Shreya Murthy puts her best foot forward

Shreya Murthy, a disciple of Priyadarsini Govind, recently performed for the Ilamayil Thiramaai series at Krishna Gana Sabha mini hall. 

The opening piece, Oothukadu Venkata Subbaiyer’s ‘Sri vignarajam bhaje’, raga Gambheeranattai, tala Khanda Chapu, was musically arranged by Rajkumar Bharathi.

The centerpiece of the evening’s recital was the varnam ‘Sumasayaka’, a composition by Swati Tirunal. Shreya brought the sakhi to life, pleading with Lord Padmanabha to visit her friend, tormented by love. Through intricate expressions, she conveyed the sakhi’s urgency, her friend’s longing, and the intensity of unfulfilled desire. Set in raga Karnataka Kapi and tala Rupakam, the jathi was composed by senior mridangist G. Vijayaraghavan. The jathi portion stood out for its choreography, characterised by sharp hand movements.

The abhinaya piece, titled ‘Hey heramba kimamba’, depicted a playful conversation between Parvathi and her sons Ganesha and Muruga. Parvathi hears Ganesha sobbing. He complains that Muruga pulled his ears, prompting Parvathi to scold Muruga. Defending himself, Muruga accuses Ganesha of counting his eyes, to which Ganesha counters that Muruga measured his trunk. Amused by this quarrel, Parvathi laughs and lovingly resolves the dispute. Set in Ragamalika and Talamalika, the piece was set to music by Rajkumar Bharathi.

Shreya Murthy at Krishna Gana Sabha in Chennai | Photo Credit: S. R. Ragunathan

Shreya’s abhinaya conveyed Parvathi’s concern and Ganesha’s and Muruga’s innocence. Through precise nritta, she captured the playful quarrel.

In the padam  ‘Choodare’, set in raga Sahana and Misra Chapu tala, Shreya highlighted  the nayika’s boldness, despite the societal judgment she faces.  

The artiste concluded the evening’s recital with a thillana by Lalgudi G Jayaraman, set in raga Desh and Adi tala.

The performance featured Krithika Aravind on vocals, Sivaprasad on the mridangam, Nandini Sai Giridhar on the violin and Shwetha Prachande on the nattuvangam.

All the pieces were choreographedby Priyadarsini Govind, Shreya’s guru.