Sunday November 15, 2009
Life, the universe and everything
By ANDREW SIA
These women reach for the stars when they perform from the heart.
COULD a mere dance touch on the secrets of the universe, quantum physics and the very meaning of life? An upcoming Indian classical dance production called Chalaachala – Stillness in Motion is going to give it a good shot.
“The show’s theme is close to my heart,” says one of the three dancers involved, M. Sandhya, 32, who is also a yoga teacher.
“In yoga and meditation, your body is still yet the mind can be agitated. But here, we strive to feel stillness in our minds while our bodies are in motion,” she says of the dance that is presented by the cultural organisation, the Temple of Fine Arts (TFA).
S. Nisha (left) and M. Sandhya strike a cosmic pose during rehearsals for the upcoming show Chalaachala. – Photo by KEVIN TAN / The Star For its choreographer, Geetha Shankaran-Lam, 40, it’s not just a theoretical exercise about inner peace and contentment; it’s a real reflection of her life’s journey.
She began classical dance at the age of 10 and earned acclaim for her obvious talent. But problems started when she fell in love with her husband-to-be, Lam Ghooi Ket, when she was 18.
“I was told that if I wanted to become a famous dancer, I had to be totally dedicated and not be distracted by (romantic) love,” recounts Geetha during a recent interview at the TFA in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur.
“Yet in (the Indian classical dance form) Odissi, we are supposed to show our love for the deities. I was confused because I was being told that love should not be part of my life. So how could I pretend to show love for the divine? At that point I began to hate dance. In the end I rebelled, I left my teacher and got married.”
It was then that she met Swamiji Shantanand Saraswathi, the TFA founder.
“He has a different philosophy, where to be a better artiste and human being, you have to experience life,” she relates. “He encouraged me to fall in love, bring my baby to the dance practises, to embrace motherhood. Everything at the Temple of Fine Arts was supportive of mothers on their artistic journey. Children are encouraged to sit in front during productions. It was then that I fell in love again with life and dance.”
“The Geetha of before and today are different. I can now handle difficult situations. I feel content now. I am happy that my eldest son (the 18-year-old Hariraam Lam) is now dancing with me.
“I recognise that my talent is a gift. And I want to use it to teach the beauty of this art form as a service to people. I also want to be the best Indian classical dancer, to be able to communicate my emotions to everyone in the audience.”
The show’s first dance, entitled Spanda (which means “to throb”) is infused with deep cosmic symbolism.
“Before the Big Bang that created the universe, there was stillness,” explains Lam, who is the TFA’s production coordinator.
“Before there was the Thought that led to all of creation today, there was a Throb, an Impulse.”
In the dance, the goddess Shakthi moves around the god Shiva, stimulating the initial throb.
“It recalls the inter-play of yin-yang, the female and male aspects of life force,” adds Lam.
After the initial Throb, the rest of creation bursts forth, symbolised by the second dance, Nada, or Sound.
“As the (Biblical) verse goes, ‘In the beginning was the Word and the Word was God.’ Nada is the sound vibration of God Himself. In this dance, the ukutas, or chanted sound syllables, are like divine mantras. Hand gestures signifying different created things are revealed, and thus everything is given a name,” explains Lam.
And from words comes the creation of solid matter, as expressed in the third dance, Roopa, or Form. Here, form is symbolised through more complicated and beautiful dance poses and sequences.
Intriguingly, the choreography of these first three pieces incorporates movements derived from other traditions, including kalari payattu, a martial art originating in Kerala in South India, and chhau, a hill tribe dance from Orissa in India’s East, as well as yoga postures.
“In the ancient texts, the milkmaid Radha recites love poems to the cowherd Krishna, how she longs for his embrace. We make use of those emotions in our dance, just as actors would infuse dialogue into drama,” says Geetha, adding, “Indian classical dances can be enriched with other traditions. I have also learnt Chinese classical dance. And one reason I myself became a dancer was that I loved watching Chinese acrobats on TV as a child.
“The more traditional teachers may feel it is ‘not feminine’ for a female dancer to do martial arts movements. But I don’t believe that.”
The fourth dance, Dwandwa, or Duality, is about the embodied soul longing to return to its divine source.
“Once matter has formed, a duality emerges,” says Lam.
“The encaged soul now yearns to be reunited in bliss with the Creator. As we struggle in this mundane material world, we want to know where we came from and Radha, which represents our souls, remembers the profound ecstatic stillness she experienced with Krishna.”
Lam likens this to quantum physics, citing how in the book, The Tao of Physics (in full, The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism, by Fritjof Capra), the cosmic dance of Shiva is likened to the endless swirl of sub-atomic particles (electrons, protons, mesons, kappas, etc, all infinitely smaller than the atom itself). Matter and energy cannot be separated, but instead co-exist in a flux to form the atom.
Geetha Shankaran-Lam believes dancers must be in touch with their hearts if they are to perform at their best. “The rishis, or ancient Indian sages, described this and the beginning of the Universe too,” she says. “Everything is inter-twined, just as Shiva and Shakthi are together in love, inseparable.”
In the practice sessions, Shankaran-Lam encourages her dancers to be connected to their hearts.
“Sometimes, my dancers may get agitated with their bosses or children. I don’t believe they should just pretend there are no problems outside. I allow my dancers to break down, cry or get angry during practices. Go through it, experience it, instead of shutting it off. I want them to work through their emotions as they dance.”
Another dancer, S. Nisha, 30, an advertising planner, testifies, “When I first learnt Odissi, I was stomping hard on the ground in aggression, letting off steam. But since then I have fallen in love with the culture. Nowadays, when my friends are going for movies or to Starbucks, I am here for classes.” (The third dancer, K. Kalaivani, could not be at the interview.)
It sounds like Shankaran-Lam, who has some 200 dance students under her wing, treats her students more like artistic disciples when she says, “In a regular dance school, the students pay fees as customers. But we have a different relationship here. For instance, every day I meet my students and then decide what to teach them.”
Nisha agrees: “She picks up on our moods and energies before classes. We won’t know if we are doing movement, text or breathing before that.”
For Shankaran-Lam, being emotionally authentic is crucial.
“Sometimes a star can also be the loneliest person in the world. I believe that the public face of Michael Jackson was far removed from his tormented inner self.
“When I first met Swamiji, he looked at me and knew how depressed I was. I needed to find love and channel that energy creatively. Being passionate is also about wanting something so much that you achieve it. And I want to be the best Odissi dancer and teacher. All my life experiences are expressed in dance.”
And what is the meaning of life?
“Swamiji does not teach from the pulpit but from the stage through arts. Love heals, nurtures and energises. All of life is about love, for without love, who wants to live?”
‘Chalaachala – Stillness in Motion’ will be performed at 8pm on Nov 22 and 23 at the Auditorium Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia Tourism Centre (Matic), Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. For more information, call the Temple of Fine Arts at 03-2274 3709 or go to tfa.org.my. Clips from the performance can be viewed at youtube.com/user/TFAvideo.
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