A dancer from a music family

KUALA LUMPUR: She came from a Carnatic music family. Her great-grandfather was a poet. Her grandfather, a harmonium player. Her mother was a Carnatic singer while her mother-in-law was a Veena player. She was however destined to speak through her expressions and feet. Kumudhini Nadaraja Sivanathan said she was the only one in the family who became a dancer despite having also taken up Carnatic vocal lessons. “When I was 6-years-old, a teacher in my school who was also a Bharatanatyam teacher picked me for a school concert. She saw the potential in me and invited me to come over to her place where she conducted dance classes,” Kumudhini explained. It was at that moment that her journey as a dancer began.

Kumudhini during her younger age as a dancer in Tanjai Kamala Indira Dance School - Photo by TKI

A few years later, when her teacher went on a transfer, Kumudhini joined the Tanjai Kamala Indira (TKI) Dance School in Rawang, where she then lived. She joined them as their senior student as she has already known how to take the stage. “I was with them for about 10 years. This gave me a lot of exposure and I performed a lot with the dance school,” added Kumudhini. After 10 years of being with TKI, Kumudhini went to India to take up ‘Nattuvangam’ (the practice of calling out rhythmic syllables that denote dance movements) lessons under the tutelage of the well-known Guru Nattuvanar Kalyana Sundaram Pillai and continued her Bharatanatyam training with three well-known teachers in Kalakshetra.

Kumudhini (second,left) performs the 'Nattuvangam' during an 'Arangetram' ceremony of her student - Photo by JNKDA

Kumudhini performed her 'Arangetram' in 1974 in Chennai. Soon after that, Kumudhini joined the Singapore Indian Fine Arts in Singapore and took up the post-graduate course where she spent the next seven years mastering the teaching techniques of the dance. Two years later in 1983, Kumuthini returned to Kuala Lumpur and established her own dance academy -- Jeya Nritha Kalalayam Dance Academy (JNKDA). She said, students in Malaysia take a longer time to complete their 'Arangetram' as they are occupied with other activities. “When I started dancing there were very limited teachers, however the teachers were very dedicated and treated dancing as their profession. They were well knowledged, especially in our mythology and language,” she said when she recalled her time as a student.

Kumudhini blessing one of her student from before tying the dancing bells on her student's feet, as the student's family looks on - Photo by Suguna Selvam

Kumudhini said she used to spend hours in her classes. Before starting her lessons, her teacher would explain to the studets the verses, song and lyrics for a better understanding of the dance. She said students nowadays only come in for an hour class and she will need to complete the lesson within that hour. Plus they only come in once a week and by the time they come for their next class most of them forget the previous lesson. “However, many people still keep it alive by researching the art. Parents who did not have the opportunity to learn this art are encouraging their children to do so,” she said. JNKDA started with only three children in Cheras. It later expended to more centres in Semenyih, Kajang, Bangsar and Nilai. The academy has come a very long way with more than 1000 students studied and still studying in this school. Many have completed their 'Salangai Pooja' and their 'Arangetram'. Throughout the years, the school have done many activities, many charity programs and put up many shows.

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Kumudhini (centre) flanked by her students after a stage drama her school staged early this year - Astro AWANI