BHUBANESWAR: Connoisseurs of Odissi were treated to ‘abhinaya’ by eminent Odissi dancer Kumkum Mohanty on the final day of the 34th edition of Konark Festival.Mohanty and her dancers from Geeta Govinda Charitable Trust performed an abhinaya ‘Maa Bhavani’ which depicted the goddess as the destroyer of demons ‘Shumba Nishumba’ and ‘Mahishasura’. It was composed by the late Pandit Bhubaneswar Misra and Guru Kelu Charan Mohapatra. The last sequence of the ‘abhinaya’ was an episode from the Bichitra Ramayana written by Biswanath Khuntia.
The evening concluded with three Kathak recitals by Kolkata-based dancer Luna Poddar. The recitals - Surya Jyoti, Darbari and Rang Basanti - were choreographed by Poddar herself. Curtains also came down on the 13th International Sand Art Festival at the Chandrabhaga beach on the day. The theme of the final day was ‘Wonders of the World’ and sculptors from Odisha created sand art on temples of the state and ‘manabasa gurubar’. The participating artists were felicitated. Both festivals were organized by the department of Tourism.