Andal Charitram – the story of the Saint poetess Andal

Andal is known in  Tamil as an Alvar, one who is "immersed" in the depths of enjoyment of God, the omnipresent mysterious. Andal is remembered for her poetry, in which she often strikes autobiographical notes about her love for her Lord. Andal Charitram traces the story from her birth and childhood, her devotion and love for Lord Krishna, to the  young girl, pining away for Him. She beseeches her friends, the god of love, and even animals for help in her quest to attain Him. Finally, she merges into the form of Krishna. Andal is known for her unwavering devotion to Krishna. Adopted by her father, Periyalvar, Andal avoided earthly marriage, the normal and expected path for women of her culture, to marry Vishnu, both spiritually and physically.

Devi Mahatmyam - Stories of the Saguna and Nirguna forms of the Goddess

" I resemble in form Brahman,

from me emanates the world,

which has the Spirit of Prakriti and Purusha,

I am empty and not empty,

I am delight and non-delight,

I am knowledge and ignorance,

I am Brahman and not Brahman. "

The Devi Mahatmyam is a Hindu religious text describing the Goddess as the supreme power and creator of the Universe. The text includes hymns to saguna (manifest, incarnated) and  nirguna (unmanifest, abstract) form of the Goddess. The saguna forms of her, asserts the text, are Mahakali (destroyer, Tamasic), Mahalakshmi (sustainer, Rajasic) and Mahasaraswati (creator, Sattvic). The nirguna concept (Avyakrita, transcendent) is also referred to as Mahalakshmi. This production weaves the stories of the saguna and nirguna forms of the Goddess in a dramatic presentation.

Productions based on Krishna

• Narayaneeyam, a production based on the verses from the text of the same name, written by Narayana Bhattatiri and has been the most successful so far, having performed it 25 times across the country.

• Krishnarpanamastu, tracing the story of Lord Shrikrishna from His birth to  Vishwaroopa darshan to Arjuna was created using songs or verses in multiple languages.

•  Krishna Leela, a presentation for ISKCON weaves together various leelas of Lord Krishna

Beginning from the first production in 2000 to the latest one in 2016, the Nrtyanjli troupe has performed these productions multiple times across the country.

Cilappatikaram

Cilappatikaram, written by the ascetic-prince Ilango Adigal revolves around Kannagi, who having lost her husband to a miscarriage of justice at the court of the Pandyan Dynasty wrecks her revenge on his kingdom. Regarded as one of the greatest works of Tamil literature, the Silappadikaram is a poetic rendition with details of Tamil culture, its varied religions, its town plans and city types, the mingling of different people, and the arts of dance and music. In the prologue to the book, Ilango Adigal gives the reader the gist of the book and lays the objectives of the book ...

“ We shall compose a poem, with songs,

To explain these truths: even kings, if they break

The law, have their necks wrung by dharma;

Great men everywhere commend

wife of renowned fame; and karma ever

Manifests itself, and is fulfilled. We shall call the poem

The Cilappatikaram, the epic of the anklet,

Since the anklet brings these truths to light.

Samarth Tyaga Brahman – the Life and teachings of Swami Samarth Ramdas

Another very well received production, inspired by an intuitive moment which involved deep research and learning is Samarth Tyaga Brahman based on the biography of Swami Samarth Ramdas. The story from his birth to achieving enlightenment, sharing the fundamentals and essence of governance to his disciple Shivaji Maharaj, in-depth explanation of every single aspect of mundane, earthly matters to deep spiritual matters to his samadhi is presented using his own lyrics and verses. This production has travelled and performed  across Maharashtra, the biggest honour being the invitation to perform at the Samadhi Mandir of Swami Ramdas at Sajjangad, Satara.

Rasa Laya Sudha

A production delineating the navarasas or 9 emotional states  based on the story of Rama using songs from the Rama Nataka Keerthanams of Arunachala Kavirayar. The highlight of this production was the predominant usage of rhythm and the percussion instruments of the Carnatic style and a beautiful blend of all the aspects of Bharatanatyam, Tala, Vadya and storytelling. This production was later released as a DVD by Kalavardhini.

Shaapmochan

A production choreographed and presented after an in depth study of Shaapmochan - the release of the curse, a great piece of poetic work by Nobel Laureate, Rabindranath Tagore. This production used the original poetry and music and the presentation was in the Bharatanatyam style. This production also appropriately made use of few aspects of theatre too.

Karna

A production for NCPA, researched, choreographed and directed by one of the brightest  students of the Institute, Siddhhi Pillai, a young 18 year old. It narrates the story of the outcast, Karna. This intense story also made appropriate use of Kalaripayattu and was completely set to rhythmic patterns using various  percussion instruments.

Few other Dance-Dramas

• Rasa Sandhya

• Ramayana

• Mukti Marga

• Kutrala Kuravanji

• Rutu Chakra

• Aamnaya

• Samarpan

• Bhakti Niranjani

• Ayyappa Charitam