New Delhi: ‘Utsav: Unbound Beats of India 2021’, a dance festival organised by Utsav Educational and Cultural Society-Ranjana’s Odissi Dance Academy, went online this year due to the pandemic COVID-19.
Brainchild of noted Odissi dancer Padmashree Guru Ranjana Gauhar, the two-day long festival streamed on January 9th and 10th, 2021 on the Facebook page of UTSAV-Ranjana’s Odissi Dance Academy and the YouTube of Ranjana Gauhar ticked all boxes, at least this reviewer believes so.
With the ceremonial lighting of auspicious lamp by Padmashree and SNA Awardee Guru Smt. Ranjana Gauhar and Smt. Sadhna Shrivastava, the inaugural performance was brought by Vrinda Chadha, a disciple of Guru Ranjana Gauhar.
She presented an invocation in Odissi by the lyrics of Raja Swati Tirunal’s ‘Vishveshwara Darsahan Ko’, giving a perfect start to the festival with creating a bhakti bhav. The item was choreographed by Guru Ranjana Gauhar, music composed by Saroj Mohanty set to raga Asaveri and taal Khemta.
Next was a duet presented by husband-wife duo-Raskesh Sai Babu, a Bismillah Khan awardee, and Priya Srinivasan, a disciple of Guru Janmejoy Sai Babu.
They started off with a pure Nritta piece titled ‘Sangam’ and as the title suggests it brought the beauty of apt juxtaposition of different instruments of the two styles, creating perfect harmony and accentuating the beauties of their performances.
The following item was ‘Om Namah Shivaya’ where the dancers offered a tribute to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati.
Using the lyrics of Adishankaracharya’s ‘Nagendra Haraya’, they made the presentation enjoyable. The beauty of the portrayal of masculine principle which represents the abiding aspect of God and the feminine principle which represents its energy was seen to be believed. Their concluding item was ‘Shringara’. They depicted the union of Radha and her beloved Krishna.
The following item was the last presentation of the evening presented by Smt. Ragini Chandershekar, a Bismillah Khan Awardee, who is daughter and disciple of her mother Guru Jamuna Krishnan. In her item ‘Todaya Mangalam’, she narrated the beauty and magnificence of Lord Vishnu and his incarnations. The striking aspect of the presentation was the dancer’s easy transformation from one avatar to another. The item was choreographed by Guru Jamuna Krishnan.
With the felicitation of all the artistes, the inaugural evening came to an end.
The second evening of the festival began with the lighting of auspicious lamp by Padmashree and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awardee Smt. Ranjana Gauhar and Smt. Sadhna Srivastava.
The cultural evening began with Kevin Bachan, a senior disciple of Guru Ranjana Gauhar, who presented Ardhanarishwara, written by Saint Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century as well as Kalidas’s Raghuvansham, depicting the fusion image of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati.
Set to raga Malika and tala Malika, the item was choreographed by Guru Ranjana Gauhar, music composed by Acharya Bankim Sethi and music arrangement by Saroj Mohanty.
His next item was ‘Vishwaroop Darshan’ from the Bhagvad Gita. The piece depicts how Lord Krishna shows his universal form to Arjuna at the battlefield. Kevin’s body movements, facial expressions and use of space made the presentation a visual treat to both trained and untrained eyes. The item was in raga Malkauns and Ahir Bhairavi and tala EkTaali.
The following item was brought by Dakshina Vidyanathan Bagehl, a disciple of Gurus Dr. Saroja Vidyanatha and Smt. Rama Vaidyanathan. She came with her self-choreographed piece ‘Triveni’ with lyrics translated to Sanskrit by Dr. S. Vasudevan and Dr. Himanshu Srivastava and music by Dr. S Vasudevan and the silk like voice of Smt. Sudha Raghuraman brought this item on rivers alive. Her presentation featured three rivers- River Ganga, River Yamuna and River Saraswati. The dancer had the online audience in her thrall with her power packed performance, depicting how the River Ganga flows into the matted lock of Lord Shiva, the River Yamuna witnessing Krishna and his leelas and the mystical aspect of the River Saraswati. It was the brilliance of her abhinay that left the audience engaging.
The last item of the concluding evening was by Smt. Vidha Lal, Bismillah Khan Awardee and a disciple of Guru Smt. Geetanjali Lal. She delivered two high energy pieces- Ardhaang choreographed by her Guru with lyrics Baiju Bawara and a Tarana.
This item represents the synthesis between the male and the female energies of the Universe – PURUSH AND PRAKRITI. Her concluding item was choreographed by Smt. Vidha Lal and composed by Guru Smt. Geetanjali Lal, based on raga Darbari and taal Teentaal.
The performers of the second evening were felicitated by Guru Ranjana Gauhar and the festival came to an end.
Smt. Sadhna Srivastava was the emcee of this two-day long festival, supported by Ministry of Culture.
By kalasanskruti
