Avinash Pasricha, who has documented some of the most celebrated dancers and classical musicians in the country through his photographs, will be at Hyderabad Literary Festival 2017 to showcase some of his photographs of M.S. Subbulakshmi. The exhibition is a tribute to the legendary singer.
A photograph of M.S. Subbulakshmi by Avinash Pasricha, which will be showcased at Hyderabad Literary Festival 2017.
One of his black and white photographs capture M.S., almost in a trance. “I tried to capture the essence of bhakti in her music. Not many people like profile shots, but I think this is among my best photographs of her,” says the Delhi-based photographer.
He remembers meeting her first in 1974 during a concert organised by Sangeet Natak Akademi and several times thereafter, including a Sangeet Sammelan and at the National Centre for Performing Arts, Mumbai.
Many of his photographs of M.S. Subbulakshmi have been used in books and magazines. Pasricha strains to remember when some of the images were captured. “It’s been 20 years since I retired from SPAN magazine; my memory is slowly failing me,” he says.
A photograph of M.S. Subbulakshmi and her husband Sadasivam by Avinash Pasricha, which will be showcased at Hyderabad Literary Festival 2017.
However, Pasricha recalls one of his memorable meetings with M.S. Subbulakshmi and her husband Sadasivam at their residence in Chennai. “We were doing a shoot on the terrace. She sang for about 20 minutes. I had a makeshift umbrella and felt the equipment I was using wasn’t appropriate. I was conscious that I had to do justice to her singing and capture the memorable moments. In between, she asked me to take a break, went into the kitchen and made a dosa for me,” he says.
A photograph of M.S. Subbulakshmi
Avinash Pasricha’s photographs were used in T.J.S. George’s biography on M.S. Subbulakshmi and for an audio-visual presentation when the Delhi government conferred her lifetime achievement award. “The 15-minute presentation had many photographs, including those shot by others. These were screened along with bhajans,” he says.
TRIBUTES AT HLF 2017
Hyderabad Literary Festival 2017, to be held from January 27 to 29 at Hyderabad Public School, will pay a tribute to M.S. Subbulakshmi, danseuse Chandralekha and writer/playwright Mahasweta Devi.
* To mark the birth centenary of M.S. Subbulakshmi, writer Gowri Ramnarayan will host a session. (January 28; 5.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m.)
* Moving Images will screen Meera , a dance ode to M.S. Subbulakshmi by danseuse Shobhana Bhalchandra. The songs are written by Papanasam Sivan and Kalki Krishnamurthy and the three segments portray Meera as the maiden, the reluctant queen and as the seeker. (January 28; 2 p.m.)
Mahasweta Devi
* Bhudan Theatre will stage a play inspired by Mahasweta Devi’s short story, Stanadayini . (January 27; 5.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m.)
* Tishani Doshi will deliver a commemorative talk on dancer and choreographer Chandralekha, An Accidental Dancer - My Years With Chandra, to mark 10 years since her passing away. The award-winning poet, novelist and dancer has been working with the legendary dancer Chandralekha’s dance troupe since 2001. (January 29; 12 noon)
Chandralekha
* Photo exhibition: A tribute to Chandralekha by Dashrath Patel and Sadanand Menon. A few of the acclaimed Bharatanatyam dancer’s photographs, small and large, will be displayed during the literary festival.
* Folk dancers of Telangana will perform Ghusadi, which will use native instruments like the dappu and pepre. This will be followed by a kolatam.
Culture connect
* Musician Shamir Tandon will talk about the 6 Pack Band, the country’s first trans gender band and what led to its formation. (January 29; 3 p.m.)
* Leela Samson will present Past Forward, through which she seeks to establish a dialogue between story, text, music and dance. (January 28; 7 p.m.)
* Oggudolu stage performance will depict the Oggu Katha, a popular traditional folk theatre form of Telangana. Oggu or damarukam is a hand-held instrument. Mythological stories are narrated while playing this instrument. (January 29; 5 p.m.)
