BHUBANESWAR: Chhau gurus Subrat Patnaik and Banchhanidhi Das besides researcher and art curator Rajsree Biswal were felicitated with the Naatki Samman during the concluding ceremony of the second national festival of Mayurbhanj Chhau here on Friday.
While Patnaik was considered one of the best Chhau dancers from 1980s to 2010, Das dedicated himself to keeping the dance form alive by training artistes. Similarly, Biswal has extensively researched on art forms of Odisha including Chhau.
Organised by Mayurbhanj-based Project Chhauni, the festival brought together over 100 Chhau artistes from different parts of the state and country under one platform. Project Chhauni was launched in 2016 by the then collector Rajesh Pravakar Patil to revive the glory of Mayurbhanj Chhau.
During the festival, the host troupe presented two group dance items - Ruk Maar and Sabara Toka - with over 40 dancers. Troupes from Delhi and Jharkhand participated too.
Chhau revivalist Subhasree Mukherjee said Mayurbhanj Chhau has the immense potential to attract audience as it has a charm of its own, and is not as commonly presented as Odissi. “Project Chhauni is a mission to bring Chhau artistes all over India and world together and provide them equal opportunity,” she said.