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Night of the Kathak
Elegant swirling movements, lightning quick pirouettes, sudden poses and rapid stamping feet — that’s Kathak, a dance with a character of its own. Along with it all are the subtle gestures through which emotions are expressed and a story is told. The Pakistan American Cultural Centre, Karachi, recently held a workshop and demonstration on Kathak. It was a sweet, simple but very entertaining programme which, like the dance performances that evening, hardly fell out of synch. Even though it began a little later than 8:00pm, due to the chief guest’s late arrival, Asma Ahmed, the PACC’s director of cultural affairs, who was also acting as compere, made sure it ended on time.
The names of the performers on the invitation gave nothing away. It was only after the programme began that the audience realized what a treat they were in for. Two of the dancers were little children, whose performances won the hearts of everyone present. The performances by young Babar Ali and the articulate Noor Jehan Mecklai followed.
From the very start and even in between performances, Asma Ahmed informed the audience about Kathak and the ustads who have kept the art alive in Pakistan. The evening was dedicated to Shadoo Ustad. The 95-year-old teacher, who lives in Malir, was unable to attend the programme due to ill health.
The musicians in-charge of providing the taal or rhythm and music for the dances were Shafiullah, who played the harmonium, and while doing so explained what kind of taal he was playing, and Ustad Chappo and Balam, who played the tabla. Also present was Hamid Hussain Shad, who doesn’t belong to any gharana of dance and teaches the art just as a hobby. Sitting on the floor beside them was a little boy, no more than five years of age, watching intently as they played their instruments.
To kill some time before the arrival of the chief guest, Shahzad Anjum, who has a bachelor’s degree in music from Punjab University, was requested to say a few words. He also sang Lagey re naina tum se in raga Bhopali.
Four-year-old Wenezhe, a student of Hamid Hussain Shad for the last eight months, was on stage first. Dressed in a red and gold kurta pajama with a little yellow chunri, she mesmerized the audience with her perfect timing. Later, even 22-year-old Babar Ali, who performed twice, fell out of taal, but not Wenezhe. Twirling, skipping, dancing on the spot, the little teeka on her forehead dancing too, she must have made her parents and grandparents, who were present in the audience, very proud indeed. She was simply adorable.
If Wenezhe was great, Noor Kaisar was marvellous. Dressed in a white angarakha and churridar with a red coatie, the seven-year-old looked more like a professional Kathak dancer with ghungroo and piranda (her shoulder length hair had been carefully pinned back and tied). With a confident smile and careful but quick steps, she never staggered or stumbled, even though her dance was more complicated than Wenezhe’s.
The cute face brought back memories of another little girl in a toothpaste ad. Noor is in fact Afshan Ahmed’s little daughter. Before Noor was called on stage, Asma Ahmed explained that she had been a student of Fasih-ur-Rehman at the Karachi Grammar School until he moved to Lahore. She now learns Kathak from Hamid Hussain Shad. The child, who is a total tomboy, made her parents decide that Kathak would help in making her more of a little lady.
Babar Ali, also a student of Hamid Hussain, dances not just with his hands and feet, his eyebrows too react to the music. He is one of those dancers who enter into playful rhythmic competitions with their tabla nawaz in the form of a duet (jugalbandi) where one imitates the other, trying constantly to outdo one’s opponent.
Saving the best for last, Noor Jehan Mecklai, who originally hails from New Zealand and who had come to the PACC to learn ballroom dancing, performed a Kathak ang to a thumri followed by a tarana in teen taal. It all sounds less complicated than what it actually is. Through tarana, a Kathak dancer emphasizes both technical and expressive aspects of his or her dance. Noor Jehan, who studied classical ballet when she was a child in New Zealand, has literally come a long way both in dance and from her homeland. She very proudly calls herself a Pakistani. Fifteen years ago, she started learning Kathak from Master Yaqoob, who is considered an encyclopaedia of thumri ang. Since 1999, she has been composing her own dances.
Noor Jehan’s complicated dance told the story of a woman in love. She waits for her lover all night, but he fails to turn up. Weeping for her lost love, she comes out of her depression like a phoenix rising. The applause took a long time to die down after her performance.
One has to admit it was an enjoyable evening of classical dance that featured performers from all age groups, a most encouraging sign for an art form which, according to many, is on its last legs.
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