‘Nauka Charitram’ of saint Thyagaraja, a musical operatic work was staged by Chennai-based dance guru Jayanthi Subramaniam on March 12 evening at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mylapore.
The show is supported by Ministry of Culture.
A note – Tyagaraja’s musical opera, “Nauka Charitram” is a masterpiece of music. The central premise of Nauka Charitram, “The Story of the Boat”, Tyagaraja’s `geya nataka’, is the concept of total surrender to the Almighty as the Ultimate Goal.
In a collection of 21 kritis set in 13 ragas and in different metres, Sri Thyagaraja has beautifully melded philosophy, melody and poetry with simple, yet powerfully eloquent songs in the form of darus, padyas, and vachanas.
By simplifying the elevated spiritual message in a blend of poetry, melody and rhythm, Sri Tyagaraja paints a vivid story of Lord Krishna taking a boat ride on the Yamuna river with several Gopikas, who are full of vanity, boasting of their own beauty and virtuosity. When the boat gets caught in a storm, they seek Krishna’s help, who eventually makes them realize that they should forget all selfish-attachments to their mortal bodies, and surrender absolutely to the Paramatma.
