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:: REVIEW
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The Soorya festival - A rare cultural treat to Singapore
Kerala Kaumudi, Singapore
The world renowned Indian cultural society, Soorya, opened its Singapore chapter
yesterday with a rare treat of Indian classical dance and music performances at
the Singapore Polytechnic convention Hall.
The CEO of the National Arts Council of Singapore Mr. Lee Tzu Yang was the chief
guest of the evening.The event held in Singapore was the last leg of a global tour
of the Soorya Global Arts Festival of Indian Dance and Music covering 13 countries
including the Middle East, Europe and the Far East. The event was co-sponsored by
the Bharatiya Vidyabhavan, the Indian Bank and Pars Ram Enterprises. Fifty percent
of the annual profit generated by Soorya Singapore is pledged to charity; this year’s
beneficiary being the Sree Narayana Mission Home for the Aged Sick.
Soorya is a not-for-profit, non-commercial, voluntary organization that aims to
reach the finest of Indian cultural and art forms to the masses. Known to be the
largest cultural society in Asia, Soorya has a sterling record of 30 years of presenting
the best of Indian art and Cinema to the masses through its highly acclaimed arts
festivals and showcasing outstanding upcoming talents of the Indian art scene.
Founded by Mr. N Krishnamoorthy (Soorya Krishnamoorthy), a trained Engineer with
a passion for the arts, Soorya currently has over 20000 members out of which 13000
comes from its chapters in 11 countries across the world including New York (USA),
London (UK), Manchester (UK), Zurich (Switzerland), Rome (Italy), Vienna (Austria),
Köln (Germany) Bahrain, Dubai, Kuwait, Oman, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Qatar
(Gulf).
The event consisted of three performances: Bharatanatyam recitals by Padmabhushan
Alarmel Valli, Fusion music presented by Trivandrum Krishnakumar (Carnatic vocal)
Rajhesh Vaidhya (Veena) Karuna Murthy (Tavil) ER Janardhan (Saxophone) Joeboy (Jose
Vincent) (Drums) and Karaikurichy Mohan Ram (Mridangam, Tabla, Ganjira) and dance
performances by Meena Kumari Sahoo (Odissi) and Monisa Nayak (Kathak)
Alarmel Valli, one of world’s leading exponents of Bharatanatyam, presented
three breathtaking “dance poems” using her medium. A “Pallavi”
invoking the four goddesses: “Lakshmi”, “Saraswathi”, “Durga”
and “Mahishasuramardini” was followed by a composition that traced the
circle of life with images of the rain as it is born out of the tempestuous courtship
of the wind and the cloud, attains maturity as it runs through its course and finally
converges with the ocean -only to rise again - as vapor. The third composition used
verses from the “Purananooru” (a collection of four hundred poems on
war) to portray the natural coming together of precious gems and stones collected
from far and wide to make a piece of jewel in perfect unison.
The ‘Odissi” and “Kathak” performances were remarkable for
their grace and traditional charm. The fusion music which blended the Veena, Tavil,
Mridangam and the Drums was inspiring in its ingenuity, vigor and sheer expertise.
The grand finale brought the dancers and musicians together on stage; the soft movements
of traditional “Odissi” presented alongside the fast and brisk foot
movements of the “Kathak.”
Dr. Chitra Krishna Kumar , the President of the Singapore chapter of Soorya delivered
the welcome address and Mrs Soundarya Sukumar, gave the vote of thanks.
Thara Ravindran
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The Straits Times (Singapore's most important English Newspaper)
dated April 28, 2005 (Thu)
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