A step in time to revive traditional Margam

“It was created to ensure that the traditional practice of the mar gam (format of a concert) is revived. Many genres of dance items are being forgotten and lost because of the lack of time given to a performance. Through my own challenging experiences with sabhas and organisers in India, I developed an empathy towards my fellow dancers and wanted to ensure a sound platform for talented artists,” says Aniruddha Knight. 

Each concert in the series showcases one performer who presents a two-hour margam. As Aniruddha rightly points out, the performance time an artiste is given today has gone down from two hours of a full margam to one and a half to even one hour and lesser. Although establishing the true essence of an act requires time, in today’s age of 140 characters, does he think the idea of a long format will sustain? 

“I think it’s high time we give due respect to the things that need it. Things that call for 140 characters don’t have space in the time demanding classical arts. These days, artistes expect to be professional performers and teachers even by the time they complete their arangetram . This must change,” explains Aniruddha. 

The concert series is also a tribute to USA-based Scripps family who have been patrons of his grandmother Padma Vibhushan Balasaraswati’s work for decades. 

Speaking of his grandmother, she was the first performer of Bharatanatyam outside of South India, performing first in Kolkaka (then Calcutta) in 1934. She went on to establish a global career that attracted international critical attention. In a review in 1977, the New York Times described her as one of the “supreme performing artists in the world”. 

Aniruddha’s mother, the late Lakshmi Knight, was also a distinguished Bharatanatyam performer. He is a ninth-generation descendant of a 200-year-old family of dancers and musicians, and the first male of his family to take up this style of dance. 

While he is upholding a cherished tradition, and celebrating the pride of illustrious inheritance, being subjected to comparison is inevitable. 

“As a student of this style, I must humbly remember the accomplishments of the great artistry of my linage; but I must also stand my ground as an artist and develop my own unique interpretation of the art. That is the basics for the survival of any tradition. Of course, we must all celebrate with pride because this illustrious linage is the cultural inheritance for all of us,” says Aniruddha. 

The first concert on March 18 presented K Shanmuga Sundaram, a student of the late KJ Sarasa. The talents are chosen from various traditional art forms across India and internationally. As part of the series, the Balasaraswati Scripps Award for Artistic Excellence will also be conferred. 

The series is an extension of his efforts at the Balasaraswati Institute of Performing Arts in the city, that was formed to transform art into a community activity. 

Aniruddha has also opened the doors of his house (where his grandmother lived) to children from disadvantaged backgrounds. 

“Yes, but it goes beyond just a social service as the art needs to be in the hands of a new generation and new people. It is ironic that when the Devadasi Act was put into place and nationalism was at the forefront, the art was taken away from a community to make it non-elitist. 

Today, the art is struck with people with money and affluence. It is time to shake things up and give the art a new path to evolve and survive,” finishes Aniruddha.