Damaru: Duality

DAMARU: Duality is an ensemble dance production choreographed by Bharatanatyam artiste, Vidhya Subramanian and presented by the Sparsha Dance Ensemble on July 13, 2025 at Narada Gana Sabha Main Hall at 10:30 am.

The Damaru as an instrument manifests the flow of energy between Purusha and Prakriti through its very shape. In it is contained the origin of sound; sound that is the genesis of creation and movement.

Conceptualized and choreographed by Vidhya Subramanian, the work brings together an ensemble of eight dancers - Vidhya Subramanian, Anahita Chaliha, Anisha Parameswaran, Archa Shajukumar, Manasa Vijaychander, Pranathi Ramadorai, Rutuja Kumar Marne and Subashree S. DAMARU highlights the dualities present within us as well as in the universe—sound and silence, stillness and movement, creation and dissolution, male and female, self and other, union and separation - In each of us exists the duality that the universe holds.

Over the last 30 years, Vidhya has choreographed and presented several productions with her students. However, DAMARU is the premiere by Sparsha Dance Ensemble - an ensemble formed by bringing together dancers from different training backgrounds. The music for the work ranges from the traditional to the original and has emerged from Vidhya’s thought process over the last several years.

Cast and credits:

Concept & Choreography: Vidhya Subramanian

Dancers: Vidhya Subramanian, Anahita Chaliha, Anisha Parameswaran, Archa Shajukumar, Manasa Vijaychander, Pranathi Ramadorai, Rutuja Kumar Marne, Subashree S

Music: Various sources

Nattuvangam: Vidhya Subramanian & Vijay Kumar

Vocal: Murali Parthasarathy, R P Shravan, Janani Hamsini Narasimhan

Mridangam: Praveen Sparsh, Karthikeyan Ramanathan, Sivaprasad

Flute: J B Srutisagar

Violin: Easwar Ramakrishnan

Percussion: Ganapathy Subramaniam and Sai Shravanam

Recording: Sound track produced at Resound India and mixed and mastered by Sai Shravanam

Lighting: B Charles

Marketing partner: Aalaap

Promo photos: Season Unnikrishnan

About Sparsha Arts Foundation

Started in 2024, Sparsha Foundation endeavours to enrich and connect lives through the Arts. In the words of the Founder, Managing Trustee, Vidhya Subramanian, “Sparsha, in a broader sense, signifies the impact or influence of one thing upon another, particularly in terms of touch or contact resulting in an effect or change."

The mission of Sparsha is as follows:

• to engender conversation between the various classifications within the arts, such as music, dance, theatre, literature, painting etc.
• to create pathways for such conversations to deepen one’s engagement with the arts ranging from sparking an idea to developing it to fruition.
• to create a safe space where ideas and individual creatives are received and supported with openness.
• to break down hierarchies and barriers in the effort to simply make it about the arts. Sparsha conducts events that foster this mission.

Sparsha Dance Ensemble is a wing of Sparsha Arts Foundation. Over the last year Sparsha has spearheaded a project at Nagamani Adigalar School in Chennai where children from underprivileged backgrounds are taught Bharatanatyam on a monthly basis by visiting teachers.

For further details, please visit: https://www.sparshaarts.com/