(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) It's not often that a talented thespian whose career has spanned over 200 films sets most of her energies aside for another, equally, if not more elaborate, art form. Yet this is what Shobana, actress and danseuse, has accomplished in the past few years. While films - whether Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi or English - have occupied a major portion of her time for over three decades (her last role was in 2014's Kochadaiiyaan), the present sees Shobana, a trained Bharatanatyam dancer, focusing on her dancing, gracing venues all over the world with her vibrant and expressive performances.
Now, UAE fans can look forward to seeing Shobana on stage, in BHAV - A Confluence of Dance, Music and Myth, at Sheikh Rashid Auditorium, Indian High School on April 27. The eloquent star, who has performed in Dubai a number of times, spoke to City Times on the phone ahead of her latest concert, which is a novelty that she hopes will entertain audiences from all walks of life. She insists you don't need to be a classical dance aficionado to appreciate her latest show.
"The concept of BHAV is to highlight the history of performing arts in a very entertaining manner. I invited one of the most talented Carnatic vocalists, Abhishek Raghuram, considered a genius, to actually sing for dance, which he hasn't done before. So we both pushed the boundaries in this performance, because performing a Bharatanatyam dance for a Carnatic concert kind of song hasn't been done before, in that particular format. Also, Carnatic musicians - soloists - do not sing for dance."
So does this means she's bringing something completely new to the stage? "See it is new, but it's also entertaining. There is no point doing something new just for the heck of it. Here (in India) it's kind of a success, we have performed it in Chennai and we're taking it all over. Sometimes people say that Carnatic music or classical dance is meant for a certain niche audience, which is not true for this particular show, because we are showcasing the history of performing arts and how it develops, therefore it will reach any person who has an aesthetic sense. Though we haven't gone beyond the boundaries of (dance) grammar, we still managed to make anybody who decides to watch the show be entertained."
A new take on classical dance
Through this concept, Shobana wants to bring classical dance to a wider audience. "What the 'myth' in the performance says is, finally, Indian performing arts was also written to entertain. I have listened to people saying things like 'oh it's a Bharatanatyam concert', 'oh, it's all about gestures, it's all about religion', 'we won't understand it'. That's not true. Because anybody performing something who has an equation with the audience or any audience who just wants to come and enjoy Indian classical entertainment will like anything which is good. For example, when I was young I saw (Kathak exponent) Pandit Birju Maharaj perform for regular people - and the scene of Krishna stealing the butter in which Ustad Zakir Hussain accompanied him - was very clear to anybody who didn't understand classical gestures. This is what a true artist is about.
"So this new performance of mine is beyond any kind of sensibility that we have or popular notions that we have; it's just two artists coming together and trying to understand the other's form of art; it's also about enjoying each other's artistry and then moving on and trying to connect with an audience. We've had full audiences here for this show; Abhishek's audiences, my audiences, general people who are curious, people who just like aesthetics."
The right to improvise
We asked Shobana if the art of classical dance has gained more acceptance amongst the younger generation since she began her dance school, Kalarpana, in Chennai in 1994.
"Attitudes have changed in India, and I think people here are more broad-minded, because there's so much going on, there's so many collaborations and new dimensions that artists put forth. Yes classical dance is being popularised, though maybe not in the form that some people might say is the right way. Nobody knows what the right way is in the art (of dance). You think your way of dancing is the right grammar, but if you look at it, this whole art form started many centuries ago. And what we see now is not obviously what they used to perform. So the statues that were in the temples, they have no resemblance to the dance that we do now; everything is changing and anybody who spends time with the art has the right to do whatever he or she wants, whether people like it or not. That's not in your control."
'I recommend dance'
As someone who has studied and practised dance for many years, the actress said it is an art form that can add value to people's lives.
"I recommend dance because I think it's a very wholesome art form. There is no part of your body which you do not use for dance, whether it's gestures, or your head. for me, I think the head is the most used in terms of the mind, the brain, the soul and the spirituality. Spirituality actually needn't be relevant to religion - it's just being close to the supreme energy. I have been amazed in India seeing so many people from different religions take up classical dance so seriously and perform with so much aplomb. They are obviously very evolved, because they are able to compartmentalise. I'm very interested in how that actually works.
"I like to hang with like-minded people - where we jam on music, we jam on dance, after a point I think you can be totally involved and you can be busy just doing an art form. Because it uses up so much, your mind, your brain, your soul."
Has dance helped her evolve as a person? "That's a tough question. I don't know if I have evolved - I surely hope I have. But I think you are what you do, you do what you are. You think and you act what you always dream. Dance is something which I had actually alienated from the rest of myself. Because what I do is, I keep all my energies for that kind of complexity. I keep my other life pretty simple, because I don't have any more energy to strategise the regular things in life."
So would she say dance was the biggest passion in her life?"These are all cliched terms that have been coming down for many centuries. I don't know if I want to use the word 'passion' but dance is what I do, and what I want to keep doing. I do other things too - I write, I try to travel and I have a home and a hearth and I have a dance school, so my time goes by nicely."
'Dubai can get me the best audience'
What can audiences expect from Shobana's show BHAV - A Confluence of Dance, Music and Myth, and what are her thoughts on Dubai's growth as a hub for art and creativity? "It depends on how many people you can pull in through this interview (laughs)! I just hope that people don't put anything in a box artistically. Because that's not why we are there. We are there to bond with the audience, we are there to share what we have. If each of us have been putting so many of our years into these art forms hopefully we'll be able to do something decent for Dubai. Personally I'm absolutely looking forward to it because I do know that Dubai can get me the best audience ever. It does have everything - the artistically inclined, the enlightened, it has fun people, it has people who like percussion and rhythm either way, It has people who like my films still, it has people who like Carnatic classical music - we have some stuff to show to all these people."
I've been asked to do many films, Shobana tells City Times
Shobana was last seen in Kochadaiiyaan (2014). When asked if fans can expect to see her again on screen soon, she revealed, "I have been asked to do many films, and still there are offers, most of them very good. Unfortunately a film has a different kind of scheduling. And my dates (for dance performances) get blocked, like, six months in advance, one year in advance; when I tour I do some good halls abroad. It's impossible for me to just cancel something and just go and do a film because it's good. Even now I am on the verge of trying to tell somebody that I just can't come, however nice the movie is. This is my issue - so unless I cut all my performances... at that time I'm sure there won't be any good offers for me. When it rains it pours! (Laughs)
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