A moment in time that she wants to hold on to forever; an experience that she wishes would never end—isn’t this how we all go through life? A series of snapshots that are woven together, the spaces between them extrapolated by the memory of emotion. She yearns for union with the Lord of Chidambaram time and time again, even as Time never does stand still.
Varnam
Swami Naan Undan Adimai
Composer
Papanasam Sivan
Choreographer, Vocals, Rhythmic Arrangement
Ramya Kapadia
Mridangam
Karthick Narayanan
Violin & Viola
Embar Kannan
Recording, Mixing, & Mastering
Sai Shravanam (Chennai, India),
Anuj Kapadia (Knoxville, TN)
Costume
Kasi Aysola, Surya Jewelers
(Chennai, India)
Lighting
David Ferri
Bharatanatyam is a restructured/recast form of the original sadir form performed in the temples and the courts of South India. In the last 200 years, the dance form has evolved in content and aesthetics suitable to a proscenium stage and global audiences.
The varnam is the central piece of any Bharatanatyam repertoire, which demands the highest level of precision in technique and thought from the dancer. The structure of the varnam alternates between rhythmic passages and expressional narratives that reveal the arc of the dancer’s interpretation of the lyrics.
The singular thought in this varnam is an earnest plea that becomes an urgent desire to unite with the Lord of Dance—Nataraja, of the Chidambaram temple. The devotee finds herself amidst hundreds of devotees, each trying to catch a glimpse of the Lord, enshrined in the Golden sanctum sanctorum. As she beholds the splendor of the Lord’s matted locks adorned by the flowing Ganga and the cool moon, with the drum of creation in one hand and the fire of dissolution in the other, she says, “Swami naan undan adimai." “O Lord of Chidambaram, the whole world knows that I seek your lotus feet. I see you everywhere—in the water I use to cleanse my porch, the earth that I decorate with designs, the lamp I light for you, and the cool evening breeze, for are you not the Lord of the five elements? Why do you make me wait, O Sacchitananda, when my desire is to be able to chant your name? Will I not get a glimpse of your lotus feet that danced the glorious cosmic dance in the Golden temple of Chidambaram?” In her desire to unite with the Lord, she is able to transcend Time and Space as she surrenders her entire being to the Supreme Being.