Visveswara Darshan - Shashank Subramanyam

A Soulful Krithi in Raag Mohanam where Sri Tyagaraja pleads with Lord Rama to have compassion on him. Ragam : Mohanam Talam : Misra Chappu Krithi rendered by Kalaimamani Embar S Kannan and his Disciples Dr. Rangappriya Sankaranarayanan and Aiswarya Vaikunth featuring Hand made Ramar Pattabishekam Idols by Vedavalli Sankaranarayanan .

This scene has been visualised in dance by Priyadarsini Govind, through the words and music of Oothukadu Venkata Kavi, as a duet presentation, danced by Apoorva Jayaraman and Shweta Prachande. Eastern philosophy considers the ego, or ahamkara, as the worst of vices. Indian lore abounds with stories of the subjugation of ego in man, many of which are re-told time and again, in the voices of various poets, through the affable persona of Krishna. Kalinga Nartanam is a presentation of the famous episode of Krishna as a little boy fighting the giant serpent Kalinga, through the immortal composition of Oothukadu Venkata Kavi, as an iconic metaphor for victory over the ago. Veiled by ego, the serpent Kalinga wreaks havoc by the banks of the river Yamuna. He poisons the waters of the river. The cattle and villagers are tormented by his presence. Young Krishna promptly jumps into the river, engages in a dual with the fierce Kalinga, only to subdue him, going on to merrily dance on his many heads.

Tribhuvaneswara, or the one who ruled the three worlds, to whom Banteay Srei pays homage, accompanied here by his consort Uma, awakens in the divine dance, as they extend their watchful gaze as Shiva-Parvathy.

Lalgudi siblings, the torch bearers of the Lalgudi bani, are well known for their emotive approach to compositions, simulating the human voice with their fine bowing and intricate fingering. Here they render a popular Tamil composition ‘Thaye Tripura Sundari’ by Periyasaami Thooran, in Suddha Saveri raga, set to Kandachapu tala (five beat rhythmic cycle), and finish it with a crisp chittaswaram exhibiting their mastery. Accompanying them are senior percussionists, legendary Trichy Sankaran on the mridangam and K.V. Gopalakrishnan on the kanjira.