DEVI & ABDUCTED by Rukmini Vijayakumar

Concept & Choreography: Rukmini Vijayakumar
Vocals: R Raguram
Mridangam: Vinod Shyam
Percussion: Sunaad Anoor
Sarangi: Sarfaraz Khan

Devi – The feminine energy

Devi is a collection of traditional pieces that exalt the female goddesses, their power, grace and beauty. The goddesses are seen as life giving, nourishing, and as the very life force itself. Our many traditional compositions describe the goddesses as beautiful, with long beautiful tresses, adorned in jewellery while wielding the strength and power to create and annihilate universes. Devi is a celebration of this divinity that exists within all of us.

Abducted
Unbounded desire

An experimental Bharatanatyam solo

The female body is physically weaker than the male body. It is easily dominated by virtue of inherently not possessing the same amount of strength as a man. A woman’s body is projected as an object of desire repeatedly through centuries by societies. The image of a submissive, helpless woman is repeated through history, across cultures. It is an image that is used to sell commercial merchandise repeatedly.

A woman almost always feels a sense of helplessness in situations of physical confrontation with a man. Abduction is inspired by stories of abduction and retribution in India and around the world. The act of abducting someone itself reflects the incapacity to consider another. It is a desire with no boundaries. Populations have begun to come to terms with degrees of abuse that exist in many forms and shapes. The representation of a physically strong woman in the modern world, in films and comics is largely attached to the physical objectification of women. Can we represent strength and power in a female body without it also carrying sexual appeal? An archetype of a powerful woman that is feared by all is represented in the Indian Goddess, Kali. Kali is embraced as a figurative female energy that holds within herself the ability to annihilate evil and rejuvenate life. This particular image has no objectification of the female body attached to it. Kali is sensual, but does not cater to the male gaze as a sexual object. She is also not ‘pure’ in the sense of being devoid of sexual energy. At which point does the abuse of power bring out the Kali in us. At which point does a woman’s desire materialise? When does she wield her power, strength and take charge of her sexuality?