Payana by Samanvita Kasthuri

Samanvita Kasthuri is a junior at Saint Louis University studying Psychology and
Dance. She began to learn Bharatanatyam and Kathak under the guidance of Guru
Prasanna Kasthuri, as well as Carnatic music under Guru Seema Kasthuri. She is
currently continuing her practice under the guidance of Dr. Lalitha Srinivasan. In 2016
and 2017, Samanvita completed her Kathak and Bharatanatyam arangetrams.
Samanvita has won many accolades and has been recognized for her dancing and
choreography. In high school, she won second and third place at the St. Louis Teen
Talent Competition hosted at the Fabulous Fox Theater. One of these winning pieces,
called “Equal”, was a self-choreographed and composed dance about feminism. In her
college career, Samanvita has been involved in the dance field, such as being
commissioned by Saint Louis University to present a dance for their annual Literary Arts
Award Ceremony. She has also been presented a grant from SLU’s Fine and
Performing Arts Program called the “Summer Award”, in which she created a short
dance video focusing on the struggles of mental health in collaboration with other young
artists. Samanvita has performed for a variety of organizations and events, such as the
Festival of Nations, Delhi International Festival, and Indian Raga. She is currently the
choreography captain for SLU Shakti, SLU’s Bollywood-Fusion team that is a
national-level team set to compete at the national-level competition called Legends
Dance Competition.

In 2023 American Natya Festival, SamanvitaKasthuri will be presenting the following dances (duration: 35 minutes)

First Dance: Jaata Vedase
Samanvita will begin her performance with “Jaata Vedase”. This piece is focused on the
Vedas. The dance takes excerpts from the Durga Suktam, describing the power of the
Fire of Durga, asking her to help us cross over the ocean of worldly existence which is
filled with difficulties. Jaata Vedase is composed and choreographed by Guru Prasanna
Kasthuri.

Second Dance: Jatiswaram
The next dance that Samanvita will be performing is a Jatiswaram. Jatiswaram’s
Bharatanatyam margams are nritta dances that focus on the intense, heavy-hitting
dance aspect of Bharatanatyam. This jatiswaram has been composed and
choreographed by Guru Prasanna Kasthuri and is in Raga Chandrakauns and Roopaka
Tala.

Third Dance: Yalaradayane Bhamini
The next dance is “Yalaradayane Bhamini”. This is a javali that was composed by
Tanjore Chinnaya. This javali features a type of nayaka called “virohtkanditha”.
Virohtkanditha nayakas are typically people who have been separated from their lord or

nayaka, and they are feeling pain because of this separation. This particular javali is
between Radha and Lord Krishna, and Radha is speaking to her friend, or sakhi, asking
her why Krishna hasn’t returned yet, reminiscing on the memories of him being so
loving towards her. The dance ends with Radha asking her sakhi to find him and bring
him back to her. This javali is in Raga Bhairavi and in Adi Tala.

Fourth Dance: Tamborzoa
The next dance that Samanvita will be performing shifts away slightly from traditional
Bharatanatyam pieces. “Tamborzoa” is a song by Sango, an American DJ who makes
dance music and incorporates elements of baile funk, which is a style of music popular
in Brazil. Using this song, Samanvita choreographed a fusion piece that combines
elements of Bharatanatyam, contemporary, and hip-hop. The dance weaves in the
Brazilian rhythmical patterns with Bharatantyam rhythmical patterns, resulting in an
enriching, dynamic performance. This piece was composed by Samanvita.

Fifth Dance: Krtaghna
The final piece that Samanvita is performing is called “Krtaghna”. “Krtaghna” is a
Sanskrit word that means “ungrateful”, and that is the feeling that encapsulates the
narrative of this dance. “Krtaghna” is a piece dedicated to environmentalism, and it
follows the story of Mother Earth caring for man, raising him and growing him with love,
only for man to grow and exploit the five elements of the Earth, destroying lands and
people along with it. Mother Earth, battered and broken, has no choice but to destroy
the Earth. This dance is a cautious warning to humans and the lengths we are pushing
the Earth to, urging people to be grateful and kind to the Earth that has given us life.
This dance was performed at St. Louis University’s Literary Arts Award Ceremony and
was composed and choreographed by Samanvita Kasthuri.