The audience hushed into silence. The drum beats rose to a
crescendo, as the multi-colored curtain slowly inched down. Revealing fiery,
red eyes, Ravana rose dramatically from behind. The painted face glared at the
audience, as his nimble fingers moved gracefully to each beat of the pounding
drums. I watched in complete awe at the miniscule movements of the Kathakali
dancer, as he told the story of Ravana.
The
stage shook as Ravana pounded his feet angrily, as his body swiftly circled the
stage. His eyebrows twitching and fingers fluttering delicately, he brought a
certain mischief and humor in his theatrical display. Then, as in within
seconds, the music softened into a lull, as Ravana sat back down in deep
contemplation. Picking up the edge of his cloth gingerly, he began to fan
himself. The drummers smiled at one another, familiar with the routine, yet
somehow just as entranced. Ravana, in rhythm with the drummers, began swaying
back and forth. A tender face soon replaced the angry one as he caressed a baby
gently in his arms.
‘BOOM!’
went the drums, shaking the audience alive. Ravana traversed the stage leaping
from one end to the other. The drums thundered along as the earth beneath us
rumbled. I felt myself tapping my feet and fingers along to the beat of the
drums. The skies darkened, but Ravana’s light continued to shine brightly. For
me and everyone else in the audience, we were no longer in Besant Nagar Beach,
or Chennai, or India. I forgot
about everything else, as I let myself get carried away into another world. A
mystifying aura filled the open gardens, as the drums pulsated through…
This
Kathakali dance performance was one of the best things I ever got to experience
here in Chennai, and rightly so, as I reached the end of my undergraduate
career. I had never witnessed this classical dance before, and walked in not
knowing what to expect. I was a bit distracted at first, but as soon as the
dancer took to the stage, it was as if everything else didn’t exist for me.
Maybe it was the dramatic and slightly frightening painted face of the dancer,
or his extravagant costume, his soft yet powerful movements, or the steadying
beat of the drums, in which I lost myself. I realized I had been watching with
my mouth half open. What I also
realized was that dance is what gives me ultimate joy, something that had been
missing out of my life for a long time. I will forever cherish and remember
this enthralling performance. What an experience it was!
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