Narthaki was born Nataraj...Hailing from Madurai and a disciple of the late Guru Kittappa Pillai, Nataraj was re-christened Narthaki, when she realised she was different. In an interesting interview with Aruna. S of KutcheriBuzz, the dancer who now runs a school in Madras along with friend Shakthi, talks about what dance has done to her... (Shakthi shares the same identity crisis and is referred to by Narthaki as We in this interview) Facing a gender problem can be the most traumatic experience in ones life. How did you manage it all these years? We were born different. Society doesnt accept our lot for what we are. We are pushed to the lower strata of the society. We are a neglected lot. But, we didnt want to give up. We wanted to make it big. We wanted to prove to the society that we are humans and that we have emotions that need to be respected too. And today Im here talking to you...But, it has not been easy. We have gone through all the turbulations. Our own families didnt want us. But there was this fire within me that has led me all along. It is only in the last six years, that I have actually learnt to face the society. Now I have the confidence. I believe in merit and I believe in myself. Our very birth was the biggest loss in our lives...and dance was the only remedy to keep us going... When did you discover about yourself? From the time I was about seven, I was not quite comfortable playing with boys. I would feel at ease with girls. And when I found Shakthi (who was called Shankar then) I realised I could associate with her better. How did you develop an interest in dance? As a child I kept dancing on my own. My first stage experience was when I was in 2nd std. I was given the role of Mother Shakthi by my school teacher in a dance drama. Cinema was the only entertainment in Madurai and we had no other option but to watch films. And I was inspired by Vyjayanthimalas performances in films. I used to try and imitate her, Padmini or Kamala! After watching their dance sequences in the films screened at a local theatre, I would try to perform the same before my friend Shakthi on the way back home, on the roads even late night... How did your family react to all this? Oh, they never knew what I did. I loved putting on make-up, dressing up and dancing. At some small functions, I would get a chance to dance, probably for about three minutes and I made the best use of it. My movements were drawn from my imagination. But quicky after the performance, I would wipe out all the make-up and hide the make-up things at a secret place. But sometimes when they did find out that Ive been dancing, I used to be beaten up... Ive even won several prizes which I never brought back home... How did you then manage to pursue a career in dance? On seeing me dance, many advised me to train under a good teacher. Inspired by Vyjayanthimala, it was my ambition to learn from her Guru. I had this veri(madness) to become a student of her Guru (Kittappa Pillai). In fact, my friend Shakthi was a good student in school. But, we used to be teased... We found it very difficult and decided not to go to college. Dance was always my passion. And my friend Shakthi was my strength. How did you begin your formal training? Initially when I was about 12, a relative of mine who appreciated my talent took me to a stage actress. On realising that I actually wanted to learn dancing and not acting, she took me to a teacher called Namanur Jeyaraman who lived in Sivaganga. It was too far for us to travel and the teacher promised to give classes when he visited Madurai for his medical check up. And this happened in a hut, which took about a 90-minute walk from my house. Shakthi used to pay the fee of Rs.80 and a conveyance of Rs.20 to this teacher. And this she would give by working in her familys textile business. After a year, I even managed to present a small arangetram at a playground in Madurai. When did you start lessons under Kittappa Pillai? I had this urge within me to learn from him. Nearly for one year, we went up and down from Madurai to Thanjavur. But he wouldnt give a nod. He asked us to watch the performances of his students - Sudharani Raghupathy or Vyjayanthimala, which we religiously did. And only after almost a year, he accepted to take me as his student. I joined him when I was 17. I stayed at his house and continued my lessons. Any special memories of him... He was a very affectionate person. He has even advised me when I took my personal problems to him. The first time when I danced on stage with my Guru Kittappa Pillai doing the nattuvangam for me was at the Chidambaram Natyanjali festival in 1986. In those days, there were very few participants at the festival. If I remember well, there were only six! I performed for an hour. How did you start making a name for yourself? I was introduced to the dance world in the late 80s by Smt. Sudharani Raghupathy, who was instrumental in the making of a documentary on Guru Kittappa Pillai by the Sangeet Natak Akademi. In this documentary, I demonstrated some of the adavus and the traditional jathis as performed in ancient times. That was the first time, when I was projected as a dancer at a national level. The first time I performed in Madras was in 1988 at the Mylapore Fine Arts auditorium. Later, I performed for Sruti Foundation at a national seminar on Bharatanatyam traditions in 1989 at Narada Gana Sabhas main hall. I was one of the students to demonstrate the adavus of the Thanjavur bani at the lec-dem and gave a performance in the evening. You seem to give a lot of importance to make-up and costumes... A dance performance is a pleasure to watch. The purpose of a dance performance is to make the audience happy. And it is the attire of a dancer that adds to the aethetics of a dance performance. I strongly believe in the traditional Bharatanatyam costume that adds so much beauty to the dancer. Wearing rich costumes and all the jewellery and make-up adds to the stage presence of a dancer. I dont believe in comprising on the traditional costume. We should be dressed well to look beautiful. And this I learnt from Smt. Sudharani who is known for her beautiful costumes and jewellery. With regard to costumes, I remember an incident when I attended an interview for the Govt. of India Scholarship in 1987. It was held at Kalakshetra. I went for the interview in my full costume. There were about 50 candidates. All of them had come in their practice sarees and they were looking very curiously at me because I was the only one to have turned up in the full attire. But, what came us a big surprise was when Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam who was a panelist appreciated me. She called the other students and told them that at an interview like this one, we are also judged for our stage presence and that the costume was very important. How did you get into teaching? I had the opportunity of working with my Guru as his assistant at the Music Department of the Tamil University, Thanjavur. Later I opened my own school, Narthaki Nrutya Kalalaya in Madurai. So far atleast 200 students have been trained by me at Madurai. Some even from abroad. I have also produced dance dramas alongwith my students. There is so much that they can learn from us. We have a rich repertoire of the Thanjavur school. Some of the pieces are very rare and particular to the Thanjavur school. At present, one of my senior students handles the classes at Madurai. Have you been choreographing too? Yes. Most of my performances highlight the greatness of womanhood. They revolve around the philosophy of the jeevatma and the paramatma (human souls yearning for the Supreme). I would like to recall Sriman Nadanagopala Nayaki Swamigal of Madurai, who thought of himself as a Nayaki. Some of my dance productions include Tamizh Amudhu, Siva Darisanam, Shakthi Darisanam, Kumara Vijayam, Arangan Vaibhavam, Swatantra Vriksha besides productions on contemporary issues. How do you work on your themes? I have a passion for the Tamil language and Tamil literature. I have a huge collection of rare Tamil books. For any theme that I choose, I make sure that I research and make a careful study on the topic. A well known musician T.V. Sundaravalli composes the music for my productions. Narthaki with Revathi Sankkaran and Shakthi Why did you choose to move to Madras? Well, Madras is acclaimed as the centre for arts. It is the most happening place in the arts scene. And now we have moved to Madras with the hope of building a strong future here. And it is the well known T.V. personality Revathi Sankkaran who is a pillar of support to us. It is she who found a flat for us right in the middle of Mylapore. When I met her for the first time, few months ago, I called her amma and now she is more than a mother to Shakthi and me. We dont want people to accept us out of compassion. They should appreciate our talents. I have a regular fan following down south. Some of the sabhas in Thanjavur and Madurai feature my performance almost every year in their annual festivals. At present our living in Madras is supported through our performances in the south. We must mention that our neighbours here are very friendly and helpful. Your future plans? As a long term plan, I want to groom a dancer who will be remembered as the Narthaki after me. I want to see myself in this dancer. I want to train a student who can uphold my values. The student must have the dedication to the art that I expect. Shakthi and I follow a very strict discipline in whatever we do. Narthaki recently presented Amba themed on the story of Shikandi at the IDAs dance fest in Madras. Her dance school, Narthaki Nrutya Kalalaya functions from her residence at G-A, Kesava Flats, 2&3, Kalvi VAru Street, Vishranthi Homes, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004. Ph: 044-4660413. E-mail: narthakiandsakthi@yahoo
Posted on: Wed, 06 Aug 2014 17:15:27 +0000
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