Talented Doctor Udumbara Sevwandai Kumari

5 November 2014 12:38 pm By Shabnam Farook This month on LW we feature a versatile personality, Dr. Udumbara  Sevwandai  Kumari, an inspiring young doctor who works at the pediatric cardiology unit of the Lady Ridgeway Hospital who is also a visharadh in the field of  Bharathanatyam. As she excitedly prepares for her first Arangethram, poised to be a tribute to her guru, she details her journey into both fields which she has mastered in equal measure. Dr. Udumbara do tell us a little about yourself, your family and some of the fondest memories growing up? I was born in Nugathalawa; a beautiful village which is situated near Haggala as the eldest of four children. My mother used to say that I was her birthday present as I was born on her birthday. My mother was a teacher and my father took up teaching mathematics as he was unable to complete his studies in medicine. One of the most memorable days in my life was the birth of my younger sister. I was just a year old and I have no recollection of events before my sister’s birth. I remember going to the hospital with my appachchi wearing a pink frock; I remember amma holding this beautiful big baby in her hands. This baby grew up to be my childhood best friend. When I first learnt to write letters, I tried my hand at writing poetry. The natural beauty of the surroundings I grew up in were a source of inspiration. The canopies of cold mist, spring blooms, the dewy green grass, the rhythm of flowing rivers, cascading waterfalls and the valleys and mountains that stretched across the plains as far as my eyes could see would inspire me. While at school, I won first place for poetry, song writing and essay competitions in both Sinhala and English. For five consecutive years, I won the first place for all island in song writing and music competitions. I also competed at provincial level English day competitions and bagged first place. And the awards for painting were many too. At what age did you find yourself attracted to dancing? Who and what inspired you to take up dancing?  I had a natural affinity to dance from an early age. I was first introduced to dancing at primary school when Ms. Rajeshwariee taught us a dance for Sarasvati pooja. Several years later, I studied Bharathanatyam and the memories from my childhood were a natural catalyst that encouraged me to take up dancing. Despite my affinity for dance my father didn’t allow me to select dance as my aesthetic subject in grade six. His view was that girls who took up dancing cannot achieve a good education. Therefore, I had to select art as my aesthetic subject. But the desire to dance was always strong. Whenever I danced, which was rare, everyone appreciated my talent. As a child, I had a dream that I was dancing wearing floral garlands in front of a bo tree that was close to my house and flames of fire. And now, after many years, I’m preparing for my first Bharathanatyam Arangethram. Do tell us about your background in dancing and the very first Arangethram you are planning to have this November. I had the opportunity to study dancing during my time at university and became an outstanding dancer. It was a turning point in my life which led me to start learning to dance. I dreamt of creating beautiful dance sequences with proper knowledge gained from learning the formal art of dance. I sought the help of Miranda Hemalatha Kala Ashramaya to learn the art of dancing from one of the great dancing teachers, kalaguru Dr. Miranda Hemalatha in 2007. She was a brilliant teacher and brought into practice some great teaching methods. She would travel to Colombo from Galle. Under her guidance, I studied the most beautiful art of Bharathanatyam. In order to learn this beautiful art of dancing, I had to give up my time for hours of strenuous practice. Learning to dance also was a form of stress relief while I was studying medicine. Step by step I completed all the exams up to visharadh finals in Bhathkande sangeet vidyapeet, Lucknow, India in the field of Bharathanatyam. I’m planning to perform my Bharathanatyam Arangethram as my Guru Dr. Miranda Hemalatha’s 108th student on her 76 birthday on 15th November 2014 at 6 pm onwards at Tower Hall Maradana. There is an item called varnam which is the longest item in my Bharathanatyam repertoire. My dancing teacher has selected a beautiful varnam for me which tells the spiritual request of queen Seetha, pleading from mother earth in front of a fire in Ramayana. I remembered this dream from my childhood which has come true after many years. Is there any particular reason for organizing your Bharathanatyam Arangethram at this particular juncture?  When I received the visharadh I was  doing my internship at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka. So I had to wait until I finished my internship to take a step towards performing a classical dancing show. Arangethram is the maiden performance of a bharathanatyam dancer which means ascent of the stage. It is the auspicious occasion where the artist offers the art at the feet of the guru and the divine dance lord Nataraja. I planned my Arangethram for this November after completing my internship. As a blessing in disguise, the auspicious time was scheduled on the same day as that of the birthday of my great guru. So I’m performing my Arangethram as a tribute to my beloved teacher. What are the other dancing styles that you have learnt? I have learnt Kathak from dancing Nipun Sangeet Visharadh Moksha Samarasooriya. I have learnt ballroom and Latin American dancing styles too and I have completed the international bronze medal examination in ballroom dancing under Let’s Dance Academy. I have learnt Kandyan dancing from Mrs. Deepika Abeyratne. You mentioned during our casual conversation that 2012 was a special year for you. Can you tell us why the year is significant in your life? At the end of January, in 2012, I lost the most valuable gift in my life - my mother to cancer. Three months after her death, I had to sit for my final MBBS examination and was able to obtain the MBBS degree from the University of Ruhuna. In December 2012, I did the visharadh final examination in Bhathkande Sangeet Vidyapeet in Lucknow, India and was able to obtain Visharadh degree in the field of dancing bharathanatyam. Deviating from the subject of dancing and focusing on your profession, did you always dream of becoming a doctor?  I had a stethoscope as a toy in my childhood. It was a gift from my uncle. I used to examine my dolls with it. I think the dream to heal someone was always with me since then. We had all my father’s medical books and I used to turn to these pages with a desire to learn the art of healing. There were other dreams too, at one time it was to be someone like Marie Curie, then to be someone like Kalpana Chaula or Florence Nightingale. As I had awards for writing I had a dream to be a journalist too. I excelled in my education and had distinctions in all subjects at ordinary level, which encouraged me to take up bio science with the dream to becoming a doctor. It was also my parents’ wish. Tell us about your journey as a doctor. Where do you practice currently? What do you like about your job? I have just completed my internship and am still a junior doctor. I have worked at the National Hospital Sri Lanka, at the Lady Ridgeway Hospital Colombo and I am currently working in the paediatric cardiology unit. I have not yet started my post graduate studies and hope to take up paediatrics. I am a favourite among my patients and I take my job seriously and am sensitive to their plight. I have some very memorable moments from my time working at the National Hospital like the incident where a girl was waiting for me few days after her surgery with a piece of cake, with words “to my angel”. How do you juggle both your dancing and your career as a doctor?  It is a challenge to juggle multiple tasks, especially when you are entrusted with lives of children. I used to  practice dancing at night. I would dance away till midnight to make a success of my Arangethram. Dancing and all the aesthetical gifts help to calm my mind, like a form of meditation. It helps relieve the stress of being a doctor. I am also keen to use dancing as a therapy to cure patients. My dancing teacher Dr. Miranda Hemalatha uses dancing therapy to help children with Downs Syndrome at the Lady Ridgeway hospital. We have started a dancing therapy unit as a project by Consultant Paediatrician Professor Manouri Senanayake and Dr. Miranda Hemalatha. I contribute as much as I can to promote dancing therapy. You have single handedly juggled several aspects in your life successfully. Can you tell about that? The first time that I had to tackle problems on my own was when I briefly worked as a receptionist at People’s Bank before entering the medical faculty. My mother was a source of strength and kept supporting me throughout. After entering medical college, I was alone in a faraway world. At first I was stressed. But I learnt to handle everything on my own. When my mother was diagnosed with cancer, I was a final year medical student. I came from Karapitiya to stay with her at the cancer hospital in Maharagama. I looked after her during this terrible period of her life. I was with her for more than eight months, and didn’t have the opportunity to sit for my exams due to this. When doctors said that there is no cure for her disease, I consoled myself. My dancing teacher Miranda Hemalatha helped us during this period in numerous ways. After my mother’s death I went to Karapitiya to finish my MBBS degree, with the hope of fulfilling my mothers dream. After that I came to Colombo to finish my dancing degree. I was appointed as a doctor at the national hospital of Sri Lanka on 20th May 2013. To fulfill my dream of having my Arangethram, my only source of strength is none other than my great guru Miranda Hemalatha. We have organized such a great festival alone. My father lives far away in my village looking after my younger sisters and brother. So I’m alone in Colombo with my dancing teacher. But having battled through many difficulties in life, I am always oozing in confidence. Future plans, if there are any?  I’m planning to do my post graduate in pediatrics. I also hope to contribute to the field of classical dancing in the near future and use dancing as a therapy to cure patients. I’m also interested in pursuing poetry and song writing, which I have excelled in over the years. What kind of advice do you like to give our young ambitious readers out there? Nothing is impossible in life if we set our hearts and minds to achieving it. No matter where in life you are, you can always make your dreams come true. We can learn anything if we have the courage and determination. My hope to study dancing was a childhood dream which came true. I always looked at life with a fresh pair of eyes, adding only the experiences and intelligence to solve problems. I’d also like to add that dancing can be used to develop our personality. Unfortunately girls in this era misuse the art of dancing by being a victim of commercialization. Dancing is not to provoke emotions rather it is like a form of meditation.