Author: Kavitha Muralidharan
Publication: India Today
Date: June 9, 2003
Introduction: Spurned by society,
a eunuch finds solace in Bharatnatyam
As a Bharatnatyam dancer, Narthagi
Nataraj often acts out the roles of various mythological characters. Her
favourite is Amba-the vengeance-seeking princess in the Mahabharat. Spurned
by her lover after Bhishma kidnaps her to become a wife for his brother,
Amba commits suicide. But she is reborn as a woman who later becomes a
man and avenges her humiliation by Bhisma. Nataraj wholeheartedly identifies
with Amba. If it was Amba versus the all-powerful Bhishma in the epic,
Nataraj feels she too took on the world in her life. Like the vengeful
Amba, Nataraj has the soul of a woman but the body of a man. She is also
a rarity-a eunuch who has reached a proficiency good enough to teach the
dance to others.
Nataraj is happy that she has triumphed
but not "before having had my share of struggles and embarrassment". Born
in Madurai as Nataraj, she became aware of the woman in her when she was
10 years old. This was a time of confusion and crisis. Family and friends
shunned her. Society ostracised her. Her only solace was her friendship
with neighbour Bhaskar who, like her, decided later to assume a woman's
identity as Shakthi. Together they searched for something that would redeem
them from their misery. That was when Nataraj developed a fascination for
Bharatnatyam.
Passionate about the dance form,
Nataraj would watch films and imitate the moves of actors Vyjayanthimala
and Padmini, with Shakthi as audience. "It was a divine coincidence that
I later learnt the Bharatnatyam from a guru who had taught it to famous
dancers, including Vyjayanthimala, my screen inspiration," says Nataraj.
In a gurukul, she spent 15 years
with the legendary teacher K.P. Kittappa Pillai, who named her Narthagi.
She also worked with Pillai as a dance instructor at Thanjavur University.
"She is perhaps the only dancer to have learnt the art through the gurukul
method. That demonstrates her passion for dance," says K.S. Bhakthavatchalam,
former Madras High Court judge and president of Mylapore Arts Academy.
All this while, she struggled to
earn society's respect. "We were constantly discouraged and taunted. It
was very painful," recalls Nataraj. Unlike many eunuchs, she never used
her ambiguous gender to discomfit men and exploit them. "I am a woman."
she reasserts. "Even my performances are women-centric. I have led the
life of a conservative Indian woman."
Today, Nataraj is perhaps the only
eunuch to have mastered the traditional dance form. Renowned dancer Anitha
Rathnam concurs: "It is true. I have learnt some traditional mudras from
her. Narthagi is a unique dancer, a very rare person who has not forgotten
her roots." Rathnam is not the only one-many other well- established dancers
have learnt mudras from her.
Nataraj shifted to Chennai in 2002
and is running a dance school, Narthagi Nruthya Kalalaya, there. She also
loves dancing to Tamil songs and her selections vary from Sangam literature
to the works composed by poets like Bharathiyar and Bharathidasan as well
as contemproary writers Vairamuthu and Metha. She has been honoured with
awards of various dance organisations, including the Naatiya Peroli, Naatiya
Paerarasi, Naatiya Rathna and Natramizh Koothar. Recently, Narthagi also
earned a Government of India scholarship.
Recognition as a talented dancer
changed the world around her and support soon started pouring in. "I was
able to taste success and there are so many people I wish to thank for
this," she says. "All this would not have been possible without Shakthi.
She is my critic, my well-wisher. Whenever I felt tired of the world, which
constantly spurned me, Shakthi came to my rescue." On her part, Shakthi,
who also performs with Nataraj, says, "I know she is a good dancer. I want
the world to acknowledge it."
There are many today who readily
testify Nataraj is a class act. "Narthagi is a treasure that needs to be
preserved," says Rathnam, adding, perhaps needlessly, "She is a dancer
with extraordinary talent. And despite some hurdles, she is sure to make
her mark in this field." Though Nataraj has managed to make people notice
her, all the applause and recognition have not made her complacent. "I
have only started my journey," she says with a smile, "there are miles
to go." From here on, however, the rest of her journey should prove easier.
