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Meaningful Show - A Bharatanatyam ballet focuses sharply on the battle for gender justice. Seldom do dancers use classicism to focus on contemporary works and issues in Bharatanatyam. Many of them prefer to stick to the form and routine as if it were lost in a time warp. But the occasional path breakers show how the vibrant form is relevant, as an effective vehicle of expression. Dancer Ananda Shankar Jayant does exactly this in her innovative English production "What About Me?", premiered last week (April 19) in Hyderabad. - Amarnath Menon, India Today, May, 1999
The abstract sequence symbolising widowhood with dancers twirling lengths of white cloth, the tips of which were tucked into the central figure's (Ananda) waist made for a very powerful scene. Similarly imaginative, the segment showing Sita entering the fire on Rama's unwillingness to accept her as a wife without proof of her chastity, very imaginative, with dancers in flame coloured garments creating the fire effect. - Leela Venkataraman, The Hindu, May, 1999
'Stri' concluded with the most colourful and power packed production staged by Ananda Shankar Jayant - 'What About Me?'. It was amazing to see how imaginative the age old Bharatanatyam idiom could be used to make a statement on a totally contemporaray issue. Ananda also excelled as a choreographer in "What About Me?". Superb aesthetic sense was evident from the beautifully designed costumes. - Manjari Sinha, Deccan Chronicle, February, 2000
That contemporary content can be recreated within the framework of a classical format without having to compromise on either is what makes Ananda Shankar Jayant's production, 'What About Me?' an all-time favorite. And it is so because of the universality of the theme. It is timely yet it can be placed at a distance across the centuries. - Ranee Kumar, The Hindu, Hyderabad, March 2005
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