Friday, March 13, 2009

In search of Art, In search of Guru

I often wonder if people can 'stay away' from Art. But surprisingly I do meet many who do not think, practice or know Art. What I wonder is how such people attain the ultimate satisfaction of life. However each person has different perception towards this. Art is not directly associated to Culture. But nuances of Art does touch upon Culture. Art can't be defined an Artist can't be measured. Art can be even in cutting of vegetables, it can be in Music or in the form of Dance or even a beautiful painting.
I walk on the roads observing nature, observing heritage buildings and one fine day I spotted a board 'Kalakshiti'. I walked into the building to find it beautifully painted with rangoli art, lot of Idol Statues and I told to myself 'What a beautiful Ambience!'. It's a dance school where they teach Bharatanatyam in Classical, Old form. But then there was no batch during weekends to accomodate a working person like me.
However this thought came in my mind several times to make it someday ... to somehow join Kalakshiti. I happened to walk in again a few months back and I see this Divine Prof. Krishnamurthy (fondly called Kittu Sir) sitting and guiding students. After several requests he enrolled me in a Saturday batch. I was so happy that I also conveyed this to my friend Rama who was keen on joining with me.
Our first class itself we realized this is no ordinary school of dance. Here we not only learn Art, we also get the right guidance from a Guru like Kittu Sir. He told us how to dress for the class, how to groom ourselves for the dance. Everytime her referred to his Guru Smt. Rukmini Devi Arundale, I could notice his immense dedication towards her. Over the period of time I realized he is the Guru I have always been searching in my life. I have faced several Guru's and all have been good. But this time, I also started transforming myself from what I was to what I want to be. I have always believed in striking a balance between our cultural values and my today's way of life. With Kalakshiti I could attain it. I feel very holistic when I drape the dance saree and walk in with a perfect posture. I don't know if I am meant to be a dancer, if I have the capability to ever perform in dance ... all I know is this is the institution I ever wanted to be in. Learning Dance might have never been in my mind, but to get associated to a form of Art was always my desire. With me finding Kalakshiti, Kittu Sir I have started to believe that what ever you really look for in life, you do get it someday. My search might have ended, but my thirst to learn is still on ...

2 comments:

pranati said...

Hey Sharath such a beautiful post. You have dedicated this post to your loving Guru shows your dedication towards dance. I remember still while having our lunch in the Indira nagar park. Once you said I feel I am a dancer in my privious birth and so on. I wish all the very best Sharath, keep your dream alive, do practise on a regular basis. And happy that you found your guru.

Unknown said...

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Pen your thoughts about Saving our planet from CO2.

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