BY A STAFF REPORTER

 BELLFLOWER, CA - Tharini Shanmugarajah of the Kalapeetham Dance Company  had  origninaly planned to present “Natya Samarpanam,” a joint venture with herself and Sheejith Krishna from  the Kalakshetra Foundation, Chennai, as a cultural feature for dance lovers in the city. She said she was so deeply moved by the tragic plight of  the several thousand Internally Displaced Persons( IDP) people in north east  Sri Lanka in the recent crisis  she decided to make it into a fund raiser  as her contribution to the much needed relief programs to alleviate the misery of the many who are suffering at camps set up by the authorities.

The recital at the William Civic Auditorium in Bellflower enabled the Dance Company to collect over $ 13,000, which was made over to the International Medical Health Organization (IMHO) for its humanitarian activities in the region.

The dancers, Krishna and Shanmugarajah  presented Bharatha Natyam items based  on the bhava bhakti.  All the dance pieces were choreographed by Krishna.  The first item presented was Panchakshara Stotra.  The dance described Na-ma-shi-vaya as the path that leads the soul to the state of ultimate realization..  The central piece of the program was  a spectacular  Varnam  on the goddess Parvati who resides in the Madurai Meenakshi temple, and depicted her compassion, valor and bravery.  After a brief intermission the performance resumed with a Tulsidas bhajan “Bhajumana Rama Charana Sukhadaiyi.”  In another story the dancers described how Sri Rama’s charana touched a stone releasing Ahalya from the curse of her husband Gautama. 

The next  item  was a solo by Krishna.”Verses from Sri Rama Charita Manas” in which the dancer describes how in great anguish Lord Rama searched for his beloved Sita after she  was taken away by Ravana, .  The dancers concluded with a joyful pure dance sequence in a captivating  Thillana.

Before the commencement of the performance, Jegan Thambiaiyah ,director of IMHO in Southern California briefed the audience on the background and achievements  of  the non profit organization which was started in 2003 by a dedicated group of  medical and non-medical professionals to bring some relief to victims of several disasters such as the earthquakes, floods and the tsunami and wherever else urgent help is required.

While saying their contribution may  only be  a drop in the bucket, he said a huge collective effort was required to make an impact in meeting the latest challenge to help the over 277, 000 displaced persons in Sri Lanka now. It is concentrating its efforts to meet the medical and  supplementary food shortages in the Menic Farm camp in Vavunia. On the top of the list is a program to build toilets for the displaced which currently stands at an abysmal ratio of 1 toilet for every 100 persons.

Tharini Shanmugarajah performed her arangetram in 2002 and continues to be involved in the Kalapeetham School of Dance in Los Angeles. She has participated in many of the School’s productions such as “Shiva Leela,” “ Kalidasa’s Ritu Samhara”  and “Maricha Vadham.” Donating her time and effort to a cause is not new to the dancer, having helped raise funds for breast cancer research and awareness and other charities . choreographing shows like “Fashion for the Cure” and producing “ Water the World.” As a model she was named “The Face of Bhindi Jewelers” in 2006 and graced the 20th anniversary cover of the Ziba Beauty Magazine.

Award winning Sheejit Krishna is a multifaceted dancer who is a choreographer, mridangist, vocalist and nattuvangam artist , currently with the Kalakshetra Foundation in Chennai, He has created several new solo items in traditional Bharata Natyam format and his choreography is now included in the institution’s syllabus. His choreography in group productions such as “Marthayan,” “ Swapna rag’” and “ Bhajana Narthanamrutham” has won critical acclaim in the field. His experimental dance theater work based on Alexander Dumas’  “Masquerade – Man in the Iron Mask”  has received accolades from art  lovers, connoisseurs and critics.