Bharata Natyam with a difference

Flanked by four giant Auroville Papers pots emanating fragrant incense, and illuminated by moody elegant lighting, two dance artists strode on stage and commanded the audience’s attention for their performance of Cosmic Creatrix, synthesis of creativity. The brothers not only highlighted the intricate body movements, footwork and stylised hasta mudras (hand gestures) of the Tanjore Quartet Bharata Natyam tradition. They expressed different aspects of the creative power of the Goddess throughout five choreographed dances, with explanations given to the audience in brief oral introductions. The duo also sported spectacular costumes, styled by Suresh and Ramdjiet, that innovate on traditional costume forms. Their guru’s lineage may stretch directly back to 1638, yet as Ram asserts: “We carry an ancient tradition, but we are contemporary artists.”

In conversation, the brothers are a force of high energy and passion for their craft. They finish each other’s sentences, spark each other into tangents and backstories, and articulate each other’s feelings. Their connection is palpable, and listeners are compelled to keep up with the rich conversational ebb and flow. The brothers perform in the Tanjore Quartet tradition of Bharata Natyam, a school of south Indian classical dance and music that is the source of mainstream Bharata Natyam, yet is now almost invisible in India.

“Personally, when I perform this distinctive school of Bharata Natyam, I feel that it connects me to other spheres, a bigger world we have no notion about,” says Ram. “Our aim as multi-faceted artists is to take the audience into another amazing reality, where they experience the essence of their own consciousness.”

The brothers emphasise their many different artistic and cultural influences, drawn from their heritage and lived experiences across the broad span of Surinam, Holland and India. “I don’t put myself in one box, or say, ‘I’m Indian or I’m Dutch’. I’m a world citizen,” says Ram. Growing up in Surinam (a former Dutch colony in South America) as the youngest of 11 children in an Indian family that originally hailed from Rajasthan, the brothers were drawn to the arts at an early age. “Dance and music was always part of our life,” Ram asserts. “A Nataraja statue came into our home in Surinam. I was intrigued. We knew it was from Bharata Natyam. We used to try to stand on one leg [imitating the statue], and we thought, ‘Only a god can stand like that!’ We decided to embrace him as our god. We were drawn to the beauty of Bharata Natyam, as it revealed endless potentials of humanity.”

After some of their older siblings went to Holland to study, the whole family moved there in pursuit of superior schooling. “It was a privilege,” says Ram, “because Dutch society welcomed us very nicely. We already spoke Dutch.” Suresh took classes in Bharata Natyam and after a few years did his debut performance in 1993 (Arangetram) at the former Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam – the first male in Holland to accomplish this. The brothers absorbed many artistic influences in Europe, from the great masters such as Van Gogh, to modern art and haute couture fashion designers such as Chanel, YSL and Christian Dior. “We get inspired by them and their rich artistic life, but we don’t want to be a copy of anyone! Bharata Natyam gives us the possibility to incorporate other ideas and the mindsets of other cultures.”

The Tanjore Quartet

By the time the brothers reached adulthood, Suresh felt he had outgrown his teacher in Amsterdam. They were also exploring other forms of dancing such as contemporary north and South American and rhythmic styles that they grew up with. They went to India for the first time in 1993, and spent an “eye-opening” six weeks with late Bharata Natyam Guru Ms Padmini Rao in Bangalore. “I was surprised when I first came to India and saw how complex the society was!,” says Suresh. Then they decided to go to the source and meet with Rao’s guru, Guru Kittappa Pillai. “When we came to India, we wanted to study with the best of the best,” says Ram. “We thought we must meet the master, he was the last visionary of the Tanjore Quartet lineage.”

They journeyed to meet Guru Kittappa Pillai at his private school, which was formerly the royal art centre in the princely state of Tanjore (Thanjavur), Tamil Nadu. “He was the real thing, such a diamond. Working with him did not force me into a narrow-minded world, compared to other mentors I met,” says Suresh.

Guru Kittappa Pillai (1913-1999) was a direct descendant of one of the Tanjore Quartet – four 19th century brothers who were nattuvanars (choreographers and composers) who flourished under the patronage of Tanjore king Serfoji II. “The four brothers are important and crucial for this field,” says Ram, “because they developed the whole syllabus for teaching and structures for repertoire. They composed music for Bharata Natyam, and introduced the western violin into the South Indian Carnatic music style. They documented a lot of dance and art from previous eras. They blended the ritual temple presentation of the elegant devadasis (temple dancers) and the royal court presentations into a modern stage art. The Tanjore Quartet is the source of authentic traditional Bharata Natyam, and we love to be part of this rich artistic history.”

After their guru’s death in October 1999, Ram and Suresh continued studying under his son, master Tanjore K. Chandrasekaran, for some time. “The first year, I missed my guru a lot,” says Suresh. After Ramdjiet performed his Arangetram in 2003 under Chandrasekaran’s guidance, the brothers decided to follow their own vision.

They based themselves in Amsterdam, and performed and taught in Europe and India. As custodians of the Tanjore Quartet tradition of Bharata Natyam, they felt that this “original art that is the source of all forms of Bharata Natyam” was slowly fading away from international scene, to be largely superseded by other forms that now constitute the popular mainstream in Chennai. “When I hear mainstream music, I hear an Indian party,” says Suresh. “Our music is totally different, and the singer is a specially trained singer for Bharata Natyam, not a usual Carnatic singer.”

They started a non-profit art foundation to maintain the original Tanjore Quartet tradition (it functions in India as Arangart® a Tanjore Quartet United Art Foundation). While they are dedicated to upholding tradition, they permit themselves the liberty of adapting choreography and introducing their own set designs – a flexible approach that deviates from mainstream Bharata Natyam forms. “I can easily adapt my guru’s choreography,” says Ram, “like people do with Mozart or Bach. If you have mastered it, you can easily move in and out of established structures, without disturbing the artistic and emotional content.” And the duo often performs without the typical Nataraja statue on stage. “We have Lord Nataraja constantly in our heart,” says Ram.

The brothers also flout convention by changing costumes regularly during a performance, as well as by making costumes that introduce unexpected elements of nature and art, often in the form of spectacular trimmings and headdresses. “You just add something to the headdress, and voila!”, says Ram. “For one of the dances performed in Auroville we added a tassel inspired by the Maratha king of Tanjore Serfoji II, who used to wear that kind of headdress. We try to bring an overall aesthetic experience to our performances, and to expand our audiences’ horizons.”

The brothers’ connection to Auroville stems back to the Sri Aurobindo books that were in their childhood house. While they have been based near Auroville for two years, they have no plans to join. “I believe you can carry Auroville in your heart and have it anywhere in the world,” says Ram.

In addition to their Auroville performance, the brothers held a four-day workshop at CRIPA’s request for participants to learn a choreographed dance piece. “According Auroville guidelines, professional guest artists are not paid for their work,” says Ram. “The art is our profession. At the bakery you cannot get free bread! When artists perform in other places, they get paid. If you don’t pay the artists, you don’t get the best of the best. We did compromise in Auroville, mainly for the love of our art and to create awareness of our original tradition. The audience and workshop participants appreciated that we offer innovation and creativity, and something of high quality.”

As for the future, the brothers express their hope to establish an atelier, but they are uncertain about which country they will do this in. However, they are sure about their creative future directions. “We want to make more creative cultural crossings,” says Ram. “We want to keep this beautiful amazing art, and around that, we want to innovate. We’d like to work with people doing hybrid form performances. We also think, ‘Let the future come’.” Suresh adds: “This art of dance and music is our way of life, our yoga of dance. Unlike other forms of dance, it’s not performed merely to please the audience but to share our spiritual journey, our imagination, and our inner love.”