Freedom & The Arts

The article captioned Kuchipudi Then, Kuchipudi Now (Sruti 153) has elicited three retorts and a supporting statement. These are reproduced below

I was astounded to read the article by Mohan Khokar on Kuchipudi. His statements like "Kuchipudi today is but a pale shadow of the real thing," exhibit his confusion between tradition and innovation. He has written in a similar vein in other publications and I have ignored them. But Sruti is a prestigious magazine which is read by knowledgeable persons all over the world and therefore I do not wish to remain silent this time. Initially, theNatyavedawas created by Lord Brahma at the request of the deva-s, for the purpose of entertainment. Kreedaneeyakam ichchamo drusyam sravyam cha yadbhavet. (Natya Sastra, Chapter 1, Sloka 11).

Uday Shankar And I: A Personal Narration - by Mohan Khokar

For his sojourn in Delhi, Shankar put up in a bungalow placed at his disposal by a former pupil. Anupama, a young and lusty woman and a sprightly dancer in his team, alone stayed with him; the rest were lodged elsewhere. But Shankar was not well. He had already braved three heartstrokes, and now nursed a number of ailments. The Shankarscope fiasco too had completely dispirited him. What he needed very much, I was soon to discover, was someone to talk to, someone to listen to him about his work, his problems, Anupama, his plans, his dreams. And this is where I stepped in. I gave him company for some hours every day, and escorted him to and brought him back from the theatre each evening. I brought for him his favourite English daily, Amrita Bazar Patrika, and Bengali magazines like Sandesh. Every day I carried with me the fruits