Nina Rajarani’s ‘Play Ball’ brings three worlds of women to the Chennai stage
Nina Rajarani’s work with Srishti focuses on maintaining the integrity of classical Indian dance while placing it in contemporary, often cross-cultural contexts, with a strong emphasis on live music
Nina Rajarani with Y Yadavan
From Bend It... Let’s Play Ball! piece
CHENNAI: UK-based Bharatanatyam exponent Nina Rajarani is touring India with her Srishti Dance Creations to showcase Play Ball to Indian audiences this December. Her performance was recently staged in Chennai at Bharata Kalanjali.
This thematic production explores the urgent need to represent the evolving role of women in society accurately, particularly in the arenas of love, sports, and the corporate world, through the lens of play.
“All these three pieces took shape between 2006 and 2008. The first piece, Kadala... Is it Love?, delves deep into the yearning for a successful relationship. Bend It... Let’s Play Ball! explores how women are reaching great milestones in sports. And the final piece, Quick!, is set in the corporate world,” explains Nina, who wanted to highlight all three pieces under one umbrella, Play Ball.
She also spoke about the challenge of finding musicians for this particular production: “In this thematic production, we wanted musicians to work with the dancers and be part of the narrative on stage. Both musicians and dancers together as one team,” she elaborates.
Nina Rajarani’s work with Srishti focuses on maintaining the integrity of classical Indian dance while placing it in contemporary, often cross-cultural contexts, with a strong emphasis on live music. Her choreography for Quick! won The Place Prize in 2006, then Europe’s largest choreographic competition. In 2009, she was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to South Asian dance.
All three pieces were crafted almost two decades ago for a different audience. Now, the Bharatanatyam exponent has adapted the performances slightly for contemporary viewers.
“Yes, the nuances are tailored for today. The dynamic of women in society has evolved drastically. Earlier, we had all-male performers for the pieces; now women perform each narrative. The themes are contemporary, with sports jerseys, but the form re- mains completely classical,” she shares, adding that the perspective of the Indian audience has broadened and become more open-minded.