Concept & Choreography - Kum.Swarnamalya
 Studying
Silappadikaram has been an exhilarating journey for me. The
dancer in me was drawn to the beauty, prowess and knowledge
of Madhavi and the person in me was inspired by her determination,
her grid and her incomparable sacrifice of life. To me, that
was a driving point.
Deciding to dance to the original verses gave me the opportunity
to refer to works earlier to Silappadikaram such as Panchamarabu,
Bharata Senapatiyam as well as the Natyasastra. Authenticity
being my motto I have tried to understand the kind of dance,
the usage of caris, nritta hastas and karanas prevalent at that
time. Also, I have tried to adopt the hand gestures keeping
to that time period .
Music
- Yuvakalabharati
Sri K.N. Shashikiran
 Silappadikaram
is one of the referral points for Tamil music. Adhering to the
authenticity and also bring in the necessary variety for a dance
production was a challenge. Incorporating the various moods
and emotions depicted in the lyrics by the poet Elangovadigal
as conceptualised and visualised by Swarnamalya became imperative
and provided me a good scope.
We have certain musical numbers which have been based on dance
forms like Kouthuvam. From the traditional temple music, classical,
folk and even a bit of light classical has been interspersed.
I have tried to use traditional instruments such as nadaswaram,
flute, veena varieties and blended it with harp varieties. Traditional
percussion instruments like tavil, mridangam,
ganjeera and the old drum perai, cymbals etc have also been
used.
Resource Person - Dr.
S. Raghuraman
 My
long cherished dream of presenting Madhavi as a stand-alone
character on stage has been realised in the production Nammai
marandarai Nam marakka mattom.
The letter written by Madhavi to Kovalan is acclaimed to be
the first love letter in the Sangam literature. Madhavi's
role in the epic is so pivotal. My association and contribution
to this production in the capacity of a resource person allowed
me to share my thoughts about Madhavi.
Art & Costume Guidance - Sri P. Krishnamoorthy
 Hailing from Poompuhar the place around which the story of
Silapadikaram has been built by the great poet, naturally
I am inspired by the character of Madhavi. As an art director,
I have developed special interest for period productions.
Still, presenting the character of Madhavi as seen through
the eyes of the choreographer was quite interesting. Using
the modern techniques of virtual presentation ,we have used
suggestive paintings along with live shots of various backdrops
to recreate the time period of silappadikaram.
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