DURGA CHARAN RANBIR
Rahul Acharya interviews the doyen
of Odissi, Sri Durga Charan Ranbir on male Odissi dancers.
e-mail: rahul_acharya@rediffmail.com
| Jul
2001
Durga Charan
Ranbir, disciple of the late guru Deba Prasad Das has done a lot to propagate
the school of Odissi his teacher specialized in. His vast experience as
a teacher of Odissi for the past 25 years includes work in institutions
spread over many places like Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, New Delhi, Calcutta
and the USA. He was a visiting professor in the Delhi University
Cultural Council, has taught in Jawaharlal Nehru Youth Center in New Delhi;
Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya, Sangeet Niketan, Vani Vihar in Bhubaneswar;
Lalit Kala Pitha, Alaka Kala Mandap in Cuttack; Satabdi Nrutyayana in Calcutta
and Lotus Arts in New York. He runs his own institution Nrutyayan in Bhubaneswar.
Many of Durga Charan Ranbir’s students have been awarded the Sringar Mani
title. His disciples have also earned fellowships from the Central Dept
of Culture, Govt of India certificates for excellence and the Mahari Award. |
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Does a male
dancer get fewer opportunities than a female dancer?
Yes, but not
necessarily always. Perhaps in Odissi, like in other forms of dance, especially
Indian classical dance, female dancers are preferred to male dancers. Apart
from the normal preference for female dancers, most of the Odissi male
dancers are inhibited by their economic background and low level of academic
qualifications. Majority of them come from poor families with hardly any
schooling. As such, very early in their dancing career they take up dance
teaching as a means of livelihood. To my mind, these are the two most important
causes, which prevent them in ending as good performers. In contrast, most
of the female dancers of the Odissi form either of the past or present
have been / are invariably from economically very well to do families and
very often highly educated. While money is not a limiting factor for them
in acquiring the best of dancing skills and creating opportunities for
sufficient exposure, their academic acquisitions help them work with understanding
and imagination.
All the same,
a good male dancer in Odissi has also his standing and in many cases it
is seen that he has been preferred to many female dancers in the live.
It may be revealing here that Gotipua form, from which Odissi as a form
of classical dance is stated to have evolved, is basically a male dance
form. Presently also many male dancers in the field are happily from rich
families and have high academic qualifications.
Do you think
a lyrical dance form like Odissi is well suited for a male?
Of course.
This dance form is divided into both Tandava and Lasya aspects. Tandava
deals with the vigour of masculinity whereas Lasya deals with the aura
of femininity. Excluding Pallavi, all other phases in Odissi are suitable
for males. Items like Sabda Swara Pata and Sthayee have been specially
choreographed keeping the male torso in view. One has to choreograph the
items very carefully so that the male dancer is able to maintain his masculinity.
For example, my Guru Late Shri Deba Prasad Das had choreographed items
like Ashta Sambhu, Sthayee, Sabda Swara Pata, Chhanda and Champu typically
for males and following his footsteps I also have choreographed items like
Suryashtaka, Dashamahavidya and Ardhanarishwara. Even in Pallavi, if Bhangis
like Pada Balaya, Abhimana, Kunjarabakta etc. are replaced with Mardala,
Parshwa Mardala, and Benu along with Suchi Pada then this also is suitable
for males. Keeping this in mind I have experimented with a Pallavi based
on Raga Chakrabaka.
Why aren't
there many male dancers in Odissi but there is never a scarcity of any
male teachers?
I have given
the answer earlier. When Odissi got its classical status in the late 1950's,
Gotipuas were in full swing. Slowly these Gotipuas left their troupes and
individually started imparting lessons. These Gotipuas were from poor families
and thus did not get enough scope to study. As a result they were neither
able to explain what they were teaching nor were they able to communicate
with the outside world. Thus they began accepting girls from rich families
as their disciples and placed them at the forefront as their representatives.
Slowly this became a trend where males were teachers and females were performers.
Besides this, since the higher strata of society looked down at male dancers,
rich males could not enter this field even if they wanted to. But now time
has changed and well - educated men from good families are coming forward
to learn and preserve their rich cultural heritage.
Can you
do something for the upliftment of the male dancers?
Yes, why not?
At present I am training many male disciples. But to place them at the
forefront, special choreographies are needed and for this adequate supply
of funds is a necessity. It is a proven fact that males were a priority
because of the Gotipua tradition. I do not deny the fact that Odissi also
hails from the Mahari tradition. But who has seen a Mahari's performance?
People have seen Gotipuas. Besides, specific traditional male choreographies
are present in the Odissi style. Only people have to come forward and join
hands to help these men preserve their dying culture. If I receive
necessary help I can certainly contribute a lot for the upliftment of the
male dancers.
How many
of your male disciples are performers and not Gurus?
At present
I have four leading male disciples out of which one of my major disciples
Rahul Acharya is a performer only. He is also my youngest disciple. But
another disciple of mine, Sanatan Nayak is a performer cum teacher. Some
of my disciples at Delhi like Sushant Raut and Dilip Mohapatra are prominent
as performers, but they are also into teaching line. Only Rahul is strictly
a performer and representative of my style.
Do you think
any of your male disciples is worthy of carrying your style after you?
I think so,
yes. I always try to be optimistic but that too depends upon the grace
of God. Let's see what destiny has in store for me.
How many
of your male disciples have gone abroad like you and propagated Indian
culture?
Only one of
my male disciples has gone abroad accompanying me and has conducted workshops
at different colleges and universities.
There has
been a lot of talk about corruption/ distortion of Odissi by male performers.
How would you react to this?
All male performers
are not distorting the dance. Some of them, having learnt Odissi, shift
to Chhau, trying to make their dance more graceful. Only a spectator understands
how awkward this blend looks. If one is sincere enough to stick to the
classical aspects of this dance form, then he has to refer to the treatise
on dance like Natya Shastra, Abhinaya Chandrika, Abhinaya Darpana etc.
along with verdicts from the Guru, then only there will be no place for
distortion.
Do you think
your responsibilities as a Guru has hindered your progress as a performer?
I fully agree
with this statement. When one becomes a teacher, many responsibilities
dwell on his head; as a result practice is hampered. For being a performer
one has to concentrate on practice only and do Sadhana. As my Guru is dead,
to keep the Gharana running, I was bound to take up the teaching profession
and thus ceased to become a performer. Besides, there is not much scope
for a dancer in Orissa.
What is
your message to other male performers of Odissi?
I have to
tell them that they should maintain a puritan approach keeping the basics
without any distortion. They should, without any adulteration, do enough
Sadhana and thus try to emerge as cultural ambassadors of the pure and
traditional Odissi dance form.
Durga Charan
Ranbir
“Nrutyayan”
Plot # 107E,
Acharya Vihar
Bhubaneswar
751013, India
Ph: (91 –
674) - 540312
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