Bharatanatyam dancer KP Rakesh revealed the beauty of Jaydev’s Ashtapadi

KP Rakesh is performing at the 2025 dance festival of Sangeet Academy in Chennai. Photo Credit: K. Pitchhumani

Jaydev’s Ashtapadis have preferred compositions for dancers in styles. How they tell themselves that determines the effect of the piece. At the Music Academy Dance Festival, KP Rakesh’s delimitation of ‘Kshawaduna’ was a beauty happiness.

With delicateness and grace, who marked his entry as Krishna in Buver by Sujit Naik in the sweet strains of the flute, Rakesh immersed himself into the character.

In the raga dwajwanti brims, intensive love with this octagon was depicted with restraint and dignity. In which gentle way Krishna, to place Radha on her body, caressed it and her fickle response to her touch, and the female representation of a man – Rakesh’s rendering was poetic.

Rakesh’s Narata was marked with the clarity of the movement, powerful footwork and pleasant performance, which was clear in the Saptha Talaragamalika composed by Panih Pillai Panih Pillai with Pannee Pillai.

‘Nyandodi Wanden’ is an interesting composition that has a concept for a music rendering with ragas and vowels. Choosing this vanam with limited scope for dance was a preventive, although Rakesh managed to find out some ideas related to Shiva. He needs to move beyond the narrative mode and choose the vanams that lend themselves to emotional manifestations.

Girish Madhu on Nattuvangam in a contingent of music artists, live on Vocals. Srikanth, Shivprasad on Mridangam, Sujith Naik on Flute and N on Veena. Anantanarayanan was involved.