BEHINDWOODS CELEBRITY COLUMN

My driving time is usually utilized to listen to music either from my CD collection or the variety-infused FM radio stations and I happened to tune in to this 90s Tamil song ‘Jaathi Malli Poocharamey’ from the movie ‘Azhagan’. I immediately increased the volume as I recollected the heroine of the film Bhanupriya mesmerizingly dancing like a peacock all over the lush green lawn when the hero, Mammooty chooses to sing the lyrics that would’ve actually been penned as a poem. Such grace, such rhythm, such energy exuberated by an extremely talented dancer who took dancing to her fans and lovers of performing art.The heroine of Tamil cinema was a harbinger of classical dance form reaching it to the masses through songs that had both a popular appeal and a style of choreography that were beautifully carried off by them. This was not necessarily the strict form of classical dancing on stage with the complete costume and ornaments adorned and performed to a typical classical composition to a select audience but it gave a traditional art form that much deserved reach.

For every Revathy who took the audience’s breath away with her non-stop number ‘Kavithai keylungal’ in the film ‘Punnagai Mannan’ venting her anger out atop the terrace with a parallel of a ‘rudrathaandavam’, you had a Shobhana who effortlessly performed a classical bit in ‘Raakkamma Kaiyathattu’ in the movie ‘Thalapathy’. While Khushboo was not a hard-core Bharathanatyam dancer, she did pull it off in ‘Varusham 16’ in a more conventional style with her charm and expressions for the requirement of the story and her role. When you saw Meenakshi Seshadri in the song ‘Anjali Anjali’ in Duet, with her svelte, flexible physique lendingsteps that could match up to the very waves of the ocean, you could make out that she has her roots in classical dancing. For all the daring attitude that Ramya Krishnan portrayed to challenge Superstar himself in the movie ‘Padaiyappa’ as Neelambari, she did match up to the tunes of ‘Minsaara Kanna’ as a vibrant dancer.

Our parents’ generation would definitely have their pick to the likes of ‘Marainthirunthu Paarkum’ song in Thillaanaa Mohanaambal by the unparallel Padmini whose contribution to Bharathanatyam was way beyond cinema itself. Talk about a dance duel and it’s impossible to not recollect the outstanding performances of two top heroines Vyjayanthi Mala and Padmini at loggerheads in ‘Vanjikottai Valiban’ that only a chandelier being cut off by the much-troubled hero Gemini Ganesan could stop them from that hysterical competition between two equals. Classical art in films of bygone decades had a place of pride that blended well with the plot and the characters to spice up the narration and increase the entertainment quotient.

Like how female comedians today are relatively lesser in our films, male classical dancers have also been a finger count away. Barring Padmashree Kamal Haasan (in Salangai Oli / Vishwaroopam and many more) or India’s Michael Jackson Prabhudeva (in Kaadhalan) or more recently with Ajith giving it a shot in ‘Varalaaru’ despite not being a trained dancer, not many male actors have attempted pure classical dance in their films because it’s never too easy to get away with half-baked rendition as far as quality in classical dance is concerned.

Time and again we keep reiterating that movies have always been a reflection of the society belonging to that point in time.So when we had films that had characters in pivotal roles embracing classical music or dance, it mirrored the larger section of society that were equally into the learning and cultivating of a classical art. With the dwindling use of this art form in movies today, one wonders if that also is a reflection of the dwindling interest among the audience or makers in this art form. As of today, with increasing influence of other countries’ culture and their style of western arts, it is hard to brush away the fact that the classical arts that sketch the character of our culture has been relegated to occasions when only a foreign delegate visits our country or at opening ceremonies of international sporting events.

In a day where kuthupaattu and item numbers rule the popularity charts and bring our audience to the theatres, our films should also stay in touch with the classical art that is intrinsic to this country’s culture. It’s a different matter that most heroines today are under pressure to portray a glamorous avatar with dance sequences that is anything but classical. But we sure wouldn’t mind tuning in to a channel playing a song featuringtwo leading Tamil heroines of today attempting a pure Bharathanatyam based combat on the dance floor so we can also watch and say ‘Sabhash, Sariyaana Potti’.