Narthaki.com
March 13, 2017

http://www.narthaki.com/info/rev17/rev2032.html

A dancer paints in space and creates moving paintings. These words often said by Kathak maestro Pt Birju Maharaj resonated at  MES Auditorium, Kothrud, Pune on 29th January  morning when the Design 14 team took the stage. Aural, visual and visceral, all senses were activated by the music, costumes and choreography of ‘Design 14’ by Anjali Patil from Canada. The first act was an ode to the Sufi spirit that is embodied in all Kathak. The unique feature of the music was the use of claps to give the theka of the taal. It went very well with the sufi ethos. Qawali has often used clap marking and that gave an appropriate connect between sufikalam and Kathak. The finale to the sufi piece showed the use of an aroha or ascendance of chakkars of different variety ending in a crescendo.

This was followed by the central piece, an exploration of Taal Dhamaar or 14 beat time cycle. The stamina intensive, high energy choreography was presented very well by Anjali Patil and her troupe. The program was presented by Kalanubhuti Society for the Arts.