The Kim Aham Dance School started by Avijit Das in Bangalore 2013 with a vision to foster an understanding and appreciation of Indian art and culture through quality training in Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam forms of classical Indian dance has grown leaps and bounds and is on the rise to becoming one of the premier cultural institutions of the City.
The event had as the Chief Guest Guru Padmashree Ranaja Gauhar, one of the leading exponents of Odissi Dance in the country and abroad.
The presentation of the students was dived into two parts with the first being Bharatnataym as Avijit is a Kalakshetra Alumni.
Ganesha Kautuvam
Kavuthuvam is an invocatory item in Bharatanatyam recitals. It is a hymn a song of devotion in praise of a deity. It was performed by the devadasis as part of the daily rituals, or on special occasions or during the festivals. Most of the kavuthuvams are dedicated to a particular deity; this particular kavuthuvam is dedicated to Lord Ganesha. Set to ragam Natai Talam Adi. This was followed by Jatiswaram.
Jatiswaram is another Nritta piece in Bharathanatyam recital, Here the advaus are performed to swara patterns like Sa, Ni, Da, Pa. There is no Sahityam unlike Swarajati.
Narayan Hari Govinda
Narayana Hari Govinda is a Devaranama composed by Saint Purandara dasa.
Saint Purandara dasa is known as the pitamaha of Carnatic music. During his pilgrimage, he sang soul-stirring songs known as Devaranamas in praise of Lord Hari also known as Vithala.
Purandara Dasa’s lilting songs describing the childhood of The poet describes Krishna as the one who removes fear and brings happiness in the person who seeks his blessings. The one who killed demons present in all the three Worlds by transforming himself into various characters including the Kali avatara, the one who was in Narada maharishi’s various songs, the one who killed the serpents without much effort. The composer effortlessly praises Krishna here so the entire World gets to know too.
Set to Ragamalika and talam Adi. Composition of purandara Dasa and choreographed by Avijit Das.
Mahadeva Shiva Shambho
Mahadeva shiva shambho is an item in praise of lord shiva, the one who is the protector of billions of people. The one who is merciful who looks after saints the one who carries ganga and the lord of all beings who makes the fallen one pure.
Its set to Ragam Revati and talam Adi, Music composed by Tanjavur Shankar Iyer Dance choreographed by Avijit Das.
Next Came the Kuchipudi segment
Kuchipudi is a classical dance form that emerged in a small village by the same name during the third or fourth century. In the earlier centuries, Kuchipudi was performed mainly as dance dramas and it is only from the 18th century onwards that solo performances began to take place.
The Kuchipudi segment began with the Dhyana Shlokam It is traditional to start a dance practice with a dhyaana shlokam. ‘DhyAna’ is a Sanskrit word that means meditation and ‘Shlokam’ means a prayer. This is a popular shloka in praise of Lord Shiva, who is said to be the lord of Dance. The dancing form of Lord Shiva is known as ‘Nataraja’, Slokam in the praise of Lord Ganapathi, Slokam in the praise of Goddess Saraswati, Slokam by Goddess Lakshmi taken from Mahalakshmi Ashtakam.
This is being performed superbly by the young ones of the Institute.
Next came JATHIS- jathis are an interesting part of Kuchipudi foundation, distinguish from other forms of Indian classical dance, usually, it is set to different gati bhedas, today students of kimaham are going to showcase glimpse of chaturasra gati jathis. This was one of the highlights of the entire annual day as the disciples performed with so much grace and finesse, highlighting the intricacies of Kuchipudi.
Abhinaya Vibhava
This is an invocatory piece of Kuchipudi repertoire.
I am praying to Lord Brahma the creator of Natyashastra and lord shiva the authority of Dance. Oh! Bhumidevi, you are uplifted by the power of lord Vishnu, colourful, owner of many gems and wealth. You are Wearing Ocean as your dress and mountains as your breast. I am going to dance now so please forgive my stampings.
This piece is a Telegu translation of original Natyarambham Slokas in Sanskrit, translated by Vaikuntha Narayana Shastri, dance was beautifully choreographed by Avijit Das, music composed by Sri. T. Sashidhar set to ragamaalika and talamaalika.
Ganesha Pushpanjali
An invocatory prayer to Lord Ganesha, the destroyer of obstacles and the facilitator of knowledge and success.
This was performed by the senior disciples of Avijit and they did full justice to the masterpiece of the legendary Dr.Vempati Chinasathyam. Music was composed by Dr. Mangalampalli Balamurali Krishna in Ragam Arabhi and Talam Aadhi.
The second annual day of Kim Aham under Avijit’s guidance proved to be a delight to the audience present. This programme featured dancers from the young age of 4 years old to as old as 50 years. Avijit believes that dance is for everyone no matter what age you are and everyone should have an opportunity to learn our rich cultural heritage and he made that very evidence on stage via his students. Kudos to Avijit or bridging the gap between dance and the masses and a successful annual day.
