Beauty is a favourite topic of the
poets of yore. In countless pieces, the beauty of the face is described in
numerous ways. The face is compared to the moon, a lotus flower, a mirror, the
sun, etc. When one compares the face to the moon, what exactly does one mean? One
might mean that the face is as round as the moon, as fair as the moon, as cool
as the moon, or as romantic as the moon. One might mean that the face that is
hidden by tresses of hair is like the moon that plays amongst the clouds. Or
that the face that evokes a smile in another is like the moon, which touches
the lilies and makes them bloom.
The dancer can make many
interpretations describing the qualities of the moon within the framework of
the given comparison. In the piece Yaro
Ivar Yaro, Rama speculates about the identity of the beautiful girl that he
sees, and in the charanam, he describes her faces as “Chandra bimba mukha.” In the first line, the lyrics are “yaaro ivar yaaro”, which the dancer can
interpret in any way. In the charanam, however, the lyrics “Chandra bimba mukha” encourage the dancer to elaborate within the
framework of the comparison of her face to the moon.
It is obvious that
in this open-ended line, the dancer can elaborate on the comparison using many
different attributes of the moon, but the dancer must use artistic discretion
when doing this so as not to show so many comparisons that the essence of the
lyrics is lost. Similarly, when choosing the phrase on which to elaborate , the dancer to be careful in choosing the word
which is relevant to the context and evokes the proper emotional response from
the audience.
Another
piece that can illuminate the importance of word selection contains the
following lyrics: “Varaji mukhi neevu
vachae vella anukonni, korrikatho raja gopala swamy nee.” In this line, the
dancer is a sakhi, who takes the
message of love to the lord and tells him: “that lotus-faced girl is waiting
for you full of love, oh Raja Gopala Swamy.” Here, if one chose to elaborate on
the words “Rajagopalaswamy”, it would be irrelevant to the mood of the song, as
this simply the lord’s name. One has to read the lyrics fully to find the basic
mood, or sthayi bhava, and then
interpret accordingly. Here, the sthayi
is the sakhi describing her friend
waiting, so the words “varija mukhi neevu”
is a more appropriate choice for elaboration.
In this
interpretation, the heroine’s state is compared to the lotus, although the
lyrics say “lotus-faced”, indicating that there are different ways that one may
interpret the poet’s lyrical intention. Additionally, taking the poetry too literally
is also a danger that the dancer must avoid. For example, in the piece Chinnan Chiru Killiyae, Bharathiyar uses
many similes to show a mother’s love for her child. If these descriptions are
acted out literally with no nuance, the piece will become immature and
childish.
To be continued.........
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