Sankranti performance for TAM
January 17th marked the day Sankranti was celebrated right here in Maine, at Riverton school in Portland. The Telugu Association of Maine (TAM) organized this in a beautiful manner: the auditorium was decorated with textile panels and kites, generous amounts of food provided through a potluck (delicious homemade Indian food), and a varied cultural program where children of all ages and other members of the community danced, sang and acted in a play.
The evening started with the Rangoli competition, which was done on large papers and colorful powders arranged in creative designs by ladies.
It was an honor for me to support the Sankranti event by teaching dance to two groups of children, 4-6 and 10-13. I created a special choreography for these two dances, and for the first one, Surya Murthe, I selected a song by Muthuswamy Dikshitar which praises Surya, the Son as Sankranti celebrates the passing of the sun in the tropic of the Capricorn, symbolizing the end of all calamities (associated with winter) and the beginning of an auspicious time. Sneha Thota beautifully sang the Surya Murthe song, providing a nice live music for the young kids\’ dance.
As for the second dance, the song chosen is \”Aura ammaka chella\”- this is a song from a Telugu movie, with beautiful lyrics describing Krishna and his joyful leelas/games. The movements used are all based on Bharata Natyam adavus, and have been adapted to match with the music into a semi-classical composition.
We hope to add photos from this event soon!
