New 1950s Footage at Net-Film: Vazhuvoor Ramaiah Pillai, E.V. Saroja, Chitrasena, Vajira, and Padma Subrahmanyam!

Today I thought, "I wonder if Net-Film has digitized any new videos featuring South Asian dance since I last visited," and they most certainly HAVE—including nattuvangam/training footage of Vazhuvoor Ramaiah Pillai, Bharatanatyam by E.V. Saroja, and Kandyan creative dance by Chitrasena and Vajira!

I had discovered the online Russian digital film/newsreel archive Net-Film back in 2013 when I posted about discovering rare video of the dancers Tara Chaudhri, Guru Gopinath, and Indrani Rahman at the site. Net-Film seems to have since expanded its collection beyond just Russia's Central Studio of Documentary Films, the "oldest and largest film studio in the former Soviet Union," to also include many other studios equaling storage of "about 50,000 films" that are being regularly digitized. Since Net-Film is aimed at providing paid licensing for its content, all the video clips are small, full-length "previews" which have the running timestamp prominently and annoyingly displayed at the bottom to aid requests for exact footage segments. Net-Film also seems to have updated the backend technology and usability of the site and it is no longer glitchy.

The Morning in India (1956, Russian)

This documentary film "about the history of India, struggle for independence, and present of the country" has the rare finds in reels 6 and 7 which focus on Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

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5 comments Bharatanatyam, Chitrasena Dance Company, EV Saroja, Kandyan, Padma Subrahmanyam, Rabindra Nritya, Rare Real-Life Footage, Sinhala, Vazhuvoor Ramaiah Pillai

Film Dances of L. Vijayalakshmi

L. Vijayalakshmi—the cute-as-a-button, dimple-faced dancer who danced and acted most prolifically in 1960s Telugu cinema—is a dancer that I've not featured much on this blog to date. For a long time I didn't like her classical film dances. They were too filmy faux-classical and she had a habit of lunging her upper body forward in jumps. But as more films and songs have become available online, I've watched a wider range of her dancing (including her Western-style dances) and have come to admire a few. I've even found a new, early dance of hers. In my usual style, I will feature my favorite dances of hers, a playlist of all of her known dances, and note some information about her life—including surprising details about her current work today!

L. Vijayalakshmi's Film Dances

Neethipathi (1955, Tamil) - "Ananthame Anantham" - This is L. Vijayalakshmi's earliest film dance that I'm aware of, and for that it gets listed first on the list. She is on the right paired with a young and adorable E.V. Saroja in the twin-dance format that became wildly popular after Sayee-Subbulakshmi popularized it in Rathakaneer and Malaikkalan the year previous.

Starts 3:05

Renukadevi Mahatyam (1960, Telugu) - This is the dance I'm most excited to feature! Filmed a few years after Neethipathi above, Vijayalakshmi still looks very young here. The choreography aims for sharp form and geometrical lines in the pure dance movements—characteristics that softened into a more filmy hybrid style in later years. Notice her ankle bells (gajjalu in Telugu) at 12:16 and the way the elongated bells hang downward. It's unfortunate the print jump cuts through material at times, but at least the visual quality is quite crisp!

Starts 10:49

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10 comments EV Saroja, L Vijayalakshmi

Classical Dance Practice Scenes/Songs in Indian Films

There is something charming and beautiful about classical dance practice numbers in Indian films. Perhaps it's the unassuming and flattering cotton sari wrapped around the dancer's body; I've always liked plain saris a bit more than the full, complicated costume. Or maybe it's the everyday, unadorned, simple nature of the dance that adds to its beauty. Or it could be that the dances often gets closer to their classical roots in this format. Whatever it is, I'm simply a huge fan of them in films.

Below is a list of all 34 practice numbers I can think of in Indian films where the purpose of the song or scene is not "performance" but rather informal "practice" overall. It's interesting how many of them are from the 80s and 90s, the seeming "golden era" of this type of classical performance in film. The videos below are listed in rough order of awesomeness, favorites first. If you can make it all the way to the end, consider yourself a classical dance nerd like me! (Or maybe it's just list-making nerd?) Enjoy!

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27 comments Aditi Rao Hydari, Bhanupriya, EV Saroja, Girish Karnad, Jayapradha, Kamal Hassan, Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Manju Bhargavi, Mohanlal, Mohiniattam, Practice Dance, Rekha, Revathy, Shobana, Sudha Chandran, Vineeth

My Favorite (Black and White) Classical Indian Film Dances

I have spent the last month or so on a mission to find each and every single instance of Classical Indian Dance in Indian films.  Given my enjoyment in making long, meticulous lists, this has been a most satisfying adventure!  Guided by some fellow bloggers posts, friends, loved ones, and sheer Google-Fu, I’ve discovered some beautiful dances and even a few seemingly-rare gems along the way.

Commencing with this post today, my next series of posts will be about classical dances in Indian cinema: lists of my favorites, twin dances, informal practice scenes, humorous dances, dances featuring men, Tandav dances, lesser-seen dance forms, spectacular dances in general, and more! This is actually what I originally envisioned my blog to be but never had enough time to explore until now.

This post focuses on my most favorite classical film dances from black and white Indian films.  There are many dances that I enjoy (and that will be highlighted in future posts!), but this post focuses on my top 11 that I love to watch repeatedly and that either keep me spellbound or immensely entertained. Old black and white films are such a pleasure to watch because I feel as though I'm discovering “lost” treasures and songs nearly forgotten.

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18 comments EV Saroja, Kamal Hassan, Kamala, L Vijayalakshmi, Minati Mishra, Padmini, Roshan Kumari, Vyjayanthimala