A career in Broadway is something many dancers would vie for, given the glamorous arc lights and majestic platform. But Rukmini Vijaykumar simply could not place herself in that context and wanted to find a connection with her classical and modern dancing roots. Talking about modern dance, she clarifies she is not referring to Bollywood. “I was extremely keen on studying Bharatanatyam and didn’t picture myself as a company dancer in the US. I could have got around doing modern dance and then ended up as a part of Broadway but somehow that didn’t appeal to me much,” says Rukmini.
Having studied modern dance at the Boston Conservatory for four years, Rukmini was quite clear about wanting to pursue a professional career in dance. Coming back home was advantageous in many ways. “There is a support system here which makes a lot of things easier. My parents live here and this is where I have lived for a major part of my life till I went to the US. So coming back to Bengaluru was natural. The infrastructure here has improved for the better and there is so much action happening when it comes to dance,” she gushes.
Rukmini was the first Indian to graduate with a degree from the Boston Conservatory. Apart from those four years devoted to the meticulous study of dance, Rukmini is also trained in jazz, tap and African dance. On returning to India, she founded her own dance company, Raadha Kalpa, and serves as its artistic director and choreographer. A 15-day long dance festival is on the cards in the coming weeks, which Rukmini sees as a mélange of classical and modern dance to be performed at different types of venues with dancers from varied backgrounds. She elaborates, “It is an initiative that seeks to present both classical and modern dance styles together, for a thematic expression. It is about reaching out to the people and looking for audience appreciation.”
One of the aspects she highlights about the upcoming festival is its focus on attracting the youth, the kind of people who generally do not go to traditional dance venues or cultural performances. She says, “It is something they aren’t aware of at times and sometimes they don’t go out to explore. With performances across venues we aim to present these forms of dance in an interesting and appealing way.” The choice of venues includes a bookstore, a mall, Alliance Francaise and a lounge, which normally plays host to bands and their gigs. “Every venue has a select group of people coming there who are interested in the purpose that the space serves for them. For instance, when people go to a lounge one can’t expect them to watch a core classical repertoire on stage. The ambience and mood is different, which is why we have designed and choreographed the pieces keeping in mind the venues and the type of crowd that comes there. The vocabulary of classical dancing doesn’t fit into the purpose of the place,” explains Rukmini.
Primarily, there are three stage productions based on Radha that they will presented. The first one is Raadha, which is a Bharatanatyam performance based on K.M. Munshi’s Krishnavataram and Jayadeva’s Geet Govindam. “We do not want to focus on the mythological aspect as that has already been done several times. Here we are looking at the emotional journey of Radha from her childhood till her adulthood, her journey of thoughts after meeting Krishna and their union. It is set in pure Bharatanatyam vocabulary with fresh choreography and conceptualisation,” says Rukmini, who will present the recital along with Parshwanath Upadhye.
Raadha Rani is the next in the three-part offering; it is a collaboration with a musical ensemble and members of Alliance Francaise, Bangalore, where the dancers explore various aspects of Radha’s personality. “Her behavourial aspects, her walk, the way she talks and all these characteristics will be explored through Raadha Rani. We’ve focused more on the nritta concept and tried to understand her femininity, her attitude and her personality,” says Rukmini. This piece of modern choreography is set to Chiti Babu’s music.
Finally, And Raadha Too explores the concept of Radha who is looking for Krishna who is none other than her atman and ultimately herself. “Radha symbolises many things in our day-to-day lives. We are constantly looking outward for something when it is available within ourselves. This is our take on the lives we lead with Krishna being the metaphor for consciousness and the soul. It is about questioning who I am. There is an emptiness we face after moments of happiness and success, which then make us think about ourselves. It is also a take on the pseudo world of unrealistic and momentary pleasures,” says Rukmini. It is a modern dance work and has interesting music ranging from Norah Jones to Akon and also includes yoga. Rukmini adds, “Yoga in the West is seen as a cult movement and is highlighted for the physical aspect than the actual essence of it. This production is also about the celebration and exaltation of the bliss of her consciousness and acceptance.”
Some of the other interesting features of the festival include a doll-making workshop to design ethnic dolls with simple materials, which will be conducted by Rukmini and Parshwanath. Storytelling with mime, song and dance with lively music and stylised narration of the stories are also on the anvil. “We want people to enjoy the process of dancing and relate to it,” says Rukmini as she gets back to rigorous rehearsals.