That Puppet Of Kathak
Pt. Ravi Shankar once saw a Birju Maharaj performing and is supposed to have said, “you are the puppet of the Rhythm”. That Puppet of kathak is no more. Legendary artist Pandit Birju Maharaj passed away on Sunday night after suffering a heart attack. At the age of 83 he was equally proficient in Dance, tabla and vocal music, commanding a career that spanned from Bollywood to high culture Avantgarde performances. He shaped and made popular his art form and eventually came to be known synonymous with kathak.
In the practicing of his form one could see a refined balance between graceful movements of eyes most of all and majestic accompaniment with tabla, all the while being unassuming and easy to go. As a guru he would go into painstaking detail while teaching and emphasized that each nazar (look), each movement should express something. He placed a lot of emphasis on finesse and the ability to dance at a slow tempo with grace. One could very well look him perform and in the graceful movement and kaleidoscopic adjustment of anatomy witness the bringing together of tradition which insisted upon subtle forms and intricate actions, followed by tabla the performance embodied the majesty of craftsmanship that was a result of centuries of
THESE RANGE FROM THE FLIGHT OF BIRDS INTO a garden, the laborious movement of bureaucratic files, public demonstrations and even math sums. These attempts brought kathak closer to everyday movements effectively demystifying it for the uninitiated audience.
tradition, artistry and patronage.
Birju Maharaj was not an orthodox traditionalist when it came to choosing the themes of his performances. He expanded the creative possibility of Kathak, incorporating into the traditional form possibilities to depict and familiarize everyday life. These range from the flight of birds into a
garden, the laborious movement of bureaucratic files, public demonstrations and even math sums. These attempts brought kathak closer to everyday movements effectively demystifying it for the uninitiated audience. All the while offering imaginative possibilities to the informed and practicing ones.
The great master who passed away thus should not be just remembered for his artistic talents but also for the great influence he made on larger popular imagination, throughout his long career performing and innovating making possible the growth of his art, teaching and nurturing new talent as a guru, a task he did till his dying day. Also, for giving great performances in Bollywood, from choreographing Madhubala in memorable performance in Mughal-e azam to recent performance by Deepika Padukone in Bajirao Mastani. He elaborated the ambit of a dance form as traditional as kathak providing it new space in popular imagination all the while maintaining a deep connect with traditional aesthetics.