United by devotion

Maayavi Dance Drama Concepts' pilot show Piya Bawari is a tale of two protagonist lovers from different eras, Radha and Meera, distinct in their characteristics but unified by their insurmountable love for Krishna, the most popular personality in Hindu mythology. He is perceived in both tangible and intangible ways. Radha searched for him in Madhuban while Meera found him in her own mind. While Radha's journey of love is mystical, Meera's devotion remains indefinable, therefore leading to an abstract connection between the two most celebrated lovers of Krishna known to Indian culture. They are divided by time but united by soul.

Maayavi means "mystical" and will be officially launched as Maayavi Dance Drama Concepts on September 30, with its pilot production.

Bhakti Harish, the founder and director of Maayavi DDC has spent an entire lifetime dancing on various stages around the world. She says: "I wished to combine all that knowledge and information to give a fresh approach to the traditional Indian dance forms. I knew that now was the time and Dubai is definitely the right place for these innovative ideas."

Bhakti partnered with talented and like-minded artistes such as Rekha Ramchandran, who is also the managing partner of Maayavi DDC. In essence, the whole idea was to develop a platform to create mystical work in dance and drama, thus the name Maayavi.

Bhakti strongly felt that the ideal way to unearth the right kind of talent for the show was through open auditions at various venues across Dubai — for professional and semi-professional dancers with a good background in dance or drama and between the age group of 15 and 25. The auditions got an amazing response with dancers from across various fields trying their luck and with 16 top performers making the cut. These hand-picked artistes were introduced to specialised workshops, with an aim to mould them from good dancers to world-class professionals. These workshops included training in different dance styles, drama, fitness, styling and stage craft, conducted over 12 weeks by specialists from each field.

Piya Bawari is a work of fiction. The screenplay alternates between the stories of Radha and Meera, unfolding their mystical love. It also deals with their lives that were divided by time, but united by soul. As the curtain lifts, you witness Meera portrayed as a lover of Krishna, longing for him, pouring out her heart through her poetry. It portrays her placing her love for Krishna above all worldly ties. "I am drenched in the colour of my Saawariya," says Meera, as she perceives Krishna to be her husband, lover, lord and master. Even when challenged, she remains unfazed and relentless in her pursuit of love, without being deterred by the consequences.

"Why do rivers merge into seas, and seas into oceans? What is the relationship between the moon and the waves?" responds Radha, the other lover, when she is ridiculed by society. She lives in an illusion that her beloved Krishna could never leave her even for a day. Little did she know that destiny had planned something that she hadn't envisaged in her worst nightmare. Her love is tested mercilessly.

"What happens next and how Radha deals with this — I don't want to give away too much at this point but if you have seen any ballet or drama involving these characters, then you are in for a pleasant surprise," Bhakti says.

"We are certain that every woman in the audience will personally connect to either Radha or Meera, as almost all men would relate to the Krishna in Piya Bawari. In short, if you have been in love, you will love it."

The show is a musical with English dialogues, so as to connect with the multicultural landscape of Dubai. The music consists of carefully chosen songs from Bollywood which gel well with the storyline and have a universal appeal for all age groups. Maayavi has used elements from all traditional Indian and folk dance forms and interwoven them with the contemporary international styles.

Maayavi DDC has introduced innovative training ideas. It is not just a routine dance workshop — it aims at being a finishing school for dancers and performers. Over the period of three months there are series of specialised workshops which are aimed at not only making the participants better dancers but also to mould them into thorough professionals. Maayavi strongly believes that to become a professional dancer all the three elements of mind, body and soul have to be in absolute sync and hence it is very important to train all the three together with equal emphasis. The Maayavis (as the participants are fondly referred to) are attending specialised sessions in drama, styling and photography this month, prior to the show.

It is Bhakti's vision to re-invent Indian dance drama. An accomplished exponent of Bharatnatyam, she graduated from Nalanda University of Mumbai with distinction. With over a decade of work in dance-drama with Bollywood legend Hema Malini, Bhakti's journey in the performing arts has helped her enhance her vision and broaden her creative spectrum. It has helped her become an extremely innovative choreographer and a fine teacher.

Bhakti had written the script of Piya Bawari with the desire to play Meera's role. During auditions for the other lead character, she met Rekha Ramachandran, a Bharatnatyam graduate from Raj Rajeshwari Academy, Mumbai. Rekha is also a fine jazz dancer, trainer and choreographer with an experience spanning 18 years with top banners in the fraternity. Rekha was a glove fit for Maayavi and an automatic choice for the role of Radha.

"Krishna is going to be Maayavi's element of surprise and you'll have to wait till the show is unveiled, just another facet of Maayavi," says Bhakti with a smile.

All the dancers play important characters in the dance drama and are critical to the story. The screenplay is consciously kept extremely tight with two stories from two different eras running side by side.

"So you'll see both stories unfold alternately and audiences will be able to make the connection. The climax should be a delight for the audiences to experience," Bhakti says.

"It has been a fantastic journey," says Bhakti, "from spotting the right Dubai-based talent to moulding them into performers of international standard. The amazing part is that at one end we had dancers with 15 years of hard-core classical training and on the other we had fine dancers with limited training but electrifying enthusiasm.

"The common link, though, was their passion for dance and the willingness to learn and transform. From students to housewives to business owners, Maayavi has managed to bring together a fine mix of performers who will delight the audiences with their energy and dancing."

Sessions begin with specialised workouts designed by Rekha — a fine blend of yoga and jazzercise to improve flexibility, breathing, body control and stamina. This is followed by choreography sessions by Bhakti. All the sessions are video-taped for further analysis and improvement.

While the script was being written, Bhakti visualised the treatment of specific scenes, the backdrops, the costumes, etc. It was then a matter of bringing imagination to reality.

Maayavi is definitely blessed with the right kind of creative support. Professionals and connoisseurs of dance such as Kali Jal have poured their heart and soul into the pictures and illustrations of Piya Bawari. Young fitness trainers such as Vinuta Rai have been instrumental in getting the team in right shape. Yoga guru Sanjeev Krishnan conducted special sessions on using the powers of meditation and creative visualisation to improve one's craft.

"I believe in Martha Graham's quote ‘Great dancers are not great because of their technique, they are great because of their passion'," Rekha says.

She feels her meeting Bhakti was so mystical it almost felt like a conspiracy by nature. It is not surprising that they share the same passion for Maayavi and for dance. Rekha says she is thrilled to be a part of Piya Bawari and can't hide her child-like enthusiasm when she speaks about her role as Radha.

Prashanti Shekhar, another Maayavi, adds: "Dance is a performing art and that's what makes it so special. Not every dancer is a natural performer, however graceful and coordinated she may be. At Maayavi, every rehearsal has laid significant focus on performance and entertainment. The choreography is surreal; it just transports you to this magical world."

Vineetha, an advertising professional, feels her journey with this team has been unbelievable. "The team inspires me every day to keep pushing the envelope, pushes me to learn every second, but more importantly it teaches me to romance with dance, it has fuelled me to go after my passion with the greatest fervour. I know now what it means to be a Maayavi."

"Maayavi is a great professional set-up with the prime focus on blending various forms of dance. It gives me a great sense of achievement to do what I am really passionate about but it also has gone a long way in helping me destress, recharge my energies after long office hours. The weekends have never been so exciting and fun-filled," Shona Naik says.

Bhavya Gehlot, a businesswoman, says: "Maayavi's approach has been refreshingly different; they have laid emphasis on dance rather than the style of dance. This for a dance enthusiast like me was inviting enough and I love my experience so far."

Bhakti and Rekha feel that the future is very promising; they have lots of things planned already — The Clever Rabbit, Bhamakalapam and Santavani. They are also in the final stages of planning for the start of their academy, whose launch date will be announced soon.

Piya Bawari is indeed a journey of eternal love and the entire team is eagerly waiting to mesmerise the audience with their abundant love for Krishna, says Tripthi, a student from DIA.

Linda George is a writer based in Thrissur, Kerala.

Piya Bawari will be staged at DUCTAC on September 30 and Shaikh Rashid Auditorium on October 1.