From the time I lived
close to Ayodhya Mandapam in West Mambalam, Chennai, I always used to feel
fascinated by the devotion of people on Mahaperiyava of Kanchi Acharyas. As a devotee and it was this interest and
devotion of the living saints of our times, I pinged Kumaran, son of Sri Elango
Kumanan, Director- SS International Live who is the writer /Director of the
Stage Play – Deivathul Deivam. Kumaran
and his mother Smt Karpagam were happy to share the passes for the show at
Music Academy on 15 Jan 2018.
It was
the beginning to a spectacular extravaganza of devotion, dedication and delight
to the eyes and sweet honey tones of sankara hara hara sankara to our ears.
It is a week-long
celebration of the Kanchi Acharayas in its own way by the bhaktas. There is no end to this surge of devotion and
every minute of the 3 hour show is an indication of celebrating the life of a
great man who lived amongst us.
The Life history of
Mahaswami, the great Mahaperiyava Chandrasekarendra Swamigal, is presented
through the play Deviathul Deivam, by close to 100 + artists and technicians
working under the able guidance and leadership of Sri.Elango Kumanan. I am sure SS International will have this
as a biggest feather in their cap of success as they organized this drama – a delightful
festival celebrating the saint with the blessings of Kanchi Acharaya and a
gamut of well-wishers and devotees...
The sets were equally spectacular and appropriate by none other than the
designing genius Thotta Dharani. Having
hailed from the family of Art Director, A.K.Sekar, I could not stop admiring the
beauty and reality of the sets that transformed the stage into the divine
Kanchipuram and other areas where ever Sri Mahaperiyava has laid his golden
footprints. Having Mandolin U.Rajesh
and Sri Rajesh Vaidya sitting few rows in front of us, along with so many other
industry stalwarts, I could not stop admiring the spirit of devotion to the
Kanchi mutt and dedication to the Tamil stage.
Right from the childhood/teenage
to the various stages of life of Mahaperiyava, his transition from being a
student to a saint, his softness, his simple and humble living, his high
thinking, his deep understanding of his devotees, his breathtaking narratives
of his times and relating to the future and today’s presence all added to the
spectacle.
The personal experiences
of various people, irrespective of religion, age, caste, creed, rich, poor,
men, women, has been very beautifully portrayed. The Bangle seller, the poor lady, the muruku
patti, Sri Kalki Sadasivam and MS Amma
couple, Padma Subramanyam , autograph student, judge, auditor, business man,
various other devotees greeted, revered and respecting Mahaperiyava shows that
he was beyond any kind of limitations.
To him, everyone was equal. He
never let anyone go empty handed. Not to
expect more than what is needed, is not just sanyasi stage, but a sense of
contentment which leads to fulfillment in life.
The actors made the audience relive the moments of our experiences with the
great saint.
Thotta and Set Design
goes hand in hand and there can be no flaws when it is the man behind the show. It is just another feather in his cap. For us audience, it is just another piece of
excellence to witness. The houses of
Dindivanam, the temples during travels
of Mahaperiyava, the street lights, the beautiful set of the kanchi mutt, the living room of the saint and the final
scene of Kanakabishekam, the background screens, beautiful and timely lighting,
very balanced sound added value to the play.
Background music needs a
special mention. The music, the
appropriate selection of songs, the music of the instruments, especially the piece
played by none another than the genius Late Sri Mandolin U Srinivasan and then
the music melodies from the equally talented brother Sri.U.Rajesh touched our
souls deeply. The sounds of temple
bells, the flowing rivers, the divine songs, the mantras and shlokas, added to
the mesmerization of the audience.
The definition of
secularism touched the audience with the loud applaud. The Christian Father from the American Mission
High School in Dindivanam where Young Swaminathan did his schooling, his friend
who later turned to be his devotee as destiny led Swaminathan to thread the
spiritual journey to become the Head of Kanchi Mutt at the young age of
13.
Beautifully written and
elegantly executed by a spark of perfection in Direction by Sri Elango Kumanan
and presented by SS International will definitely live in the hearts of the
audience for a longer time.
Where there is a dire
need, the universe conspires to make it happen. The miracles and discussions that were
portrayed showcased this truth of the universe. When the economically poor woman planned her
daughter’s wedding and came to seek the blessings from Periyava, miracle
happens in the form of another rich devotee offering a huge sum to the mutt at
the same time. The dialogues of
contentment and giving back of the rich showcased that humanity still
persists.
The way he interacts with
the school student saying who is the VIP,
his sharing of the rich village landlord with struggling farmers, accepting the produce of a poor farmer as an
offering, the contribution of the Muslim
brethren to the Mahamaham festival where lots of people assemble , the botany
student who is brainwashed to stop brain drain and contribute to the
agricultural needs of the Nation, think of the aged parents and the
country and the couple who have
differences of opinions in terms of devotion to God and the Saint saying that
the reluctant husband is the actually right and who later on offers respects to
Periyava shows that his simple living and high thinking led to harmony, respect
and sheer devotion.
Amidst the 4 actors who
performed as the Acharaya, the one who
acted as 13 year old and the one who acted as the senior periyava made us feel
that the saint himself has come alive on the stage. The other two also did an amazing job. They literally brought in the subtle moments
of the saint on the stage with life.
Kudos to the make-up artists
and the costume designers. They did a fabulous
job doing it for more than 100 artists.
The back stage support was excellent.
One thing I could say as
the pitfall is the very slow movement of the script at some places making us
feel that it is repeated or dragged.
People falling at the feet of Mahaperiyava though was natural, it was
becoming too much to watch on the stage but I guess both these things are the
ask of the script itself and cannot be avoided
One other comment I heard
from the audience is that Periyava worshipping the Goddess Kamakshi, performing
the rituals or abhishekams would have added value. But again, I felt that the connect between
the Goddess and Periyava was always there throughout though it was not explicitly
shown.
Paramacharya caressing
the cows was not visible to all parts of the audience. And the relevance was also not
understood. That could be little more elaborated.
Despite the very few
negligible things, it was a grand spectacle celebrating not only the life of
Mahaperiyava but the grandeur of the Tamil Stage. It is a celebration of a lifetime of
memories of a saint who touched our hearts and souls. The final scene was the most touching of
all. The grand celebration of 100 years
of Mahaperiyava with the grand Kanakabishekam, was touching. I have seen many people holding hands in
devotion with a mist in their eyes.
Best of all was the
engrossed audience who were glued to their seats with no disturbance or moving
around. Without saying, the cellphones
were on silent mode showing the respect the script commands.
I wish I had the names of
the entire crew and cast, however, I am sure they all will have lifetime of
memories having been part of this beautiful show. I was so happy to see Lavanya Venugopal and Nannu Sir on the stage with others. Kudos to SS International and especially to
Sri Elango Kumanan sir, the excellent sponsors, producers and the technicians
who made this possible.
May the spirit of harmony
continue, may the beauty of the devotion survive, may the way of life of Hinduism
coordinate with every other religion and live in a secular sense in its true
meaning and May the blessings of Mahaperiyava Sri Chandrasekarendra Swami
continue with all of us.
God bless!
