SeeMyMarriage and Elsat.tv are renowned brands in webcasting Arangetram ( Arangetra ) in India. Our experience clearly helps in covering the event in clear and good shots. So with our experience we have put together this information on Arangetrams.
Arangetram is the name refers to a debut dance performance of south Indian traditional Bharatanatyam. The word Arangetram was taken from two Tamil words Arangam and Erru which together mean ‘to ascend the stage’. The practise of Arangetram for Bharatanatyam is developed as a tradition from ancient days. Arangetram is the platform where the Sishya (student) exhibits all the skills which are trained by his/her Guru. The Arangetram is done for 3 hours where the performer requires a lot of concentration and stamina. The time is generally divided into two parts.
The first part of the Arangetram has the following items:
Pushpanjali or Alaripu
Jathiswara
Shabdha
Varna
The second part has
Padam
Ashtapathi or Devernama
Mangala
Pushpanjali
In this item the performer salute the God, Guru and the Audience. It is considered as a warm up item where the performer prepares the body for the rest of the vigorous performance of Bharatnatyam.
Jathiswara
This item comprises of more complex movements compared to the previous item. It is carried with amazing postures and teermanas or muktayas.
Shabda
Shabda is the item where they exhibit both Nrtta and abhinaya. The lyrics are generally devotional where they depict the sequence from any famous devotional stories, praising King or about Krishna’s childhood. The movements are composed in a poised manner revealing the emotions in a measured and disciplined manner.
Varnam
This item defines the potential of the performer with more complex steps and expressions of Bhartanatyam. The lyrics can be devotional.
Padam
This item includes expression of divine love or pangs of separation in love. The composition of the tempo is comparatively slow depending on specific moods of love. It has a lot of scope for the performer to show the skills of expression as the lyrics are carried on the lines of hero betraying her beloved one, making the heroine to wait for his arrival or making her angry etc.,
Ashtapathi
This item generally shows the love of Lord Krishna and Radha. These are poet Jayadevas Sanskrit compositions called Geethagovinda which are extremely romantic compositions. These have 12 cantos containing songs which are sung by Krishna or Radha or by Radha’s maid. Each canto is named differently based on Krishna’s status of mind.
Saamodadamodara – joyful Krishna
Aakleshakeshava – careless Krishna
Mugdhamadhusoodhana – bewildered Krishna
Snigdhamadhusoodhana – tender Krishna
Saakankshapundareekaksha – longing Krishna
Kuntavaikunta – indolent Krishna
Naagaranaaraayana – cunning Krishna
Vilakshalakshmeepatihi – abashed Krishna
Mandamukunda – languishing Krishna
Chaturachaturbhuja – intelligent Krishna
Saanandadamodara – blissful Krishna
Supreetapeetambara – ecstatic Krishna
Expressions play a vital role in this item where the expression can only be delivered if the Bharatanatyam dancer is mature enough in understanding the situation and lyrics.
Devaranama
This item has devotional lyrics describing God, praising God etc., These compositions are popularly known as Daasa Sahi where the devotional literature written in simple language and preach the philosophy of love, devotion etc.,
Tillana
This is usually considered as the final stage of the Bharatanatyam performance which has more complicated movements and postures including complicated muktayas. The compositions are combined with meaningful lyrics where the performer has opportunity to exhibit Abhinaya.
Mangala
This item is the ending of the performance where the artist salutes the God, Guru and the Audience for making the performance a success as a token of thanks giving.
The performance of the dancer is accompanied with a live orchestra with highly talented and accomplished artists. The orchestra is clubbed with a nattuvanar, Vocal artist, Mridangam, Flute, Violin.
Nattuvangam
The art of conducting Indian traditional dance performance is known as nattuvangam, and the artist who conduct is known as the nattuvanar. He/She plays a vital role in defining the structure of the composition which is commonly known as Thalam.
Vocal artist
These are generally performed by a trained Carnatic (classical South Indian) vocalist. The lyrics of the composition play a crucial role in defining the expression of the performer. Each set of song is accompanied with a specific ragam and talam.
Mridangam
Mridangam can be called as a heart of the orchestra as the structural rhythmic beats produced are utilized by the dancer in performing the steps.
Flute
A bamboo flute which is commonly called as pullanguzhal plays a prominent role in Carnatic music which distinctively different from Western flute. The main responsibility for the flutist is to maintain the tune with the other musicians.
Violin
The violin is almost similar to the Western violin but the tuning and the way it is positioned while playing it is different. Violin plays an integral role by making the audience glue to the performance.
As we all know that the number of Indians migrating to foreign countries is very high, according to a recent survey the number of Indian in US are from Hyderabad. So, it is important to make their children know about the traditions and culture of their motherland. Most of the Indian parents are considering Bharatanatyam as a way of making their children to educate about Indian culture. As the compositions of Bharatanatyam are based on Hindu mythology, in addition to Bharatanatyam training one can gain knowledge on Hinduism, Spirituality and the relationship between Guru and student. There are many young girls from US, Canada, UK and many other countries pursue Bharatanatyam and strongly believe that Arangetram makes them connect to the roots of the Indian culture. So it is important to step ahead and arrange Arangetrams on a bigger platform by which we can inject the prominence of Indian culture.
Bharatanatyam is a traditional dance performance where the expressions play a vital role and stands out throughout the presentation. It is such a joy to see the young dancers exhibit their skills and learning with great passion. Publishing some articles in print media might not affect the growth of the popularity as a picture or an article will not convey much to the audience as the dance is more of a visual appealing. So, instead of limiting the number of audience it is a good thing to find alternative ways of taking the performance to a large number by reinventing the popularity for traditional dance.
Live Streaming is a good source for broadcasting Arangetram as it offers many useful features and the data can be sent all over the world by a single click.
