Diving deep in sea of dance

Ruwini Jayawardana

DANCE: She may well be part of the temple sculptures that she depicts in her odissi dancing. Her chiselled features and graceful movements are perfect to portray the "Vazhuvoor" style of Bharatha Natyam consisting of postures and it is in these that she excels.

Born in Jaffna to a family of six children, Subashini Pathmanathan started training Bharatha Natyam from a very young age under the guidance of Thirupura Sundhri Yoganandam. Her father is Nataraja Pathmanathan, an advocate, and her mother is Vimalothayan Pathmanathan.

"My father induced me to do research regarding Bharatha Natyam while my mother introduced me to dancing. That is why I have named my Bharatha Natyam school 'Vimalothya Classical Bharatha Natya Kendra' after my mother," Pathmanathan said.

"My mother is a flutist and she still plays for my recitals."

The talented dancer had held many Bharatha Natya recitals so far throughout her long career. She had also known academic success, having done her Masters in Political Science.

"I was in Punjab and Chennai for my research. Then I came to Sri Lanka to study law. As I progressed I began to feel depressed. I felt that I can do more for society if I became a dancer."

Educated at the Government College for Women, Chandigarh, and a graduate of the Punjab University, Pathmanathan was a disciple of Padmashree Vazhuvoor Ramiahpillai in Classical Bharatha Natyam.

She was a Gurukula student and was awarded the 'Nattyakalasihamani' title.

"Bharatha Natyam is a devotional art which moulds and refines humans. It originated from Lord Shiva who is also known as "Nataraja", meaning "King of Dance". There are two types of Bharatha Natyam styles: the Pandnallur and the Vazhuvoor.

The Pandnallur has gone to international level and handled by different types of people, at different institutional level. The Vazhuvoor style is still maintained as a family tradition and is learnt under a teacher. We are trained under our Gurus until we master the art," she observed.

Vimalothaya Classical Bharath Natya Kendra, Dehiwala, is the study center for off campus degree programmes in Bharatha Natyam of Bharathidasan University Business Development Center and Kalai Kaviri College of Fine Arts Thiruchirapalli.

The institution celebrated its 15th anniversary last year. "Most of my students are Sinhala. I enjoy teaching them. It is an alien form of art for them and they are captivated by the glamorous costumes and hairstyles which we use for this dance form.

I believe that the teacher must be in a position to demonstrate the dance styles before her students. We should go along with the psychology, ability and interest of the students," she advised.

Pathmanathan spoke of how she discovered odissi as a dance form, because till now it has not achieved the popularity that it deserves.

"I always tell my students that Bharatha Natyam is considered as the crown of Indian Classical dance forms. Even though there are Manipuri, Kathak and Kathakali, people are fascinated by the beauty and dignity of this particular dance form."

Not limiting her role being a teacher, Pathmanathan has written four books on Bharatha Natyam in Tamil. Her fifth book titled "The Basics of Bharatha Natyam" is ready for print.

She writes regularly to local and foreign journals and emerged the winner of the Esmond Wickramasinghe Award in 1991. "I wish to do a research project in Sri Lanka to gather data on the growth and development of Bharatha Natyam," she said.

"The old concept of guru-shishya (teacher-student) is no longer practical and most dance schools have become very commercialised."

She has chosen to dedicate her life towards Bharatha Natyam. "There is no end in the process of learning.

It is like the ocean. It is a lifetime project," she added.

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Rheumatoid Arhtritis Part 2 :

Are you a victim?

Dr. Kaleel Cassim MBBS, MD (Medicine) Consultant Rheumatologist Sri Jayawardenepura General Hospital

How does Rheumatoid Arhtritis affect different people?

Our bodies normally produce inflammation to destroy things,such as bacteria,which cause illness.

We do not know what sets off the inflammation in the joints of someone with rheumatoid arthritis, but the result is the same - some thing is attacked and perhaps destroyed. Unfortunately, in rheumatoid arthritis our own tissues in the joints are attacked. This causes damage to the cartilage and sometimes the bone itself. It may also damage any ligaments within the joints.

The extent to which this happens varies a great deal from person to person. Some people have little or no damage to the joints, or suffer only very minor damage to a few joints.

Most people with rheumatoid arthritis have some damage in a number of joints, and a few people - about 1 in every 20 with rheumatoid arthritis(5%) - have quite severe damage in a lot of joints.

Once joints have been damaged by inflammation they are not very good at healing. Because of this, modern treatment tries to suppress the inflammation as much as possible to reduce the amount of damage which it causes to the joint.

Suppressing inflammation early is one of the important ways in which treatment has advanced. And this is one of the reasons why rheumatoid arthritis is more effectively treated than it used to be. Rheumatoid arthritis does not just affect the joints.

Tendons are like ropes which run in lubricated tubes. The lubricating system is very similar to that in the joints themselves, so it is not surprising that tendons can also be affected by rheumatoid arthritis. In a few people, other parts of the body such as the lungs and the blood vessels become inflamed.

Inflammation in the joints can make some people feel generally ill. Sometimes this leads to overwhelming tiredness or fatigue, which may be more difficult to cope with than the painful joints.

'Feeling tired' is a symptom which may get little sympathy from those around you, who must be told that this is an important symptom of your disease. One problem with rheumatoid arthritis is that the symptoms tend to come and go with no particular pattern.

You may have 'flare ups' - periods when the joints become more inflamed and painful. Sometimes this has an obvious cause - either physical, such as unaccustomed physical exertion or another illness, or emotional, such as a bereavement.

Usually there is no obvious cause, however hard you think about possible triggers. This unpredictability is frustrating and sometimes makes it difficult to plan ahead. Rheumatoid arthritis can be a serious disease with a lot of symptoms. But for most people, especially if treated appropriately, there may be few symptoms, giving the opportunity for a full normal life.

Who gets Rheumatoid Arthritis?

Many people believe that rheumatoid arthritis only exists in places with cool, damp climates such as Britain. This is not true. It exists all over the world, although the more severe cases are found often in Northern Europe.

It can start at any age, from children to those in their 90s.The most common age for the disease to start is between 30 and 50,and women are affected more often than men.

Does it run in families?

Most people with rheumatoid arthritis have no near relatives with the disease. There are a few families with several members affected, but they are quite uncommon. There is not a strong tendency to pass rheumatoid arthritis on to your children.

Remember, there are a lot of causes of arthritis and rheumatism, and if other family members develop symptoms of arthritis these are often found to be due to other kinds of arthritis which are nothing to do with rheumatoid arthritis.

(To be continued)

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Gear off life with :

Newstart

Razeena Razick

Every person seeks good health. So now you can apply the 'NEWSTART' mantra to obtain good health. 'N' stands for 'Nutrition'. We need a balance diet to maintain good health. It's better to add protein, carbohydrate, minerals and vitamins to fight with cancer and heart attacks.

Add these nutrients to your daily meals and start off a healthy lifestyle. 'E' stands for exercise. Since we are used to a complicated lifestyle we do not allocate time to exercise but it's very important to walk at least one mile everyday to deter excess fat.

This helps you to keep away heart decease, cholesterol and diabetics. 'W' stands for water. It's necessary to take 8-10 glasses of water per day. Make sure that we take two glasses of water between one meal and to take a shower everyday.

Next letter 'S' stands for sunlight. The morning sun rays are simply refreshing and do wonders. It helps us to reduce the sugar limit in our blood, blood pressure, diabetics and cholesterol. 'T' stands for 'Temperance'. Adopt a good policy to shun cigarettes and alcohol. Control your passions to lead a healthy life away from AIDS.

Letter 'A' stands for 'Air'. Breathing fresh air ten times in the morning would keep you less tense during the day.

'R' stands for rest. It's vital to have a six or eight hours sleep and take a one day break to relax. The last letter 'T' stands for Trust. Pursue your religious or philosophical belief to maintain peace and happiness in your mind.

So gear off to a 'NEWSTART' to maintain a peaceful, happy and healthy life.