Kalki’s poem from Sivakamiyin Sapatham presented as song and dance

Friends! This is the last meeting of the Kalki Biography Project before the release of Kalki Krishnamurthy: His Life and Times, my translation of Sunda’s biography.  Thank you for joining us in these meetings and supporting our work. I know some of you have also pre ordered the book for which also I thank you.

Today, we begin with a song by Kalki Krishnamurthy from his epic novel Sivakamiyin Sapatham, about the magical impact of Krishna’s flute on an innocent maiden’s heart.

This audio-visual treat is presented by a trio of brilliant young artists. All three have this in common: performing widely in India and abroad, they have won prestigious awards, as well as plaudits from laypersons, connoisseurs and critics. What I find most striking in them is the intelligence with which they have developed their art in strength and beauty.

– Gowri Ramnarayan

Aishwarya Vidya Raghunath is a biotech engineer turned fulltime Carnatic musician, trained in the magnificent Dhanammal school by Vegavahini Vijayaraghavan. She has also gained by learning from eminent musicians PS Narayanaswamy and RK Shriramkumar. She has shown unusual discernment in preserving the precious tradition she has absorbed, while also establishing herself as a mainstream performer of the best kind on the stage.

Aishwarya has other fascinating facets. With her passion for painting and ornithology, she is part of the group “Artists for Wildlife and Nature”, and promotes conservation and environmentalism through her acrylic, water colour and charcoal paintings.

Apoorva Jayaraman holds a PhD in Astronomy (University of Cambridge) and an MA in Physics, (University of Oxford). These exceptional academic achievements have given her the rigorous discipline and holistic vision to follow her multi-dimensional interests in the classical arts.

As a dancer, her concerns extend beyond her own performance. A Junior Fellow of the Ministry of Culture researching The Role of Art in Knowledge Advancement, she has conceived and curated dance-related conferences called Navadhisha – New Voices in Dance, and fosters an active interest in Arts Policy in India.  She is co-founder, RootEd Foundation, which works in the areas of dance education and awareness.

Dancer Apoorva Jayaraman on Kalki Krishnamurthy and his impact

Shweta Prachande is a Maharashtrian by birth, who has opted to live in Chennai, to steep herself in the cultural ethos of Bharatanatyam, pursuing her study of nattuvangam and kalarippayattu, while also training herself in the Tamil texts and Carnatic music. Her dance-music dialogues with several artists were first flagged off by collaborations with her life partner – Carnatic musician Rithvik Raja.

Shweta has Master’s degrees in both Commerce and the Fine Arts, a diploma in dance studies (Trinity Laban Conservatoire, London). During the global lockdown, Shweta worked to raise funds for Covid relief. An engaging personal detail is that Shweta was a member of the first ever Indian Women’s Rugby team at the Asian Sevens (2009) in Thailand.

Shweta and Apoorva are students of Priyadarsini Govind who has choreographed the movements for this song by Kalki Krishnamurthy.

Special thanks to Apoorva & Shweta for shooting this video under extremely trying circumstances, when Chennai was drowning under the lashing rains, and as we went through days without electricity.

Shweta Prachande speaks about the Kalki Biography Project

 

Senkani Vaayil – Translation

From the bamboo flute on his luscious lips
flows nectar sweet,
Tell me dear parrot, who is he?
A tender smile blooms on his face
and steals my heart.
Tell me dear parrot, who is he?

 “A thief lives here, Kannan the sweetheart!”
Said the maidens.
Tell me dear parrot, is it true?
With his speaking eyes, the boy who steals butter,
Snatched my heart.
Tell me dear parrot, how’s that?

In the punnai grove by the river divine,
where gentle breezes play,
and the honeybees sing,
Like the andril bird
Yearning for the moon,
Tell him dear parrot – she waits for him!

Under the silver moon,
With a song of frenzied rapture
He bewitched me with love.
With bounding joy did my heart rejoice…
Why did grief follow bliss?
Tell me dear parrot, why? Why?

No shelter have I, anywhere in the world
But with him, at his feet.
O dear parrot, tell him so
Won’t his grace banish my fears? Is love so scarce?
An innocent maiden am I
O dear parrot, tell him so!

Punnai: Alexandrian laurel
Andril: mythical bird feeding on moonbeams alone