'Madhushala' in kuchipudi dance recital by Shallu Jindal

Poetry by Harivansh Rai Bachchan, the late father of actor Amitabh Bachchan forms part of an upcoming solo Kuchipudi dance recital by Shalu Jindal.
Jindal a disciple of Raja Radha Reddy and Kaushalya Reddy would be dancing to a composition of seven verses taken from "Madhushala", the book of poetry penned by Bachchan, which has deep Sufi incantations.
"Typically Kuchipudi has accompanying songs in Telugu but I have incorporated Hindi to appeal to audiences in north India," says Jindal.
"Madhushala was made popular by Manna Dey and it is conveys that rich or poor it doesn not matter all are equal," she says.

The dancer says her one-hour-long performance would also incorporate a kuchipidi rendition of "Saason ki Maala" a Meera Bai bhajan popularised by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.
Jindal, who is a self-confessed fan of sufi music had previously also based her dance recitals on sufi songs by Khan and has also danced to those by Abida Parveen.

The dancer says it was a challenge to incorporate a bhajan into the classical dance.
"Bollywood films makes classical dance look very easy and relaxed but it is not so in reality. My gurus have helped me compose the recital incorporating the bhajans and poetry. The resulting performance has not deviated in style or form and only has a change in the language used," says Jindal.

After her solo recital here on November 1, Jindal is also set to give another performance as part of the Delhi International Arts Festival as well as a recital in Mumbai in late November or early December.