Balasaraswati – Her Art & Life celebrates one of the most renowned Bharatnatyam dancers, indeed, a messiah of this art form in the 20th century.
Review by Lavanya Sampath
In the book Balasaraswati – Her Art & Life, Douglas M. Knight Jr. has documented the life of noted danseuse Balasaraswati, and in turn has taken us through the various eras of art and culture that emerged in India in the late 1700s, 1800s and 1900s.
Balasaraswati came from a professional matrilineal community with ancestral roots that spanned across a millennium. Her ancestors were professional artists who adorned the royal courts of the most thriving dynasties of their times – Thanjavur and Thiruvananthapuram.
Whether it is Bala’s intense relationship with her great-grandmother Vina Dhanammal and the evening kutcheris (concerts) at her Mylapore house or the fondness and playtime that Bala enjoyed with Aniruddha, her grandson or the experiences that many of her students shared about their learnings – the visualization of each event along with the photographs in the book makes for an earthy and realistic tale-telling experience. The reader becomes one with the protagonist, Bala, and experiences life with her right from birth, her first childhood dance encounter with ‘the madman at the gate’, Bharatnatyam, her career in dance and later as an ambassador for the art she worshipped.
(The madman at the gate refers to an incident when Bala was a baby and attempted to imitate every movement of a madman who came at the doorstep of their house and started dancing. Bala’s interest in the art form and ability to reproduce the steps surprised her family. For Bala this was more than an incident. The dancer a.k.a. madman who she thought was probably her first Guru or teacher intrigued her.)
Bala emphasized the importance of the ‘Guru-Shishya’ relationship as much as she preached sincerity for the art form. Whether it was Knight’s fortune (or luck) to be able to spend time with Bala in close quarters as a son-in-law or the skill of an author writing an autobiography, Knight has been successful in capturing some of the key moments that speak volumes about the protagonist.
If there was one thing I would have liked altered in this autobiography, it would be the chronology of events contained in each chapter. More often than not, I felt as though I was being rushed from one era to another and back and forth between different stages of Bala’s and her ancestors’ lives. To be fair to the author, it is quite a task to cover the life of such a prominent personality whose experiences last not just a lifetime, but revolve around the lifetime of the art they are married to. In that case, hats off to Knight to have understood Bharatnatyam, India and Indian culture to be able to draw an authentic picture of Balasaraswathi, Vina Dhanammal, Papammal, Jayammal, T.Ranaganathan, T.Viswanathan, Lakshmi, Aniruddha and many others in our minds, as we read this book.
If you enjoy Indian art, have a keen inclination for Bharatnatyam and devour writing about India in the 1800s and early 1900s then this book is for you. For the average reader too, it is worth reading to learn about a lady who came from the highly ‘judged’ Devadasi family and went on to make a name that became synonymous with dance, art and culture not just within India, but also across the world.
Publisher: Tranquebar Press
If you’re planning to purchase Balasaraswati – Her Art & Life do consider buying it through this Women’s Web affiliate link at Flipkart. We get a small share of the proceeds – every little bit will help us continue bringing you the content you like!
Readers outside India can purchase Balasaraswati – Her Art & Life through our affiliate link at Amazon.
Women's Web is a vibrant community for Indian women, an authentic space for us to be ourselves and talk about all things that matter read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, indivisual posts do not necessarily represent the platofrom's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
In marriages, too, two different individuals live under one roof and tend to grow together. But, unfortunately, at times, their individual growth is impaired due to many external factors.
For Suniti, it was an altogether new experience. She and Rahul were like chalk and cheese.
Somewhere in the endless quest for perfect skin, glossy hair, six pack abs, fitting in with the current fashion trends and presenting a flawless self to the world, we lose ourselves.
Truth is beauty and beauty is truth. Penned beautifully by the great John Keats, eons ago. Cut to modern times: beauty is as far from truth as possible.
Often referred to as the “mother of private equities” in India, Renuka Ramnath is the Founder and CEO of Multiples Alternate Asset Management.
Renuka Ramnath is a veteran in private equity. She started her financial career in ICICI in 1986 and she continued to steadily climb the corporate ladder for the next 23 years. Being a young single mother of two, Ramnath had to juggle her work responsibilities with her parenting duties. However, she did not let her challenges deter her from her dreams. Under her leadership, ICICI bank’s private equity arm, ICICI Venture, went from being a below $100 million proprietary fund to managing funds over $2 billion, making it one of India’s largest private equity firm. (more…)
Awaaz-e-Niswaan works towards breaking the stifling silence around patriarchy and women in India.
By Chaya Babu