Bhubaneswar: The seventh edition of Nrityaasha Festival, organized by Nrityaasha Trust, a Bhubaneswar-based Odissi dance institution, was held at Bhanjakala Mandap in Bhubaneswar on Monday.
The festival was inaugurated in a traditional manner with lighting the auspicious lamp by renowned Mardala player Guru Dhaneswar Swain, eminent violin player Guru Suramani Ramesh Chandra Das and Odissi dancer Guru Pravat Kumar Swain graced the festival as esteemed guests and inaugurated the festival by lighting the auspicious lamp. Priyadarshini Pradhan Nayak, who is a disciple of Guru Pravat Kumar Swain and founded Nrityaasha Trust in 2018 and her husband Premanshu Nayak were also present on the dais.
The highlight of the evening was the presentation of Nrityaasha Samman 2025. This year, the award was conferred on acclaimed Odissi dance guru and founder of Rudraksha Foundation Guru Bichitrananda Swain, for his outstanding contribution to the classical art form.
The cultural evening witnessed a bouquet of scintillating Odissi solo, duet and group dance recitals by artistes from tiny tots to senior students of Nrityasha Trust. The festival commenced with a soulful Mangalacharan ‘Guru Brahma Guru Vishnu’, followed by mesmerizing Abhinayas and Pallavis that left the art lovers enthralled.
Two young dancers of Rudraksha Foundation-Santosh Ram and Samir Panigrahi presented ‘Ardhanariswar Stotra’. The evening also witnessed two solo recitals by Meera Pattanayak and Juel Jyoti Biswal who presented Abhinayas ‘Laje Mun Sari Gali Aja’ and ‘Ahe Nilamani’ respectively.
Adding his own charm to the evening, Dr Srinivas Ghatuary did a seamless anchoring.
