BHUBANESWAR: Connoisseurs and artistes of the Capital city were treated to wonderful dance creations on the concluding day of the Margi dance festival on Tuesday. While the festival started with a production of New Delhi-based dancer Kavita Dwivedi, it was followed by a duet recital by Madhusmita Mohanty and Ramesh Chandra Jena on ‘Navarasha’. It portrayed the relationship between the divine couple Lord Ram and Sita. However, it was the performance by dancers of Cuttack-based Gunjan Dance Academy that stole the show.
Indradhanu or Rainbow, choreographed by acclaimed Odissi dancer Meera Das was the most enthralling of the concert. It left the audience spellbound. The innovative choreography revolved around various colours influencing the various moods of the man. “I have been trained by great gurus Kelucharan Mohapatra and Gangadhar Pradhan who have influenced my sensibility as a dancer, teacher and choreographer. Both the gurus believed in innovation and I follow in their path while attempting new compositions. But my innovations are within the framework of the tradition,” Das said.
The choreography was earlier presented in Delhi and it was staged now in Odisha. The dancer was thrilled and felt this performance by her troupe was one of the best stage shows by Gunjan as it received a huge ovation from the audience. The concluding item by the Gunjan artistes was on the lines of Mokshya of Odissi, the essence of which is a dancer’s approach to salvation.
Mokshya Nritya depicted a dance of ecstasy that liberates the dancer towards the final goal.
Earlier on Monday, the festival was inaugurated by Secretary of Tourism Department Ashok Tripathy. The inaugural day saw Sangeeta Dash’s impressive ‘Mangalacharan’, Bandita Ghoshal and Ashok Ghosal’s duet recital and a group show by city-based Rudrakshya Foundation. The annual event is being organised by Nrutyashala, a socio-cultural organisation.