SUNDAY 15 JANUARY 2012 | PAGES 8

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Kuchipudi remains a quaint village, a huge Natya Kalakshetra complex built by Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University bang in the middle of the village notwithstanding. To an onlooker, there appears a panorama where masters in penury seem to fade into retirement while the younger lot seems to be making forays into more rewarding work areas

Kuchipudi At Crossroads
USHA TURAGA REVELLI

he larger-than-life YSR statue at the junction of these curving roads seems to hold a posture that is more elegant than that of his usual striding-forward statues. No wonder, since the curve leads into a village that has grace as its leitmotif and the rhythm of anklets beating along with the heartbeats of each one of its residents. A village that was the wellspring for magnificent art forms, home for generations of classical performers and a metonym for research, innovation and creativity in classical dance and ballet forms. Kuchipudi village, the fountainhead of a dance that it is named after. At Kuchipudi in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, a majority of the residents belong to families that are not just related to each other by marriage or kinship but also by a tradition that they all shared across generations. It is said that there were 16 families in all - the Vedantam, Vempati, Pasumarthy, Tadepally, Chinta, Darbha, Yeleshwarapu, Bhagavatula, Somayaajula, Mahankali families et al that carried forward the tradition across three centuries. They established a Guru Shishya Parampara and a Kuchipudi Yaksha Ganam tradition that spanned across generations of these families. Some of the masters have garnered individual fame, winning accolades nationally and internationally. Some Gurus such as Vedantam Raghavaiah, Vempati China Satyam, Vedantam Satyanarayana Sharma gained iconic status among even the younger of the tribe. The art form, at least the contemporised version of it, has many takers, especially in urban centres and abroad and has been visible on many a platform, including some whimsical extravaganzas such as performing to get into the Guinness book. Yet, the glory does not seem to reflect on the village. Kuchipudi remains a quaint village, a huge Natya Kalakshetra complex built by Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University bang in the middle of the village notwithstanding. To an onlooker, there appears a panorama where masters in penury seem to fade into retirement while the younger lot seems to be making forays into more rewarding work areas. It is not true that the younger generation has not learnt the art from their elders. It is just that they are either on the fringes, choosing some other livelihood options or have gone off into a commercially viable mode of Kuchipudi dance, often a far cry from the original, says one of the senior Gurus. They cant be fully blamed because we seriously lack a support mechanism here. That may sound strange considering that the Telugu University has exclusively dedicated an institution to the preservation and promotion of Kuchipudi dance along with a hostel complex for the resident students. But the Natya Kalakshetra seems to be clearly under-utilised. The vast spaces around the complex, the massive halls seem deserted. Less than half a dozen students seem to be around, casually practicing in corridors and on the patio. The University offers numerous long-term and shortterm courses but the students seem to consider the Kalakshetra more as a quick-fix vehicle to clear the exams rather than as an abode to acquire erudition. So we have dozens of them de-

A class for little kids in progress at a temple in Pamarru near Kuchipudi

summate ease are now used to the cycle pedal. Chinta Sriram Murthy teaches basic dance steps to toddling kids at a temple in Pamarru, 12 km away. Pasumarty Venkateswarulu, all of hundred years old, reclines on a broken chair in a dilapidated house, but his memory of the glorious days of Kuchipudi Yaksha Ganam is far from broken. He recites with astounding Chinta Sriram Murthy gusto poems that he had once perSeventy-year-old Chinta Sriram formed but is resigned to the contemMurthy - Chinta Master as is he is porary decline of the art form. referred to by the students - is an Nataraja himself was a dancerso icon of the Kuchipudi Yaksha how do we carbon date Kuchipudi? It Gaanam repertoire, enacting eka survived thus fartomorrow will be patras with a speed and diction another day, he says philosophically, that can put a Breathless to drinking a glass of milk offered by his shame any day. With his younger sixty-year-old daughter. brothers death a year ago, Chinta Kuchipudi is a village quite literally master is the only remaining at a crossroad, says Sudha Sridhar, artiste who played Pagati Veshawho has been striving to document gaallu or Hasyagallu, the monothe vanishing traditions of Yaksha actor who played entertaining Ganam through Bangalore-based interludes in the night-long Panchama Vedam Foundation. Kuchipudi Yaksha Gaanam perThe purists say, the traditional art formances. My sons have learned form needs to be preserved in its own dance but I could not teach my art form, to whatever extent possible. The to anyone else. Those costumes, younger generation says it needs to be that scripting, the multiple talents better packaged so that Kuchipudi we had are all soon going to be hisdancers can be career professionals on tory, he laments. par with all other fields. The problem as far as the masters scending on Kuchipudi just before are concerned is two-fold, says exams. Its a pity, rues a faculty Sudha. There have been no social enmember. titlements, no incentives, no security Principal of Kalakshetra, Dr measures given by the Government. Vedantam Ramalingeswara Shastry, a That is a pathetic situation. And then progeny of the venerated Vedantam each Guru is a treasure trove of tradifamily and himself a product of the tional knowledge yet there are few Kalakshetra denies that the institution channels left either to document what is redundant. We provide the kind of they know or to pass them on to infrastructure that only a Government younger ones, in the family or outbody can. Just look at the library and side. the spaces. It is up to the students to Telugu University is now expandutilise the services and knowledge that ing the Kala Kshetra building with fuwe have to offer, he says. ture plans to build an auditorium. Surely enough, there is no dip in the Apart from the Governments efforts number of students seeking to learn to promote Kuchipudi dance, there the celebrated and much-evolved have been some parallel efforts to addance form. And no dearth of recog- dress the various aspects pertaining to nition. Yet, there seems to be a gap the evolution of dance form and its and it is most evident in the way a few setting. While Panchama Vedam Gurus are pushed into the twilight of Foundation is working on a genealogy the discipline, both socially and and on documenting the tradition of economically. Kuchipudi Yaksha Ganam, a team of Sangeet Natak Akademi heritage architects - Vasanta Sobha, awardee Guru Rattayya Uttara Valluri, Syed Aamer and HusSharma, a human encyclo- sain has been conducting a study to pedia on dance, cycles 15 develop a vision for Kuchipudi as a km a day to teach stu- cultural heritage centre. dents at another vilThe vision document we are lage, his meager preparing for the entire Kuchipudi resalary at the Kalak- gion has three parts. One is to assess shetra inadequate to the architectural and community sustain his livelihood. needs of the place, including performThe feet that ance areas, archives and resource cendanced with con- tres. Second is the individual needs of the Gurus by way of housing and support systems, both as a preceptor and a resident. Some houses may be developed as museums or into learning centres for students who may want to follow the gurukula system. The third is a larger cultural tourism-heri t a g e preservation Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam perspective,

explains the team. The idea is to develop Kuchipudi as a heritage centre, rather like Adyar Kala Kshetra or Shanti Niketan. The aura of the village has to be preserved, showcasing it as a symbol of a rich tradition, Sudha Sridhar summarises. There are efforts from within the artiste community as well. Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam has played a crucial role in the village dedicating his home to a museum and building an arch at the Agraharam entrance. Tadepalli Satyanarayana, a performer par excellence, and Vedantam Venkata Chalapathi, scions of the legendary families, have also been instrumental in bringing the maestros together and garnering them an appropriate place in the gallery of fame. And, yet, it appears more effort is needed to dovetail the knowledge that the stalwarts can give out before it is too late. And the onus probably lies on those who have reached heights of success as performers. The walls of the dance classrooms in Telugu University are adorned by photographs of masters of another era marked by the rhythmic nattuvangam and melodious music. There is no doubt that the contemporary practitioners of the art have demonstrated sufficient respect towards their patriarchs. But, in a globalised world, where the line between fusion and erosion of the original is thin, what needs to be seen is how far they can carry the torch in promoting the glorious art form that gave them an unparalleled pedigree among all artistes.

Kuchipudi Dancer Deepika Potarazu

Dr Vedantam Satyanarayana Sarma

uru Vedantam Radhe Shyam, faculty member at Telugu University, points out that the Telugu Talli statue on the premises has a long plait akin to the legendary Satyabhama Jada. This is Kuchipudi Talli, not just Telugu Talli, he says with a twinkle in his eye. And just a kilometre away lives an artiste who immortalised Satya Bhama for Telugu classical dance aficionados for decades. Padmasri Dr Vedantam Satyanarayana Sarma, playing a woman with aplomb and grace, stole innumerable hearts as the gutsy wife of Krishna, whose defiance added spice to her femininity. The long plait displayed in Bhama Kalapam has come to be recognised as the emblem of Kuchipudi dance. Dr Vedantam, now past 80, has been a performing artiste unlike his contemporary Dr Vempati China Satyam who trained countless students in solo and ballet forms of Kuchipudi.