Melattur Style
Between 1561-1614, Achyutappa Nayaka, a ruler of Thanjavur belonging to the Nayak dynasty, granted a village Achyutapuram (named after him), now called Melattur, to 501 refugee families of Kuchipudi dancers who migrated to Tamilnadu after the fall of the Vijaynagar Empire. Melattur is a small village 20 km from Thanjavur in Southern Tamilnadu, India.
Considered an offshoot of the Kuchipudi dance tradition, Bhagavatamela, a tradition temple dance of hereditary male dancers, is based mostly on plays written in Telugu by Melattur Venkatrama Sastry (1743-1809 A.D), a senior contemporary of Thyagaraja, the great saint, singer and composer of South India. He authored 12 dance dramas of which 6 are in vogue today, the most famous being Prahlada Charitamu.
The dancers and other cast members were originally recruited from the local Brahmin community. The mela's popularity waxed and waned till it stopped completely in 1937. It was then revived by V Ganesa Iyer. He presented Markandeya in 1938 in the local Ganesha temple and followed it with Usha Parinayam the following year. In 1940 they shifted the traditional venue to the Varadaraja Perumal temple.
The Bhagavatamela natakams of Melattur Venkatarama Sastry are performed annually, facing the sanctum of Lord Varadaraja, the presiding deity of Melattur village as a part of the Sri Narasimha Jayanti Vasantotsavam.
A classical Bharatanatyam performance is an indispensable part of Bhagavatamela. However, a unique style of Bharatanatyam is practised by the Melattur dancers. This Bharatanatyam style was developed largely out of the devadasi traditions and MelatturBhagavata Mela by Mangudi Dorairaja Iyer (1900 – 1980).
He re-established the Suddha Nrittam (intricate tapping footwork that explores different time measures in different tempos), Bhattasa Natyam and Perani Natyam (dance on the clay pot). Mangudi Dorairaja Iyer became interested in Shuddha Nrittam after watching a performance by devadasi of Cheyyur Sengalvarayar temple, who performed it along with other 71 types of items (e.g. Kavita, Nritta, Vadya, Sangeeta and others).
The distinctive characteristics of the Melattur style of Bharatnatyam are:
Themes
Unlike other Bharatanatyam gurus, Dorairaja Iyer avoided the items which glorified the poet's human patrons, as performing such items would be inconsistent with his adherence to spiritual practices of Srividya Upasana. It is only the deities or the great rishis who were deeped worthy of such glorification. Thus, the repertoire of a Melattur style dancer consists mostly of the ancient items performed in the temples.
Footwork
The Melattur style discourages stamping the feet hard against the floor. Instead, the dancer is expected to use the salangai (ankle bells) in a more sophisticated manner that produces a richer variety of sounds and highlights the rhythm.
Another distinctive feature is the presence of pancha nadais and extensive use of gati bhedas. For instance in varnam there would be gati bhedam in every jati. There is a special emphasis on crisp adavus, fluid variations or patterned korvais.
Abhinaya
Due to the Melattur Bhagavatamela influence, the style makes extensive use of the dramatic elements, i.e. characterisation, which requires highly expressive and intricate abhinaya. Unlike other Bharatanatyam styles, the facial expressions in of the Melattur style dancer are not rigidly defined, are not theatrical or understated, which requires a high degree of introspection and individual improvisation. Due to the devadasi influence, there is an emphasis on sringara rasa, rather than on a neutral bhakti.
The nritta abhinaya is different from most other styles in the sense that each body movement is to be reflected in a different facial expression in a spontaneous manner.
Other distinctive features
- The dance movements are supposed to be performed with a larger amplitude on a wide scale of tempos, making it physically the most demanding style of Bharatanatyam.
- The application of loka dharmi and natya dharmi is different from other Bharatanatyam styles.
- The Melattur style dancers wear a special protective cotton belt around their waist.
Bharatanatyam Styles
Over the past 150 years, various distinct styles of Bharatanatyam have emerged. These styles are specific to various regions of South India. The most important of these styles are:
Each of these styles have unique aesthetic character and nuances.
Other dance forms: