Interview with Dr. Vempati China Satyam, trans. from Tana Patrika
Aravinda Pillalamarri, BBN Library, 873-2789
Satyam which appeared in Oct. Tana Patrika. I liked it so much that I wanted
as many people to have it as possible, so according to my ability I have
translated it from Telugu to English. For the original article, please write
to Tana Patrika, P.O. Box 70, Streamwood, IL 60107.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"This art of kuchipudi is ours. The right to take pride
in this art is ours"
(Editor's note: Readers of Tana Patrika know that under the
leadership of Dr. Vempati Chinna Satyam, artists from the Madras
Kuchipudi Art Academy are performing in 56 North American cities.
In the midst of this tour, Sri Vempati China Satyam spoke to Tana
Patrika co-editor Jampala Chowdary on several topics which we are
including in this special issue, "Kuchipudi in North America")
Prologue
My father passed away in my childhood. He did not learn
dance; he worked as a farmer. I began learning dance at the age of
nine. To earn a living I went to Madras, where my uncle's son,
Vempati Peda Satyam was working as a dance director for cinema. I
went to work for him; afterwards I myself directed dance for
cinema. I worked on 20-30 films, including Rangula Ratnam, Sri
Krishna Satya, Krishnavataram, etc. Of all these films there is
not one that gave me full satisfaction. Finally I did choreograph
one dance for "America Ammayi;" that too because I liked the story
and the setting. While beholding the sculpture in the temple at
Chidambaram, the girl from America throbs with inspiration to dance
(the song is Ananda tAMDavamADe; fans of dance will remember it forever.--ed.)
The atmosphere in the cinema field did not suit me. Those
with self-respect cannot adjust to it. Money
comes, one can earn lots of it, but there is no value for art. You
can acquire a lot but you cannot live as an artist. It's a big
false life, with false prestige. I could not fit in there. To
live as an artist, even if a struggling one, I came away. By the
compassion of god I have been successful.
In the past there were no textbooks or syllabus for kuchipudi. It was
done in the residential system; the practice was to learn before the guru. My
guru, Vedantam Lakshmi Narayana Sastry taught me for 5-6 years. Like a
profound ocean was his knowledge. He taught in torrents. The stalwarts of
Bharatanatyam would come to learn kuchipudi at his feet.
It was very rare, a man who could dance in the guise of a woman.
Mustn't he be as lovely and convincing as Vedantam Satyanarayana
Sarma? When such an artist cannot be found, what is to become of all
the female roles? While it was limited to men, kuchipudi could not
progress. When my guru began teaching dance to girls and women,
many people shunned and denounced him. Well, he disregarded all of
them. By then he was already 70 years old. According to times and
circumstances, we change and our art will change. What is to gain
if we demand that today must be exactly like 500 years ago? We have grown and
developed our knowledge in science and other fields. If we do not acknowledge
that, then our art will go without any value.
Birth of the Kuchipudi Art Academy
In 1961-62 Sri Banda KanakalingesvaraRao received a grant from
the government to create a new kuchipudi dance drama. Sri
Devulapalli Krishna Sastry had written the lyrics of Ksheera Sagara
Madhanam for radio broadcast and Sri Balantrapu RajanikantaRao
composed the music. Sri Banda asked Sri Vedantam Raghavayya and
Sri Peda Satyam to choreograph the dance. Both of them, declining,
pointed to me saying, "here, our China Satyam will do it." Since
I was ardently desiring to do just that, I agreed. We did it in
Vijayawada and Kuchipudi. I played the role of Siva, and the production
was well-received. A woman named SantaRao, after seeing the
program in Madras KalaRanjani, approached me to learn kuchipudi.
By then she had a pedigree in BharataNatyam. To teach her I had to
prepare extensively. That opened the path for our
establishing the academy.
We started the Academy in 1963, by taking a house for Rs. 250/monthly
rent. We struggled a lot. My student Seshu (now a premiere
dance composer for films -ed.) stayed with me and we underwent many
difficulties. After we became popular the government started
giving us annually Rs. 5000. After coming to America in 1982 and
1984 and meeting with success, we gained a dedicated following.
The central government granted us Rs. 50,000 per year. We are
about to get a government notification recognizing us as an "A" grade
institution, raising the grant to Rs. 100,000. From
the state (A.P.) government right now there is nothing. Many people
are helping us. For the financial maintenance we have set up a
trust. Taking a loan we built a building and hostel for the
Academy. We charge Rs. 500 per month for room and board, but other
than that we do not take anything like tuition or fees. The
Academy and the Kalakshetram in Visakhapatnam are running with the
cooperation of so many people. The salary we give to those who
teach in the Academy is quite low. When we give programs the
amount we collect goes to these teachers and dancers. After we pay
all the artists, if there is any left then the institution gets it.
If we don't look after the artists' livelihoods the art will not survive.
Art will only endure by struggle. With your stomach full of
food and your eyes sated with sleep your body will not flex and
curve. Once one starts saving money there is no limit. Art will
not subsist on it. Suppose I accumulated money -- to what end?
International Fame
After we established the Institute, kuchipudi gained
substantial respect. Till then the government recognized only
BharataNatyam and Kathak. Since 12 years now the government has
recognized Kuchipudi as well. Birju Maharaj, Kelucharan Mahapatra,
and I were acclaimed as three leading choreographers in the nation.
Together we three, under the aegis of the National Integration
Council, took the Kuchipudi Art Academy's "ParijatApaharanam" drama
and created each part according to the music and dance of a
particular tradition. From then on, whenever the official Festival
of India took place around the world, we three are sent. As part
of this Festival of India we went to the USA, Russia, South Africa,
Malaysia, the Middle East, Germany. Now kuchipudi has gained a
considerable international following. Between this tour and our
tour of ten years ago we can see a clear difference. A group of
students from the Jordan School of Fine Arts, in Indiana, are planning
to come to India together.
Strong encouragement and support for arts and for artists is
there in other states. Arts lack this in our state. Only "stars"
get support. I have observed that educated people and those who
appreciate arts are leaving the state to pursue careers and
commercial interests in other states and other countries. Of the
people who remain, half are caught up in local politics, half are
crazy about cinema stars. The number of people devoted to arts is
dwindling. The government has granted to eminent artists who have
retired a monthly stipend of Rs. 1000. This grant is available to
all states but not one artist from our state has received it.
An illustrious Line of students
To date I have taken nearly 2000 disciples. From all parts of
the country and the world they have come and are coming to
learn. Savitri is my student. NTR, Jayalalitha, Hema
Malini, and many others have learned. Among the current kuchipudi
dancers, Sobha Naidu, Manju Bhargavi, Yamini Krishnamurthy,
Raja Reddy, Radha Reddy, are distinctively talented.
Among those emerging in the field, Padma Menon, Kamala Reddy,
Sasikala, Anuradha, Kalpalatika, Hema Malini, Vijaya, and several
others are quite accomplished. There are also dedicated students
who are in the USA, such as Sangita, Isvari, Sudha, Veena, and some
others.
My son Ravi Sankar learned dance from my student Bala. Even
I did not know that he was learning. One day Bala brought him
before me and asked me to see, that he had a good sense of rhythm.
After that he began learning from me. I would have advised him to
pursue another profession. But since he was so set on dance I
didn't say anything. He has only been appearing on stage since
the past two years. I am only a dance teacher, but he is a teacher
and a performer.
U.S. children going to the Academy
On the stage we can make no difference between the students
learning kuchipudi in India and those learning here. It is all in
the practice and training. We teach everyone equally. One
understands by watching senior students, and one can learn by
watching, too. All are equal while learning. When it
comes to performances, we give priority according to talent.
Half the people learning in the Academy are not Telugu. They
come from all regions. There are about 80-90 regular students.
About 25 of them stay in the hostel. In the morning all the
students practice together. In the afternoon they are trained
according to their level. We have set up a systematic syllabus for
training in kuchipudi. I teach daily in the Academy. Hema Malini,
my son Ravi, and another young woman teach along with me. Besides
these some of the senior students also teach. In addition, Sangita
Rao (veena), our singer Sita Lakshmi, our flutist Nagarajan, our
mrdangist Govindrajan are regular staff. They come to the daily
practices. Those who live here in the U.S. can come to the Academy
during the summers for 2-3 years. During those 2 months they
practice morning and evening. By practicing along with those who
are proficient they absorb. Also once they go back they must
continue practicing. For those who are dedicated, four years is
sufficient for learning kuchipudi. After that one only needs to
practice. Women can begin learning kuchipudi even up to the age of
30-35, though for men it is difficult to begin after the age of 18-
20.
Future hopes
After Ksheera Sagara Madhanam, I composed 12 dance dramas.
Among these the dances in Hara Vilasam came out well. I am also
very fond of Ksheera Sagara Madhanam. I composed it in a very old-
fashioned style. I like the Ramayanam as well. I did it in a
manner no one else has done yet. I would like to work on another
dance drama with a social theme like Chandalika.
I don't think of "my" style of kuchipudi; I simply follow the scholarly
works on kuchipudi. You who see and those who learn may identify a particular
style, I don't know. I am writing a book on kuchipudi dance. I have written
100 pages so far. Sri A.S. Raman has translated part of that into English. So
that the Academy may have a solid future, we have set up a trust. For the
trust to be maintained we must collect contributions.
Concluding words
There are many people who use kuchipudi to earn a living, as
a trade. An artist must be dedicated. Otherwise there is no
point. There is no value in just learning something and trying to
make money off of it. Whether you have anything to eat or not, one
must sacrifice in order to value art as art. Through practice and
more practice one gains a high standard and is recognized for it.
For an artist this recognition is essential. Only with this
recognition is the artist able to do anything.
This kuchipudi art is ours. The right to take pride in this
art is ours. We have the responsibility to emancipate this art.
Until we comprehend this, the days of this art are numbered.
(The photos which appeared in this article, come from Sri Yutulu
Andavilli Satyanarayana and Sri Pemmaraju Surya Rao's book, "Dr. Vemapti:
Maestro with a Mission." We thank S.S.V. Publishers, Machavaram, Vijayawada.
--ed.)