which is anti-Dalit. Ofcourse, I have a point of view.But that point of view isbacked by hard evidence,empirical facts. Also, the filmdoesnt really say that themill owners played a role individing the farmers. Thatneeds to be investigated. AndI wouldnt be surprised ifthat is the case. But they havecertainly benefitted withBKU splitting (on religiouslines), havent they?

Did you try to approachthe local officials and themedia for their point ofview?

We did approach the localofficials. However, they onlygave us pat answers they hadprepared for the media. Evenafter greater probing, theywould either refuse to talk orcontinue giving us theofficial line. I didnt see thepoint of including that in my

Scanning the fault lines Nakul Singh Sawhneys Muzaffarnagar Abhi Baki Hai is a compelling document ofhow vested interests sowed hatred for a rich harvest of votes in some villages of Western Uttar Pradesh, says Anuj Kumar

It was this socialconservatism of Jatidentity politics thatfound a resonance in thepolitics of Love Jihad,etc. that the SanghParivaar waschampioning.

Z

STARK DETAILS Stills from the film.

The ExpendablesCentered on the mercenarygroup known as The Expen-dables, brings togetherMercenary leader BarneyRoss (Sylvester Stallone)and his team of loyal men forto take on what they think isa routine assignment: a cov-ert operation to invade theSouth American country ofVilena and overthrow itsdictator. But, when theylearn that the job will be asuicide mission, they mustchoose redemption or thedestruction of theirbrotherhood.May 1, 8 p.m. SONY PIX

Men in BlackWhen a renegade Kylothianmonster (Serleena) dis-guised as a lingerie modelthreatens the survival of thehuman race, the boys of theMIB get the call to step upand get busy. With theirheadquarters under siegeand time running out,Agents Kay and Jay enlistthe help of Frank the Pug anda posse of hard-living wormsto help them hunt down thesultry alien. May 2, 9 p.m., SONY PIX

King KongPeter Jackson's remake ofthe 1933 classic depicts di-rector Carl Denham (JackBlack) and his crew on ajourney from New York Cityto the ominous Skull Islandto film a new movie. Accom-panying him are playwrightJack Driscoll (Adrien Brody)and actress Ann Darrow(Naomi Watts), who iswhisked away by the mon-strous ape, Kong, after theyreach the island.May 2, 12:29 p.m., HBO

One of the things thatmarks the popular TVshow, Castle, is the

excellent chemistry betweenthe characters the mysterywriter Richard Castle(Nathan Fillion), his partnerand now wife Kate (StanaKatic) and his daughter fromhis first wife, Alexis (MollyQuinn). Let me tell you alittle something about MollyQuinn, Nathan says on thesets of Castle in Los Angeles.She is really nice. I get tospend a great deal of timewith Stana. So it is actuallyno mystery that we are ableto work together, but Mollyand I dont get to spend thatmuch time together.

This episode, weve beentogether every day. I dont

have the time to visit peopleon the show who are not onsets. Two weeks ago, I haddinner with Susan Sullivan(she plays Castles mother, asMartha Rodgers); it is thefirst time I saw her in agesbecause she hadnt been onthe show very much So it isreally an effort to go to hangout with people. This week, Ifinally got to hang out withMolly and it was nice.

Molly, who practicallygrew up on set, echoesNathan when she says, Thefirst thing I think about whenpeople ask what has it beenlike growing up here, is howwonderful the crew and thecast have been to me. I thinka lot of children, when theystart out in entertainment,have really bad experiencesbecause the crew is a little

salty. I think how wecommunicated with eachother and how thattranslated to the screenreally influenced oursuccess.

When asked to commenton the direction the storywould take now that Richardand Kate are married,Nathan says: I would take awild stab they would nowhave to start dealing withthings that married coupleshave to deal with. I guessspeaking from theperspective of the single guy,when I am dating someone, Ihave to remember that I haveto include them in mydecision-making process Iam just guessing. This isreally not my department.

On the mystery of Castlesdisappearance before his

wedding, Nathan says:Without spoiling too much,we get into that a little bitbefore the end of Season 7.We start to discover at leastwhere he was and the kind ofthings he was doing and whyhe was there. We haventaccounted for the entiretwo-month span that he wasgone.

Though Nathan plays amystery writer in Castle, hesays his all-time favouritebooks apart from the Gameof Thrones series is MaxBrooks World War Z.

Ive read it four times. Iget nightmares every time Iread it and I wont stopreading it; what does that tellyou? I have not had a lot oftime to read in the last sevenyears. But I was reading a lotof Robert Parker, a lot of his

Spencer novels. And sincethen, not a lot of mystery. AsCastle, Nathan got to playpoker with popular mysterywriters. Nathan describes theexperience as a lot of fun. Iam trying to rememberwhich one of them said it. Itmight have been Connellywho said, as an actor I am agreat mystery writer!

Saying the poker gameslent realism to the idea thatCastle is a mystery writerhimself, the 44-year-old said,When you play this mysterywriter on TV and you bringthese popular writers in, you

hang out with them and theyall talk to Castle like he is areal mystery writer; it lends alot of truth to our illusion.

Having played Castlelonger than he has playedany other character, Nathansays on the plus side, It getseasier all the time. There isnot as much characterpreparation because youwere there for all thecharacter building over aperiod of seven years. So youget to know the charactervery well.

The downside according toNathan, The only thing youmiss out on when you have asteady gig is variation. Thereis a cost that comes withgetting to do different jobs allthe time. You have to try andget those jobs. I am very fondof saying an actors job morethan acting, is actuallylooking for a job.

Watching Nathan on set,one is struck by how similarhis personality is to Castles.My brother sometimes getsupset with me because hesays you are not getting paidto act, you are getting paid toact like yourself!

Castle Season 6-7 airs onStar World, Monday toFriday, starting 11 p.m. today.

The magic of mystery TELEVISION

Popular TV actor Nathan Fillions list includes the Game ofThronesseries and Max Brooks World War Z

MINI ANTHIKAD CHHIBBER Copenhagen-basedIndian filmmaker,Vinod Bharathan, who

is giving the final touches tohis first full-length featurefilm, Karma Cartel, venturedinto films after his superiorofficer at a logistics companyliked one of the videos he hadmade using his new camera.I made an attempt toshowcase how people behaveduring a meeting. My bossliked the video and said that Ihave a good eye for detail.That spurred my interest inmaking short films.

Talking about KarmaCartel, Vinod says, It isbasically the tale of sixindividuals, whose lives takea turn in a period of threedays. There are many sub-plots within this premise.The movie is set in Kerala,

but is meant for a globalaudience and has receivedawards in Rome and Canada.PVR films took up this filmand will be looking after itsrelease in June this year.

Vinod feels that India has along way to go, before indiefilms make it big, the successof movies like Court andLucia notwithstanding.India is choc-a-bloc withfilm lobbies, with bollywoodexerting a lot of influence. Iuse a bicycle example todescribe the situation. Abicycle is considered cool inthe West, while it is not likedmuch in India. Indie filmsare a bit like the bicycles inIndia, not appreciatedbeyond a niche audience.

Karma Cartel tries toincorporate elements ofItalian neo-realism and someideas from Scandinavianfilmmakers.

The karma chakra

NIKHIL VARMA

Vinod Bharathan on his firstfull-length feature film

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FRIDAY REVIEWNOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU Friday, May 1, 2015 P2IN SYNC

It was good to see asmall if intense groupof classical danceenthusiasts gather atthe India

International Centre on a hotafternoon to hear a talk byeminent Bharatanatyamdancer LakshmiViswanathan this pastSunday. That this group ofserious art practitioners,cutting across genres ofclassical dance, theatre,poetry, music and otherdisciplines, as well asstudents of various hues,battled the sleep inducingheat to be there was areflection of the capacity ofboth the speaker and theorganisers. The event was apart of the World Dance Dayweekend organised by Geetaand Rajiv Chandran underthe aegis of theirorganisation Natya Vriksha.

The conversational andwitty manner of the veteranChennai-based dancer keptthe listeners in enthusiasticattendance. Also known as anarts writer and author, shecomes across unencumberedby the weight of study, andbelying the formality of thetitle, Rasa in Dance:Inspiration andImagination, brought alivemoments of vivid beauty inlife and art, linking the pastand the present and drawingparallels between variousgenres and languages.

Given her audiences levelof engagement with the arts,she did not have to begin witha search for definition of rasa,which has been variouslyexplained as the essence ofexperience, vicariousexperience, taste orenjoyment in relation to awork of art.

The phrase Rasa theory, asshe noted, sounds heavy, buther examples andillustrations brought out thatit is based on the sparklingmoments of experience thatlinger vividly in the memory.

Having given her solodebut in 1953, she belongedto a generation that was notspecifically taught dancetheory, she remarked. Guru

Elappa Pillai taught herseven varnams (complexBharatanatyamcompositions), and whenafter the seventh, sheventured to ask him aboutthe Natya Shastra she wastold, You want to knowabout shastra? I am theshastra. The gurus pithyreply to a young discipleexemplified the inextricable

link between practice andtheory, philosophy and lifeskills, erudition andobservation, stylisation andreality that form the core ofIndian arts.

It was only later that shebegan her own readings andalso learnt Sanskrit to help inher pursuit of the views ofthe ancient writers andcommentators on the theatre

added the ninth, shanta orpeace.

Shringar or love is knownas the king of rasas, said thespeaker, because of itsimmense scope.

It is the rasa of beautyand can make you respondwith every part of your body,she said, and threw in, Iviolently disagree. It is thequeen of rasas.

Quoting metaphors fromancient texts that tell us howclose to nature the writerswere, she also hinted at thecomplacency that has set inover the last two centuries ormore.

The 19th and 20thcenturies have been verydisappointing. No newshastras have been written,she said, contrasting this lackwith the major developmentsthat have taken place in thepractice of dance.

The stimulating lecturewas followed up with a shortdance performance duringwhich the speaker allowedher dance to do the talking.

With April 29, the daydemarcated by Unesco tocelebrate the artistic andsocial value of dance, gettingbusier and busier, NatyaVriksha is among thosebodies that have startedshifting their dates, ensuringthat a single day does not getclogged with events, and inthe process making itpossible to pull in audiences.Punctuating performancesby young dancers with theintimate lecture by LakshmiViswanathan was a finetribute to the art.

vocalist and veena player, andthe young Lakshmi learntmusic from stalwartsincluding SemmangudiSrinivasa Iyer because theyhappened to be neighbours.

Recalling her own firstrasa experience, she told thegathering she would dance asher mother played a song onthe veena, and her parentswould take photos. Today,she can tell by the expressionin her eyes as captured inthose photos, how deeply shemust have felt thatexperience, and how smartwere her parents to recognisethe passion in such a youngchild and put her in training.

Pointing out that the termnatya refers to the theatricalart, where acting, stageconstruction and design andmusic get prime importance,she said dance is a derivativeof that.

Thus placing inperspective the art of dance,she added, There is no rasawithout poetry. Thats whywe dancers depend on thespoken word, which becamethe sung word.

Talking of the nine rasas love, humour, anger, sorrow,valour, wonder, fear,odiousness and peace shementioned that the NatyaShastra listed only eight, butsince we always like tointerfere with old texts, dontwe, later commentators

arts.Thus, saying she didnt

claim to be Bharatamuninumber 103, sheemphasised her route tounderstanding the concept ofrasa was through a process ofexposure and practice, ratherthan dry research andliterary study.

Her mother AlameluViswanathan was a trained

A window to rasaSeasoned dancer LakshmiViswanathans talk was heardwith rapt attention byconnoisseurs and students alike, says Anjana Rajan

WORLD DANCE DAY

SPELLBOUND

Lakshmi Viswanathanat India InternationalCentre in New Delhi. PHOTO: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR

Aloka Kanungo, awell-known discipleof Guru Kelucharan

Mohapatra, is not just adancer. She is achoreographer, teacher andscholar as well. On theoccasion of Shradhanjali the annual dance festivalorganised by her in thememory of her gurus Raghunath Dutta andKelucharan Mohapatra, wespoke to the Kolkata-baseddancer. Here are someexcerpts from the interview.

Did dance happen toyou by chance or was it adeliberate choice?

I grew up in a verycultural atmosphere, in mymaternal grandfathershouse, where I started todance from the age of three.I was also into acting andwas a child artiste in manydramas. I was also an artisteof All India Radio Cuttack.

What were some ofyour memorableperformances?

In 1971 I danced at TarunKalakar Samaroha held atSapru House, New Delhi. Itwas memorable, because itwas organised by SangeetNatak Akademi. My dancewas noticed by Shri JivanPani and Prof. MohanKhokar. 1986 was a luckyyear for me because I got todance at Khajuraho and Ialso got Shiromoni awardfrom Asian Paints. But mymost memorableperformance was in 1988with Guru KelucharanMohapatra for the

inaugural function of theFestival of India, where Iperformed in front of all thedignitaries including IndianPrime Minister RajivGandhi and the Minister ofCulture, Narasimha Rao andof course the Prime Minsterof Japan. I performed duetwith Anandi. All the famousdancers like Pandit BirjuMaharaj), Saswati Sen,Malvika Sarukkai, PanditHariprasad Chaurasia werethere with us.

Have youchoreographed oncontemporary themesand subjects?

I have worked on ancient

scriptures and extinct formswith contemporarysensibilities.

What are your thoughtson the guru-shishyaparampara?

It is an excellent tradition,where the guru not onlyteaches the art but alsoshapes the characters of hisdisciples and prepare themas guardians of the form.This tradition is dyingbecause there are very lessresidential teaching centresor gurukuls. Moreover now-a-days classical dance haslost its glamour.

People are more keen on astable lucrative profession. I

enjoy teaching. I believe it isa two-way process. You learnas you teach. I try my best tomotivate my students.

What is your vision indance? Dance should be anintense feeling of joy andhappiness.My sincere adviceto the future generation is tonurture the traditional artsand keep it in its pristineform for future generations.

What are some of yourmemorablechoreographies?

Sthapatya Satya is veryclose to my heart.

It is based on extensiveresearch, embellished withBandha Nritya anacrobatic limb of Odissi.Shakti is another groupchoreography based ontantra philosophy.

In this production I triedto project again sabda nrityaand Ravan chhaya which isgetting extinct.

I used modern amenitieslike power pointpresentation to projectRavan chhaya pictures andJantras.

I have also used fewinnovative ideas likeshowing Jantras with sticks,blood and cloth.But myinnovations are alwaysrestricted in the parameterof tradition. Maharaas isan Odissi Manipurichoreography with KalavatiDevi which is a visual treat.Kautuk based on fivePanchatantra stories, wasalso very spectacular.

Dance for happiness Odissi dancer Aloka Kanungo speaks about her passion.

INTERVIEW

DISSECTING DANCE

Aloka Kanungo PHOTO: S.GOPAKUMAR

TAPATI CHOWDURIE

Chennai-basedmusician G. Abilashgave an impressive

vocal concert on the first dayof the two-day PurandaraDasa Tyagaraja MusicFestival organised by theRamakrishnapuram SouthIndian Society and the IndiaInternational Centre,recently in the Capital.

At the outset, the efforts ofthe two organisations forconducting a festivaldedicated to Purandara Dasaand Tyagaraja, the legendarycomposers, are laudable.Young Abilash chose thecompositions of thesecomposers throughout hisconcert and did completejustice to the title of thefestival.

After reciting a short verseon Lord Dakshinamurty inthe form of a virutam,Abilash embarked upon tosing Tyagarajas Tulasidalamulache in the ragaMayamalava Goula in asomewhat detailed manner.The neraval of the phraseSarasiruha punnagacampaka patala kuruvakaand the subsequentkalpanaswaras for this firstpiece itself was indicative ofAbilashs creative talentseven at the early stage of hisrecital.

Abilash then sangPurandara DasarsRamanama payasake inraga Ananda Bhairavi in anemotive manner bringing the

lyrical values to the fore. Hemoved once again to take upa composition for detailedrendition. TyagarajasRamanannu brovara in theraga Harikambhoji waspreceded by a fine alapana ofthe raga in which he broughtto fore the features of theraga and ended with detailedkalpanaswaras rich increativity. He sang the fastpaced Tyagarajas Telisiramachintanato in the ragaPurnachandrika veryimpressively. Abilashscentral item was PurandaraDasas NambiKettavarillavo in the ragaKalyani, in which hepresented the raga alapana,neraval of the phraseGaruda gamana sreepurandara vithalana and thekalpanaswaras.

Delhi-based V.S.K.Chakrapani on the violin,Kumbakonam N.Padmanabhan on the

mridangam and N. HariNarayanan on ghatamprovided excellent support tothe youngster andcontributed significantlythroughout the concert.Chakrapanis delineation ofthe ragas Harikambhoji andKalyani were delightful. Thepercussion support ofPadmanabhan and HariNarayanan was riveting andthe duo played an enjoyabletani avartanam in the Misrachappu tala.

Elsewhere at theauditorium of AndhraPradesh Bhavan, though theconcert started afterconsiderable delay and longinaugural ceremony,seasoned Chennai-basedartist NeyveliSanthanagopalan regaledmusic lovers of the Capitalwith his vocal concert.

The concert was heldunder the aegis of AndhraCultural and Welfare Society

and the vocalist chosepredominantly Tyagarajascompositions for renditions.Santhanagopalan started hisconcert with an adi talavarnam in the raga Mohanamin one speed only but a fasterone. The fast pacedkalpanaswaras towards theend added briskness to hisproceedings.

Apart from singingTyagarajas Ramabhaktisamrajyame in ragaSuddhabangala, the fastpaced Sara sama dana inraga Kapinarayani, Endaromahanubhavulu, the fifthPancharatna kriti in Sreeraga, and Dasarathinirunamu in raga Todi,Santhanagopalan also tookup the legendary saintsGnana mosaga rada in theraga Poorvikalyani fordetailed renditions withneraval of a phrase andkalpanaswaras.

Muthuswami DikshidarsAnandaamruta karshini inraga Amrutavarshini was thecentral item of the recital.VSK Chakrapani on theviolin and P. Jayabhaskar onthe mridangam providedgood support toSanthanagopalan. WhileChakrapanis take of theragas Poorvikalyani andAmrutavarshini wasdelightful, the taniavartanamof the percussionist in theAdi Tala was engaging.

Homage to legendary composersG. Abilash chose compositions of Tyagaraja and Purandara Dasa in his vocal concert. VENKATESAN SRIKANTH

SOULFUL RENDITION

G. Abilash performing atthe festival

MUSIC

The annual WorldDance Day (WDD)celebration of Geeta

Chandrans Natyavriksha,in collaboration with IndiaInternational Centre (IIC)and the Ministry of Cultureheld at the IIC auditorium,offered a book launch, filmscreening, talks anddiscussion on the subject ofdance touching aspectsthat have remained integralto the classical arts, alongwith their annual youngdancers festival. Theinaugural day opened withthe launch of LeelaVenkataramans bookIndian Classical Dance:The Renaissance andBeyond. The book release

function was organizedjointly by Geeta and theNiyogi Books, the publisher.

Leela Venkataraman, aregular contributor to dancejournals since 1989, is aprolific writer who hasauthored several books. Herwork and contribution haveearned her the prestigiousSangeet Natak AkademiAward. The book IndianClassical Dance: TheRenaissance and Beyondtraces the journey ofevolution of Indian classicaldance since the years ofindependence to thepresent day covering theeight classical dance forms Bharatnatyam, Kathak,Kuchipudi, Kathakali,Manipuri, Mohiniattam,Odissi and Sattriya. Leela

This book has beentremendous hard work forme. Many people may notagree to certainassessments that I havereached.

What was inward lookinghas become exhibitionism.Change is inevitable but youhave to immerse yourselfwholeheartedly intoclassical music and dance tomake a mark.

Sarbjeet Singh furtheradded I not only share thesame date, year and raashiof with Leela but also thesame concern about art in aworld where everything ismeasured in terms of moneyand economic power.

Speaking on the occasion,Leela said, Dr. KapilaVatsyaayan has provided methe glue of understandingthrough her books that gaveme an idea of how all thesubjects are correlated.

South India, referring toShanta Sarbjeet Singh andLeela Venkatraman. Heconfessed that apart theircriticism helped him grow.Lakshmi Vishwanathan,who herself has authoredmany books on dance,remarked that the writtenwork is important andpointed out that Leela wasmarried into a family ofgreat writers so it wasinevitable that she wouldemerge as one. Shanta

that, as the name suggests,the book is divided in twosections. It is a narration intime bound frame within acertain context. It goesbeyond the description ofmedium of the art that ishuman body.

Pointing out themediocrity that is creepinginto classical dance, PavanVarma emphasized thatclassical dance is not instantcoffee, it is a sadhana. Hepraised critics like Leela forguarding it through theircritical point of view,insight, knowledge andcommentary. Singhnarrated the tale of twinsister critics born on sameday, same year and underthe same raashi one inPunjab and the other in

seamlessly weaves togetherthe historical aspect alongwith the contemporaryscenario, looking at thechanges in perspective andpresentation of Indianclassical dance.

Erudite scholars andGurus like Dr. KapilaVatsyaayan, Guru SinghjeetSingh, Guru JamunaKrishnan, Pavan Varma,Lakshmi Viswanathan andShanta Sarbjeet Singhadorned the dais to unveilthe book along with Leelaand publisher BikashNiyogi. Speaking on theoccasion Dr. Vatsyaayanjoked, Is Indian classicaldance possible in Englishonly?, and thenongratulated Leela on thebook. She then explained

The rhyme and rhythm of criticism

MANJARI SINHA

EVENT

At the book launch.

Noted Odissi exponentRanjana Gauhar iscelebrating the completion of28 years of her organisationUtsav. This Sunday sheplaces before the public thefruit of her teaching work inNew Delhi , as Utsav presentsthe Festival of YoungDancers: Su-Tarang 2015.

The programme features alarge number of disciples ofRanjana Gauhar.

Festival of YoungDancers: Su-Tarang 2015,May 3, Kamaniauditorium, CopernicusMarg, New Delhi, 7 p.m.

Labour of love

RanjanaGauharpresents heryoung dancers

Noted critic Leela Venkataramans book Indian Classical Dance:The Renaissance and Beyond was released on World Dance Day.

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THE HINDU Friday, May 1, 2015 P3STAGE CRAFT

Indira Parthasarthywrote Aurangzebin 1974 and hisscript used materialfrom Sir Jadunath

Sarkars volumes onAurangzeb. Its been fourdecades since then, andthere have been newdiscoveries; more facts andinformation on the Mughalperiod uncovered byscholars and historians. Itsinteresting then, howrelevant the play stillremains, and how itbecomes, now, a study ofideas, ideology andpsychology that almostentirely transcends thenarrower ambit of date andtime.

Directed by K. S.Rajendran and featuringMahendra Mewati as thetitular character,Aurangzeb is a study ofhuman ambition, powerand aspiration, revolvingaround the war ofsuccession that broke outbetween Shah Jahans sons.It is both a symbol and acatalyst. As both DaraShikoh and Aurangzebemerge as the front runnersfor the thrown, the clashesbecome more and morepronounced, and theirideological stands clash,dividing both loyalties andopinions.

While Dara Shikohimagines a secular,pluralistic nation,Aurangzeb has plans toestablish a fundamentalistIslamic state. Their father,who has already placed hisloyalties with Dara Shikoh,lives in a world populatedwith dreams of a blackmarble mahal for himself,built on the other side ofthe Yamuna from MumtazsTaj Mahal.

History books find iteasier to paint in black andwhite, and attach qualitiesto historical figures that arehard to shake off. And so,

one of the most importanttriumphs of the play is theease with which it portrayshuman nature, in all itsgray, uncertain tones.Mewatis Aurangzeb isstringent and confident,but also displays a severelack of trust, his suspicionsabout spies and traitors

leaking into every move hemakes. Shah Jahansgentle, aestheticallyinclined, almostgrandfatherly nature masksa deep selfish vein, hisself-indulgence andirrationality a bane uponhis already warring sons.He is ill and weak, andcannot disengage from thedreams hes woven to live

in the present. ShahJahans world is in thepast, and he still residesthere.

Dara Shikoh too is afraught character, aphilosopher more than astatesman, a man who canenvision the future butcannot be pragmaticenough to handle thepresent.

The play builds onmultiple threads, creatingwell rounded characterswho are believable, almostfamiliar, despite their placein history. It debatesAurangzebs dream of onenation, one language, onereligion, and it also throwslight on the possibilities ofDara Shikoh's vision of asecular nation.

While its content laysemphasis on the universaltheme of humanpsychology, Rajendran'splay is also true to itscontext.

With costumes and setsthat ring true anddialogues that paint theperiod well, the entireambience the play createsis authentic.

History beyond black and whiteK.S. Rajendrans Aurangzeb brings alive the rough edges of our past, writes Swati Daftuar

The play builds on multiple threads, creatingwell rounded characters who are believable,almost familiar, despite their place in history.It debates Aurangzebs dream of one nation,one language, one religion, and it also throwslight on the possibilities of Dara Shikoh'svision of a secular nation.

SHAKING OFF THE STEREOTYPES A scene from a production of Aurangzeb; (below) Indira Parthasarthy.

The brutal violation offundamental humanrights of passengers

on board Komagata Maruen route to Vancouver,Canada in 1914 became therallying point of patrioticforces to struggle againstthe British in India. Thetragic incident representsthe darkest face ofimperialism in the early20th Century. It isheartening to watchKomagata Maru-1914-IkZakhmi Parwaz which waspresented by PunjabiUniversity, Patiala this pastweek at Shri Ram Centre.

As a part of the centenarycelebration of KomagataMaru, the stage enactmentof the suffering, struggle forsurvival and finally theirgrowing politicalconsciousness to confrontthe monstrous forces ofimperialism is one of themost inspiring pieces oftheatrical art seeking toenact history on the stage inrecent years.

Directed by Prof. JaspalKaur Deol with remarkableingenuity, she gives theproduction a revolutionaryinterpretation, ensuring thegradual transformation ofsimple people going toCanada to work into afearless force to confronttheir mighty tormentors.Prof. Deols production isnot a mere enactment offacts of history but it is awork of art that absorbs theattention of the audiencefrom start to the close.

Gradually, the dramaticthrust keeps onintensifying. Thepassengers facing theordeal, start resisting theiroppressors. On reaching theVancouver harbour, theauthorities refuse thepassengers to disembarkand the ship remainedanchored for two months.The starving passengers arenot provided with drinkingwater and food. Outside, theIndian patriotic forces are

uniting themselves to fightfor the human rights of thesepassengers, legally andpolitically. The passengersare humiliated and brandedas revolutionaries andsympathisers of the GhadarParty.

Finally, the ship isordered to leave for Indiaunder the threats of bullets,with passengers retaliatingwith coal and materials kepton the ship. To avenge theirinsults and denial of humanrights to survive, someIndians killed their Britishand Canadian immigrationofficers. The climactic sceneis unfolded in Kolkata wherethe majority of emasculatedpassengers are butcheredand only a few could manageto escape.

The message of theproduction is clear andloud-only citizens of a freecountry are able to live withdignity and hence theenslaved people of the worldunite to over throw theiralien rulers to attainfreedom.

The play is written byGurpreet Singh Ratol afterundertaking a great deal ofresearch in collaborationwith the director who tooknearly five months toproduce the play with

student cast. The playwrightalso attended thesemarathon rehearsals andmade the required necessarychanges as suggested by thedirector and the cast. In fact,there have been severalattempts to stage this sagaon the stage in the past. AliKazimi's featuredocumentary ContinuousJourney has won severalawards. It is time KomagataMaru should be treated as asymbol of enslaved peoplesstruggle to protect theirhonour being ruthlesslytrampled on by heartlesscolonial powers. I

n the words of GhadarParty leader Sohan SinghJosh, This was an earliestchapter our freedom historywritten with blood.

The action mostly takesplace on the ship. The set

designed by the directorconsists of minimalstructure to reflect the rightambience symbolically. Onthe upstage there is a raisedplatform with ramps andsteps to enable performersmove freely from one localeto another and at the sametime to provide the audiencewith a clear view of the vitaldramatic scenes.

To unfold the narrative,the director has adopted thedevice of conversationbetween the writer andGurdit Singh, theprotagonist of the play and arich Sikh who chartered theship Komagata Maru tocarry people from Punjab towork in Canada.

The audience watch theunfolding of the events onthe ship through the eyes ofGurdit Singh. As far as stage

properties are concernedthere are three flagsrepresenting threecommunities Sikhs,Muslims and Hindus onboard and Kesari NishanSahib is hosted on one side,symbolising communalharmony.

Music score by GurjeetSingh play an important rolein the production. Theopening lyric is written bythe playwright himself whobegins Ik Zakhmi Parwaz,Masoomo Ki Awaz Hai. Theproduction concludes withthe same lyric rendered bythe chorus. Folk songs andGurbani Gayan are renderedat dramatically tensemoments to enhancedramatic impact.

Set to heroic tunes, thesesongs become the source ofdetermination of theoppressed to challenge theiroppressors.

Such oppression raisesthe ordinary peoplessuffering and death to thestature of martyrdom-thisheroic power inherent of thecommon man in themoments of crisis is broughtalive on the stage with force.Now in the centenarycelebration year of theKomagata Maru, theproduction should be stagedin different parts of thecountry to acquaint newgeneration with one of ourchapters from freedomhistory written with blood.

The large cast of studentsof the department of theatreand television of the PunjabiUniversity, Patiala givespirited performances, trulyliving their characterspassing through crisis oftheir very survival. SandeepSingh as Gurdit Singh, theprotagonist, gives anoutstanding performance,making desperate efforts toprotect his passengers fromthe heartless and racistcolonial oppressors.

The wound that rankles

Komagata Maru-1914-Ik Zakhmi Parwaz relives the pain of one of the darkestchapters of imperialism.

As a part of the centenary celebration ofKomagata Maru, the stage enactment of thesuffering, struggle for survival and finallytheir growing political consciousness toconfront the monstrous forces ofimperialism is one of the most inspiringpieces of theatrical art seeking to enacthistory on the stage in recent years.

DIWAN SINGH BAJELI

INTENSE MOMENTS Ascene from the play.

Words, once knownfor their obstinacywith ideas of

sublimity, purity, aestheticsensitivity and tranquillityof several emotions, now areused even by exponents ofcreative dexterity forpainting trivialities of life aswhiter than white.Superabundance of wordsgets on ones nerve andthere is a multitude ofwords that say nothing. In aworld where profusely-illustrated text has gainedacceptability, people alwayslook for rib-tickling fun andwords not layered with anycomplexity are much indemand and this leavesmany wordsmithsexasperated. Widespreadputrefaction of word ismeticulously articulated byeminent Hindu poet LeelaDhar Jaguri in his latestpoems and perceptiveintroduction whichappeared recently.

He is clearly miffed at thetendency of using wordsthat are intended to subverttheir meaning. Words nolonger betray a close affinitywith several emotional tiesthat constitute what humanlife is all about.

Leela Dhar Jaguri, aSahitya Akademi awardee inhis introduction, On thedoorstep of poetry, regretsthat words are hardly usedto map the terrain of humanconsciousness. The marchof globalisation and neo-capitalism has completelyaltered dialectics of life andeven literature is being usedas a recipe for stagnationand corruption. For Jaguri,principles, ideologies andrationalism have desertedus and money power hasemerged as the mostsignificant ethical forcewhich is downrightharrowing as it will fill thewhole world with dread. Itis time for introspectionand we need genuine andforthright words. Wecontinue to falter and

constant privation on thiscount will lead us nowhere.This can only be achieved ifwe look for an alternative towhat the contemporarysociety offers, Leela DharJaguri eloquentlydelineates.

What is the relevance ofpoetry and why do we needto go beyond entertainmentdished out by the comedycircus? Turning to thesequestions, he makes astrong plea for poetry aswhenever an event worthremembering takes placeone recalls an old poem or itpaves the way for a newpoem. It is the domain ofpoetry to acquaint man withwhat he tends to forget.Poetry wipes out themiasma of opulence thattakes a heavy toll on thecreativity of man. Quest forworldly affairs hardlyenables us to fathom whatthe good poetry suggests:poetry caters to elementalemotional need and itrequires no formulatedphrase or visible label.Collapse of language doesresult in new words andtheir music can be madeaudible by poets as theyjuxtapose new experienceswith little known words andmusic.

Explaining the emotionaloutlay of his poetry, theaccomplished poet says that

he composes poetry becausehe wants his soul to be apart of universalconsciousness. For OctavoPazz every reader is thesecond poet and Jaguristrives for creating an urgefor poetry in the mind of hisreader and he never writespoems on the demand of thereader.

This brilliantintroduction aside,Samkaleen BhartiyaSahitya, a reputed quarterlyof Sahitya Akademi in itsrecent issue carried his fivepoems that clearly manifesthis ability to produce acreative antithesis of thedominant poetic discoursethat always harps onfragmentation andsubversion. His poemsportray grim situation andsometime seem despondentwith marked flirtation withhope. His creative world isnot a microcosm of all ourwickedness and dirtythoughts. Both meditativeand spontaneous methodsof exploring a newpossibility of lived realitywith a certain rigourdeserve appreciation andhis poems do not perpetuatethe stereotype that notmuch seems going right inthe world today. His poemscan never be reckoned asregurgitation of thestalwarts of Hindi poetry.

For the poet in every

second man

There is much that is right with our world. Forproof just read Leela Dhar Jaguri.

SHAFEY KIDWAI

GOING NATIVE

WELL DESERVED Leela Dhar Jaguri with APJ Abdul Kalam.

Legendary musicianPandit Ravi Shankar isstill alive in the hearts

of his fans. As he said in hisbooks, he never liked thestyle of American musiciansand singers, who broke theirinstruments after the showor made love to their guitars.Yet he played at concertsacross the world and peopleenjoyed his music and lovedhim wherever he went. SujitSanyal, a soft skills trainerand an admirer of PanditRavi Shankar paid tribute tothe legend sharing incidentsfrom the musicians life.

The first reason why Imade this video on PanditRavi Shankar is because I ama Bengali and he is someonethat all Bengalis are proud of.The second reason was thatwhen I saw his concert forthe first time in 1964 inKolkata, somethinghappened and I became fidaon Pandit Ravi Shankar.Since then, I have beenfollowing him in his concertsand collecting informationabout him. Not only hismusic but books, articles andvideos as well, revealsSanyal. He runs Sujit Sanyalworkshops, a training clinicon soft skills on the art ofpresentations, leadershipvalues, intellectual groomingand brand communication.

The video titledRemembering RaviShankar took the viewers tothe time when the musicianstarted his career. The videowas a collection of songs,short-videos and pictures ofthe artist with BabaAllauddin Khan, Alla Rakha,George Harrisson and

Satyajit Ray among others.There was this time whenMarie Dressler wanted toadopt Ravi Shankar and evenhe wanted to be adopted. Hebelieved that this could givehim a chance in Hollywood.But thankfully she couldntbecause his parents didn'tallow that to happen, saysSanyal.

At the age of 10, RaviShankar was a part of hisbrother, Uday Shankar'sballet group which

performed in Paris, Europeand other parts of the world.He used to dance and also helearned to play instrumentsduring this time. Sanyal givescredit to his son who helpedhim to do the video editing.Sanyal shared his studyabout the artist and hisachievements. In 1971,Pandit Ravi Shankar took theinitiative to organize the AConcert for Bangladeshduring the civil war. That wasone of the major reasons whyevery newspaper inBangladesh had full pagenews about his death. Iremember I was inChittagong in Bangladeshthat time with my wife, hesaid.

The show was hosted bythe Oxford Bookstore,Connaught Place inassociation with Delhi Diarymagazine on April 23, 2015.I have a 90-minute videowhich I present usually. Myson has helped me a lot forthis one. We spent hoursediting this together to makeit a 30-minute video, sharesSanyal.

Singing praises

Sujit Sanyal, a soft skills trainer and an admirerof Pandi Ravi Shankar, pays tribute to the legend.

DHANANJAY ATREAYA

IN THE MEMORY OF THE MAESTRO Sujit Sanyal

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THE HINDU Friday, May 1, 2015 P4MIXED BAG

MohanKumarsAmirGaribbrings to

fore the age differencebetween the male andfemale leads in Hindi films.Here one gets to see a 50-plus Dev romancing HemaMalini almost half his age.What is amazing is thecontinuation of thisphenomenon in the presentage. Despite changes inpublic taste and the type offilms being made one stillgets to see likes of SalmanKhan and Shah Rukh Khanamong others being castopposite much youngerheroines.

Besides this Amir Gariboccupies a significant pointon Dev Anands careergraph. It was one of the lastfilms made outside AnandsNavketan banner in whichhe acted and wielded thebaton. Also, after thephenomenal success ofHare Rama Hare Krishnain 1971, in which he directedand acted, his careerwitnessed a steadydownward trend. AmirGarib was probably one ofthe last, if not the last, filmto have done good businessat box-office.

Here, Anands acting stylelooks jaded and outdated,with the same mannerismswhich catapulted him to thetop echelons of stardom,seeming a bit tedious andtiresome especially with hispairing with a fresh facedand effervescent HemaMalini. She with herbeautiful screen presence

does a commendable job,despite her limitedhistrionic prowess. The filmcertainly benefitted fromJohnny Mera Naamreleased in 1970, in whichHema Malini was cast forthe first time opposite DevAnand and which didexceptional business at thebox-office. Seasonedwatchers felt that thoughnot launched by Anand,Hema Malinis careermoved upward considerablybecause of Johnny MeraNaam.

Die-hard fans of DevAnand have a lot to cheer inthe film, in which he holdscentre stage playing a thecharacter of a modern dayRobin Hood. The film startswith Mumbai police officialsdeliberating how to crack aspate of robberies targetingthe rich in the city by amasked thief called BagulaBhagat. Inspector Anand

(Sujeet Kumar) is givencharge of the case.

Meanwhile, one gets tosee musician and singer,Manmohan, alias Moni,working in a hotel owned bySeth Daulatram (Premnathin his trademark actingstyle, suave and polisheddialogue delivery) who ispursued by Sunita aka Soni,a pickpocket, who lives withher foster mother(Sulochana). In fact Sunitasrich businessman father

died when he was duped byhis treacherous manager,Daulatram.

Actually, Bagula Bhagat isMoni in disguise, whoseinformers (including Birbaland Tuntun) garnerinformation about themisdeeds of unscrupuloustraders and businessmen.These then become thetarget of Bagula Bhagat, whorobs them of their richesonly to distribute among thepoor and the needy. Monisheart beats for the illtrodden after a childhoodincident, in which hisgrandfather was killed by aruthless landowner, whonot only belittles him for hispoverty, and mocks himabout Monis mother havingbeen duped by a rich man.

After a series ofincidents-some interesting,others outright boring andoutlandish (like Anandacting as a hypnotist), Moni

and Soni agree to teach SethDaulatram a lesson for hismisdeeds. But before that,Moni comes to know thatSonis foster mother isactually his mother and thatinspector Sujeet Kumar isthe fianc of his fostersister. The film ends after acourtroom drama, in whichthe judge tries BagulaBhagat for hismisdemeanours. Does thejudge take a lenient view ofMonis plea for rights of thepoor? Or is he delivered aharsh punishment?

Whatever the finaldenouement, the audienceis bedevilled with a lot ofconfusion due to theplethora of tracks and subtracks making the story ameandering rigmarole ofclose to two and a halfhours. Several minutes andsome characters like that ofTanuja in a cameo as

Ranjeets sister, whohimself has nothing much todo other than get repeatedlyslapped) could have beenchopped to make the script(written by KA Narayan)taut and job of editing byPratap Bhatt and PratapDave that much easier.

Music by Laxmikant-Pyarelal, set to lyrics byAnand Bakshi, is good,especially the hummableKishore Kumar-LataMangeshkar duet, Soni aurMoni ki hai jodi ajeeb andthe Kishore Kumar soloMain aaya hoon.

However, Mohan Kumar,who contributed to cinemawith films such as Anpadh,Avtaar and Aap AayeBahar Aayi could havecertainly offered a betterfilm.

APS MALHOTRA

Amir Garib (1974)BLAST FROM THE PAST

FOR A CAUSE Hema Malini, Prem Nath and DevAnand played the main parts in Amir Garib; astill from the film.

Genre: Social dramaDirector: Mohan KumarCast: Dev Anand, HemaMalini, Prem Nath, Ranjeet,Sujit Kumar, Sulochana,Birbal, Mohan ChhotiScreenplay and story: K.A.NarayanDialogue: Ehsan RizviLyrics: Anand BakshiMusic director: Laxmikant-PyarelalBox office status: Hit

After receivingappreciation foressaying the role of

Raghuvendra Pratap Rathorein the serial Uttaran whichwound up in January, actorGaurav Chopra will be backon television with his newshow Gulmohar Grand. Inthis he essays the role ofAnirudh Dutta, ManagingDirector of a five-star hotelGulmohar Grand. The 26episode television show willbe aired every Sunday on StarPlus and is a family dramahighlighting the glamorousworld of five star hotels. Eachepisode will feature a newguest of the hotel aroundwhom the story will revolve.

He has also played aFrench journalist in themuch acclaimed English filmBlood Diamond, starringLeonardo DiCaprio.

In the Capital recently forthe promotion of GulmoharGrand donning the dress heappears in the serial heshared his experience ofworking in the show,different genres and hisupcoming projects.

Excerpts from theinterview:

Tell us something aboutyour character Anirudh inGulmohar Grand.

Anirudh Dutt is themanaging director of thehotel. He has devoted hisentire life to the hotel. Hehas pretty much sacrificedeverything for the hotel. Heis basically the backbone ofwhatever happens. He takescare of the recruits. He alsotakes care of the owner of thehotel. He is a go-getter. Hesmiles when faced withproblems while assuringothers main hoon na. Thereis nothing filmy about him. Avery nice character to play.So, it being relatively real iswhat makes Anirudh achallenging character to play.He will have the dilemmasthat you or your friends willhave. That is why people willrelate to him. He is inspiringbecause he stands up andtakes it to himself. But at thesame time his approach tolife is simple. I believe thatthe show is beautifullywritten. If you really want towatch good television, this isit.

What was the reason forlimiting the series to 26episodes?

This is how the televisionhas been always all aroundthe world. There were showson Doordarshan which usedto end with specific numberof episodes. Before the saas-

bahu revolution, thetelevision was like this only.Now people don't evenremember it. When a seasonof Grey's Anatomy orGame of Thrones comes itis ten episodes. The reasonbehind this is that, if youwatch the show and you likeit, it is going to be back with anew season. It is another stepto get that trend back andalso to be in line with howthe television is all aroundthe world. According to meit's in the same bracket asGrey's Anatomy.

What do you plan nowafter having worked intelevision shows, Hindiand English movies?

I am becoming a producernow. It is a Marathi film. It isa beautiful and simple storyand I thought that it shouldbe made. I will produce it.Two films have been signedas well this year. So, by nextyear you shall see them. Ihave also started working fora show on Channel V calledSadda Haq. I have donethree episodes and when yousee it, you will realize thathow randomly crazy thatcharacter is. I have neverdone anything like it before.When you say that I amdoing these different roles, Iwould say that I am justbeing lucky. Somebody gets arole for me they just call me.I take it and just go for it.

Tell us about thefavourite character youhave played till now.

Its very difficult to choosemy favourite role. But to saythe role I enjoyed the mosttill now was Abhay SinghRanavat. It is something thatI have never done before. Infact, when we are shooting, Iat times went like What thehell are we doing? He is socomplicated that I cannotcompare it with anythingthat I have done before. I wasmore filmy in Uttaran thanany other. He was an iconiccharacter. It would take metwo days to tell you whatkind of instances that I hadto face while doing that role.

Was there any characterthat you have played inreel life which wanted toplay in real life too?

It is been the other wayround. Rathore (Uttaran)became Gaurav. Ranavat isgetting out the hiddencraziness that people don'tknow that I have inside me.My very close friends knowthat I have a crazy side. Sothere is no particular rolebut, towards the end,Rathore comes very close towho I am.

Close to realQUICK FIVE

DHANANJAY ATREAYA

GOING GREAT GUNS Gaurav Chopra

were speaking very highlyagainst the caste system anduntouchability and talking ofGandhian ideals. So, inspiredby thatI went to somelow-caste, so-calleduntouchable, people, tried toconvince them Satyarthiwanted them to cook andinvite the leaders of thevillage to partake of the food.

Continues Satyarthi,They said, No, no. Its notpossible. It has neverhappened. My friends and Itook our bicycles and went toinvite political leaders. And Iwas so thrilled, rather,empowered to see that eachone of them agreed to come. Ithought, Great idea. We canset an example. We can bringabout change in the society.The day has come. All theseuntouchables, three womenand two men, they agreed tocome. I could recall that they

When I was 11,seeing some ofmy friends

leaving school because theirparents could not affordtextbooks made me angry.When I was 27, hearing theplight of a desperate slavefather whose daughter wasabout to be sold to a brothelmade me angry. At the age of50, lying on the street, in apool of blood, along with myown son, made me angryfor centuries we were taughtanger is bad. Our parents,teachers, priests everyonetaught us how to control andsuppress our anger. But I askwhy? Why cant we convertour anger for the larger goodof society? Why cant we useour anger to challenge andchange the evils of the world?That I tried to do, saysKailash Satyarthi on TEDtalks and begins to tell hisstory.

The recipient of the NobelPeace Award says, I hadbeen a big admirer ofMahatma Gandhi since mychildhood. Gandhi foughtand led Indias freedommovement when I was 15 an idea came to my mind.I was very impressed withthe leaders of my town who

had used the best of theirclothes. They brought newutensils. They had takenbaths hundreds of timesbecause it was unthinkablefor them to cook for people ofthe higher caste It was themoment of change. Theygathered. Food was cooked.It was 7 oclock8 oclock, wekept on waiting, because it isnot very uncommon that theleaders become late, for anhour or so. After 8 oclock, wewent to these leaders homes,just to remind them. One ofthe leaders wives told me,Sorry, he is having someheadache, perhaps he cannotcome. I went to anotherleader and his wife told me,Okay, you go, he willdefinitely join. So I thoughtthat the dinner will takeplace, though not at thatlarge a scale.but none of theleaders showed up.

Satyarthi partook of thefood. I came back home, alittle after midnight, shockedto see that several high-casteelderly people were sitting inmy courtyard. I saw mymother and elderly womenwere crying and they werepleading to these elderlypeople because they hadthreatened to outcaste my

whole family. Somehow theyagreed to punish only me,and the punishment waspurification. That means Ihad to go to the river Gangesto take a holy dip. And afterthat, I should organize a feastfor priests, 101 priests, washtheir feet and drink thatwater. It was total nonsense,and I refused to accept thatpunishment.

Satyarthi continues to saythey did punish him, I wasbarred from entering into myown kitchen and my owndining room, my utensilswere separatedthe nightwhen I was angry, theywanted to outcaste me. But Idecided to outcaste theentire caste systemAnd thatwas possible. The beginningwould have been to changethe family name, or surname,because in India, most of thefamily names are castenames. So I decided to dropmy name. And then, later on,I gave a new name to myself:Satyarthi, that means, seekerof truth.

sudhamahi@gmail.com

How he got his nameTELLING VOICES

On a TED talk Kailash Satyarthi, the winner of Nobel Peace Prize of 2014, speaks about hisinitiation to fight against social evils. Sudhamahi Regunathan reports...

Web link:http://goo.gl/uyDlmh

I was barred fromentering into my ownkitchen and my owndining room, my utensilswere separated

Z

DANCE

Arpanam Bharatanatyam recital by thedisciples of Priya Venkataraman.May 2, Epicentre, Apparel House,Sector 44, Gurgaon, 7.30 p.m.

FESTIVAL

Indian ClassicalDances the last day of the festivalfeatures solo Odissi recitals by

Gajendra Kumar Panda and ArchitaSahu, followed by Kuchipudi recitalby Jayarama Rao and Vanashreeand Kathak recital by Uma Sharma.May 1, Habitat World, India HabitatCentre, Lodhi Road, ND, 7 p.m.onwards.

Debadhara Dance &Music Festival festival in memory of late GuruDebaprasad Das featuringHindustani vocal recital by Pandit A.Maheshwar Rao, followed by violinrecital by Biswajit Roychowdhury,sarod recital by ChandrimaMajumdar, Hindustani vocal recitalby Rosey Brahma. May 2, C.D.Deshmukh Auditorium, MainBuilding, India International Centre,40, Max Mueller Marg, Lodhi Road,ND, 6.30 p.m. onwards.

MUSIC

Ghazals Puja Mehra Gupta rendersghazals and poetry of Meer TaqiMeer, Jigar Moradabadi, ShakeelBadayuni, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, AhmedFaraz and Mirza Ghalib. May 1,Amaltas Hall, India Habitat Centre,Lodhi Road, ND, 7 p.m.

THEATRE

Koi Baat Chale Hindi romantic comedy playdirected by Ramji Bali. May 1, ShriRam Centre for Performing Arts, 4,Safdar Hashmi Marg, Mandi House,ND. First show at 4 p.m. followed bythe second show at 7.30 p.m.Ticket: Rs.500.

Love In The Park Akshara presents Englishcomedy play directed by Nisa

Shetty with actors Dhruv Shetty,Shaily Priya Pandey, YashnaShetty, Ankur Anand, Vijay S.Kumar and others. May 1, AksharaTheatre, 11-12 B, Baba KharakSingh Marg, ND, 7.45 p.m. Ticket:Rs.200.

Pot Of Gold Saksham Theatre presents Hindicomedy play directed by SunilRawat. The cast includesVikramaditya, Aryan Chaudhary,Pooja Pathak, Anubhava Dixit,Prem Prakash, among others. May2, Vasuki Auditorium, Lok Kala

Manch, 20, Lodhi Institutional Area,Lodhi Road, ND, 7 p.m. Tickets:Rs.300, 200 and 100. Available onbookmyshow.com

Forbidden Fruit Zorian Cross productionpresents English play written anddirected by Zorian Cross withperformance by Eesha Singh,Himanshi Karol, Nargis Nandalamong others. May 2 and 3,Akshara Theatre, 11-12 B, BabaKharak Singh Marg, ND, 6 p.m. and8 p.m. Tickets: Rs.500 available onbookmyshow.comThe Kambatta Case Ruchika Theatre Group presentsHinglish play loosely based on thesensational Nanavati murder caseof 1959 written and directed byFeisal Alkazi. May 2 and 3, theStein Auditorium, India HabitatCentre, Lodhi Road, ND, 7 p.m.Tickets: Rs.350, 250 and 150available at programme desk.

VISUAL ART

Exhibition group show of paintings byAmbika Nanda, Kamal Nath and

Simmi Rishi. On till May 4,Convention Centre Foyer, IHC,Lodhi Road, ND, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Spandan Art...WayTo Soul part of the 3rd Spandan NationalArt Festival featuring artistsincluding Arvind Vaidankar, BabuHussain, D. Dharmalingam,Naveen Verma, P. HanumanthaRao, Shrikant Kumar, Sonia Kumar,Swapnil Arvind Vaidankar amongothers. On till May 5, Artizen ArtGallery, Pearey Lal Bhavan, 2,Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, ND, 11

a.m. to 7 p.m.Enlighment Of TheBuddha an exhibition of paintings byPrince Chand. On till May 7, GoldSouk Mall, Block C, Sector 43,Sushank Lok, Phase I, Gurgaon, 11a.m. to 7 p.m.Tales From The SoulMarrow solo exhibition of Vikash Kalra.On till May 7, Art Indus, 37Santushti Shopping Complex, Opp.Ashok Samrat Hotel, Race CourseRoad, Chanakyapuri, ND, 11 a.m.

to 7 p.m.Glimpses OfHungarian Wildlife photo exhibition of JozsefMesterhazi. On till May 8,Hungarian Information and CulturalCentre, 1A, Janpath, ND, 10 a.m. to4 p.m. on weekdays only.Creative Six exhibition featuring artistsManas Ranjan Jena, SidharthPansari, Sujata, Vijay Sharma,Jitender Dangi and SanjayChakraborty. On till May 7,Creativity Art Gallery, 6, GF, HauzKhas Village, ND, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.Kal Ke Kuch Pal exhibition of photographs byAadil Jamal. On till May 31, Delhi ODelhi Foyer, IHC, Lodhi Road, ND,10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Museum OfUnknown Memories an exhibition of ManishPushkales recent works depictinghis visual interpretation of pastwhich he has developed on paperand canvas. On till June 6, AkarPrakar Gallery, Hauz Khas Village,11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

FROM THE DIARY

BHARATANATYAM RECITAL BY PRIYAVENKATARAMAN'S DISCIPLES, MAY 2,

EPICENTRE, GURGAON

POT OF GOLD, PLAY DIRECTED BY SUNIL RAWAT, MAY 2, VASUKI AUDITORIUM GHAZALS BY PUJA MEHRA GUPTA, MAY 1, IHC