Despite devoting most of her adult life to Abhinaya Dance Company—a South Indian dance troupe now marking its 45th anniversary—Mythili Kumar didn’t find it easy to forge a career in the arts.
She came from a family that pushed high academic achievement with an emphasis on the sciences. Growing up in Mumbai, New Delhi and Hyderabad, she received a master’s degree in food and nutrition before coming to America. Once here, she got a second master’s at UC Davis and a job at Stanford University.
But she also studied dance, music and art during her childhood in South India, starting at the age of eight. “Learning an art form was really important for our communities. In my mother’s old town in South India, at 5:30 in the morning you could hear children practicing their scales.”
Despite the pressure to continue her career (“Pursuing anything other than science was considered not good”), Kumar says both she and her sister deviated from the approved lane.
In January 1980, Kumar began teaching dance in a friend’s garage, introducing children to Indian culture. In 1983, when her first daughter was born, Kumar began to spend more time on teaching. In 1986 she had her first big production at Cubberley Theatre in Palo Alto. Since then, 176 dancers have performed for her studio.
But it may be that her scholastic pursuits gave her the discipline to tackle something as rigorous as the classical art form of Bharatanatyam. This style of movement has a science to it that dates as far back as 2,000 years.
“I’m very content-related, going back and reading, asking scholars in India and locally for meanings and interpretations,” Kumar says, as she describes the process of ensuring accuracy for her shows. The themes that she presented with Abhinaya Dance Company were new for people here in the Unite States.
When she began producing shows, Kumar researched the dances so she could present them with clarity, which propelled her to reach out to scholars in India. She explored older literature to gather themes and stories, because the dances are not just about movement—they tell stories. There are also compositions that have existed for centuries, so she would learn from these scholars and then work with local musicians.
Among those 2,000-year-old documents is a treatise called Natya Shastra, which combines Sanskrit verses and describes the music, dance and drama that make up what is defined as natya. Different hand motions and positions help tell the stories. Her father was a book collector, and he would return from India and bring Kumar a suitcase filled with books.
Learning this style of dance demands at least eight years of study to have some proficiency. “It takes dedication and passion, and with having an interest in dance, there must be an interest in music as well.”
Since Covid stifled the ability to properly celebrate Abhinaya’s 40-year anniversary, the 45-year mark calls for an even bigger occasion. Natya Dhaara (the unceasing flow of dance) will include performances, a panel discussion and live music. The event takes place Aug 3 at Canada College in Redwood City, where 25 alumni will participate. Although they have their own families and careers now, this will be a moment for them to come back and celebrate as a community once again.
Abhinaya Dance Company’s 45th anniversary event begins at 3pm on Aug 3 at Canada College Main Theatre, 4200 Farm Hill Blvd, Redwood City. Tickets: $35-$75. abhinaya.org
