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"Rabindrik dance form: Bangalee's very own" --Sharmila Bandyopadhyay

KARIM WAHEED
Momo chittey niti nrittye
Ke jey nachey
Ta ta thai thai…
When one hears these verses, the first image that comes to mind is of a dancer, sophisticatedly clad in a non-gaudy yet colourful saree, accessorised with a batik fetti and locks embellished with radiant flowers.
Sharmila Bandyopadhyay can be associated with that image. She is one of the leading artistes in our country who is dedicated to dance, more precisely to the Rabindrik dance form.
"Rabindrik dance is Bangalee's very own dance. All the other traditional and classical dance forms did not originate in Bengal. Tagore started using dance in his plays, as a medium to articulately express the intense human emotions," reflects Sharmila.
"He was, as we all know, a visionary. However, when he first began experimenting with dance in Shantiniketan, he was not entirely at ease with his stance on the art form because of the social stigmas associated with dance and dancers in those days. Initially, when he was questioned about the dance lessons at Shantiniketan, he had to tell people that the students just 'exercised' with the Mridanga."
"In time, the social predicaments eased and with the support of other progressive members of the society, Tagore introduced a dance form that was originally composed of Manipuri elements. According to him, the subtle finesse and regal movements that the Manipuri dance provides, precisely identifies with the mood of his songs. However, Kathakali was later introduced as he believed that the intense facial expressions in the South Indian classical dance are very effective," adds Sharmila.
"The pioneering artistes who introduced the Rabindrik dance to the public were Nandalal Basu's daughter, Gauri Basu and Amartya Sen's mother, Ameeta Sen. Gauri performed Tagore's Nateer Pooja for the first time. Tagore's daughter-in-law, Pratima Debi was highly influenced by the vivid costumes of the Indonesian dancers and she envisioned what dancers performing Rabindrik dance should look like. The batik fetti, which basically comes from Indonesia, was her idea."
"The beauty of Rabindrik dance is that there is no hard and fast rule on which particular dance form one has to abide by when performing with a Tagore song. Although, any dance form -- be it subcontinental, European or East Asian -- can be adopted, one has to keep in mind that the mood of the song must intertwine with the elements.
"And to be able to do that, one must be an authority on Tagore's literary works, his philosophies and his life. In other words, one has to share the aesthetic sense Tagore had. Only then, are you at liberty to compose a Rabindrik dance," says Sharmila.