AHMEDNAGAR, October 10: It is a daunting task for any performer to dance from dawn to dusk, especially when she has just learnt the art form. But Sudha Kankaria did precisely that for an unbelievable 12 hours, punctuated with short breaks for commentary, when she presented nritya aradhana, a dance recital consisting of 67 different Kuchipudi dance sequences, at the Yashwantrao Chavan Sahakar Sabhagriha here.The marathon dance session, held under the aegis of the Kankaria Sanskrutik Pratishthan, started at the appointed time of sunrise - at 6.27 am - when the petite dancer first made her entrance on a darkened stage. It came to a close to rounds of applause at 6.30 pm with the presentation of the Nritya Tilak award of the Bharatiya Nritya Pratishthan by actress Jaya Prada.An ophthalmologist with early training in Bharatanatyam, Kankaria's introduction to Kuchipudi was recent and accidental. After meeting Pandit Krishna Swamy, her guru and a member of the Andhra Pradesh Nritya Academy who was ondeputation to promote Kuchipudi, in March this year, Kankaria showed her grasp of its concepts. Kankaria attributes her agility to the regular six-hour dance practice and her practice of yoga and meditation to discipline body and mind.``Primarily the nritya aradhana is a form of worship to show my devotion to Shiv. It leads to mental satisfaction,'' she says.She adds that the Limca Book of Records committee had been told about the marathon dance performance. ``I think this is the first time that a solo dawn-to-dusk Kuchipudi performance has been performed and deserves mention as a record setting dance performance,'' says Kankaria.Convinced of her determination and stamina, three months ago, Krishna Swamy put the idea of the nritya aradhana to Kankaria, a challenge she took up and presented in front of an appreciative audience.Dressed in a white sari with a red and gold border draped traditionally, she first performed the agnihotra, the ritual worship of the sun God and lighting ofthe lamp before the performance was to begin.A red om etched on backdrop of the stage decorated with garlands of marigold, colourful rangoli, a golden cutout of the Tirupati temple and the idol of Natraja set the mood for the performance.Strains of raag Bhupadam resonated in the fresh morning air as Kankaria started the dance recital with a graceful pushpanjali, moving smoothly to Ganesha stuti, in praise of the God of auspicious beginnings.Kankariya displayed her agility in footwork and her quickness of movement through the Krishna leela tarangam that she performed next. The performance blended dance with mellifluous music, with vocal and instrumental accompaniment on the violin, flute and mridangam by members of the Hyderabad-based Bharatiya Nritya Sansthan. The various sequences were punctuated with commentary that sought to draw the audience into the concepts woven into the dance. The dancer displayed a range of expressions and moods through the navrasasand the dashavtar. Bharatmata vandanam, an improvised sequence with the backdrop of the map of India and the dancer marching with the tricolour clutched in one hand did, however, seem incongruous with the so far traditional dance sequences. Her repertoire included Natesh kautukam and Balkrishna, sequences with the dancer poised on a copper plate.Akhilandeshwari Durga stotra formed the grand finale to the nritya aradhana. Grace, determination and sheer stamina marked Kankaria's performance, her feet still moving just as rhythmically and her abhinaya just as expressive as when she had started at sunrise.
