Rima Kallingal’s Yamuna conveys message on protecting rivers

Rima Kallingal sounds almost as nervous as she is excited about the launch of her new project Yamuna, a performance piece about protecting our rivers. “The idea germinated from the now-famous photo showing the River Yamuna frothing with pollution,” says the actor-danseuse, who has always been vocal about issues. “To see a life-giving source, such as a river or a tree die is deeply moving. Now if the EIA 2020 is passed, the Western Ghats won’t be the same again. Any person with any conscience would be moved by issues such as these and I deeply connect to such causes.”

The seven-minute Yamuna sequence, which is set to be released on August 28, was composed and conceived by Carnatic musician Sreevalsan J Menon, written by Binu Panicker, and Rima has part-choreographed and performed the piece with a team of 12 dancers. “I have always been a huge fan of Sreevalsan sir’s work and I was very excited about doing this. He is so knowledgeable and I knew it would be a huge learning experience to collaborate with him. In fact, he had a clear idea of how he wanted it,” says Rima.

The performance has two motifs; the feminine, led by Rima, and the other which has a masculine energy, which was choreographed by Santhosh Madhav, from Rima’s

dance

company. The shoot was done in a day, and the dancers prepared themselves for the challenge with a lot of practice. “We have these really long takes,” says Rima, laughing.

She also got a very precise and out-of-the-box brief from the composer. “Sreevalsan sir did not want very traditional images of water. He was looking at a completely contemporary vibe to the performance, but the song is classically rooted, because after all, it is from him. Having said that, I must add that the orchestration is contemporary and Western. It is quite a song. So, it was challenging, and a bit of tradition has seeped in, as well,” she says.

Renowned designer

Shalini James

has designed the costumes, “which have really added to the look and feel of the performance”, according to Rima, who worked on the choreography for two weeks. The shoot was done indoors and the performance was canned in January, but post production was delayed by the pandemic.

So, was Sreevalsan Menon pleased with the performance? “I was given the freedom to bring my own elements to the dance. In terms of movements and costume, I brought in my style and he was very happy with how it turned out,” says Rima.