CHENNAI : Margazhi season is a joyful celebration filled with mellifluous music and graceful dances, where traditions come alive. On Thursday, the excitement for this celebration was palpable at Krishna Gana Sabha, as the 67th Margazhi Mela was launched.
At the inaugural event, Sreelatha Vinod was conferred the Nritya Choodamani, and Mysore Brothers — Mysore Nagaraj and Mysore Manjunath — were conferred the Sangeetha Choodamani. The winners shared their happiness on the stage. Mysore Manjunath also cherished some of his memories with his father Mahadevappa who was also their guru and a great violinist himself, and shared their connection with Krishna Gana Sabha.
This year’s mela is special as it is dedicated to the memory of R Yagnaraman, who was the founder of the Krishna Gana Sabha. Shashwathi Prabhu, CEO, Krishna Gana Sabha, who is also the granddaughter of Yagnaraman, said, “He was a visionary in the field of classical arts, who sowed the seed for others and encouraged their talents.
He instituted an award for classical dance, the prestigious Nritya Choodamani and gave dance a special place during the Margazhi season, which otherwise used to be dominated only by Carnatic music. We are overjoyed to celebrate this Margazhi Mela dedicated to him.” He also started the Natya Kala Conference four decades ago. As per his vision, the sabha provides opportunities to all during the Margazhi season.
The Mela will be held till January 3, 2024 and includes the five-day Natya Kala Conference from December 26 to 30, an event that many artistes look forward to. “Margazhi is supposed to be a very celebrated month that all of us look forward to like (we look forward to) a festival,’’ said Dhivya, a student of Anthara Dance School.
The award winners were felicitated by Cleveland VV Sundaram and dance guru Savithri Jagannatha Rao. The inauguration was followed by dance performances by Leela Samson’s Spanda Dance Company.