The eventful staging of Balaramayanam - Rangaanubhavam Day 3 - Sridevi Nrithyalaya - Bharathanatyam

SDN’s Balaramayanam is a very sentimental production for me since it was our first ever dance drama. Ramayanam, the story as such is always emotionally close to my heart and whenever I see any version of Ramayanam, a strong assurance of the existence of Dharma and victory of good over evil prevails over me. I get goosebumps every time when the story of Seetha’s swayamvaram has been enacted, read or told. After almost 5 years, when we performed our Balaramayanam on the 3rd day of our RANGAANUBHAVAM dance festival that was held recently, the experience was totally unexpected and something out of this world. With exams going on in schools and colleges and the tight schedule of the 5 days of Ranganubhavam, in which we had to prepare 85 performers, I could not hold frequent practices of Balaramayanam at SDN. So, I had gathered our Balaramayanam dancers around 10 am for stage rehearsal on the day of performance. It was cloudy then with a mild drizzle. We were inside Vani Mahal for stage rehearsal, followed by lunch and make up at 2 pm. Torrential rains began and by the time we were ready for the performance around 6 pm, the parents who came to watch their wards’ performance reported about heavy water logging on the roads. Sri Kumar’s Cool Events team, who luckily were with us since the morning’s stage rehearsal, did the stage setting. “Lights” Murugan and team, had miraculously reached the venue through the heavy rains around 5.30 pm. Our photographer and video in-charge, Sathya, swam through floods in his two wheeler and reached by 5.30 pm, without whom this wonderful event wouldn’t have been available for viewing. Sri A R Murugadoss, who had consented to come and light the Kuthu Vilakku before Balaramayanam had left home around 5 pm to reach the venue. All the performers were ready by 6 pm for the program to start at 6.30. Out of considerable tickets sold out for the show, only 2 Rasikas could make it to Vani Mahal. Finally, the hall had only 4 rows filled with our students’ parents and those 2 Rasikas. For the first time in SDN’s history, I held the performance 2 hours late, waiting for one person. Sri Murugadoss was stuck in the massive traffic jam in Chennai. With his great humility, he had accepted my invitation through a phone call to come over for Balaramayanam. His wife, Smt. Ramya was giving us updates about their adventurous drive from R. A. Puram to T. Nagar. Murugadoss’s car reached the side gate of a water surrounded Vani Mahal by 8.15 pm. Vani Mahal obliged to open the usually locked side gate for our sake. We were shocked to see water flooding into the parking lot of Vani Mahal. Finally Murugadoss entered the stage with his jeans wet up to his knees to light Kuthu Vilakku at 8.20 pm to start Balaramayanam. The performance began at 8.25 pm. It seemed as if the Supreme Energy was present for our Balaramayanam. All the children did their best, as if some divine energy was acting through each one of them. Balaramayanam was over by 9.50 pm and none of us could step out of Vani Mahal because of the flood. Anu Caterers, who run the canteen in Vani Mahal, appeared to be ‘avathars’ of Goddess Annapoorani that night. They prepared simple but satisfying food and fed us all, though requested in the last moment. The management of Vani Mahal allowed us to stay overnight. My deepest gratitude to them. Some of the performers’ parents who had brought bigger vehicles took them and others who stayed close by and went back home after midnight. Few others and I stayed till 5.30 am next day and left for home only to get ready and come back to Vani Mahal for 4th day of Rangaanubhavam. To put it simply, I felt the whole experience of Balaramayanam in our Rangaanubhavam to be an experience of realisation of the Supreme Energy, be in whatever name it is known to us all. Because, this experience was not only mine but also everyone’s who was present there. Balaramayanam in Rangaanubhavam turned out to be the best presentation ever in its 20 years of existence. The lesser number of practise sessions, that disturbed me initially, turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It helped me realise again that humans are merely limited beings and it’s only Bhagawat Sankalpam that prevails. “The Rain God will come and greet SDN” - that is the belief we firmly hold, whenever we perform our BALARAMAYANAM, produced in 2001. And it had proof every single time we performed, be it in Rashtrapathi Bhavan in New Delhi or in any remote village of our country. But on December 30th 2021, the Rain God seemed to be overwhelmed and blessed us all with a unique experience. Balaramayanam in our Rangaanubhavam was a SDN family program with only 2 Rasikas from outside. But it made me feel greatly content for this is the best Balaramayanam show ever in terms of performance, presentation, lights, costumes, makeup etc. and undoubtedly holds a special place in all our hearts. Humbly, Sheela Unnikrishnan.