HYDERABAD: After the recent 108-hour-long ‘Akhanda Sahasra Sankeerthana’ for Annamayya’s 602nd birth anniversary and Srikanth Goud’s make-up of 103 classical dancers in 100 minutes, here is another cultural effort to record yet another Guinness entry at the Ravindra Bharati. Christined after one of the most inspiring poets, Rabindranath Tagore, the theatre is celebrating a two-day Rabindra Nrityotsav, a unique dancing Guinness record feat, marking his 150th birth anniversary celebrations and a tribute to the timeless legend.
The aim is to achieve a Guinness World Record for a 25-hour-long non-stop dance performance, exclusively on Rabinranath Tagore’s compositions. 125 artists from seven countries will be staging dance dramas on 150 musical compositions in 12 languages, portrayed in nine different dance forms. Starting from 5 pm on February 1, the dance feat will go on till 6 pm on February 2. In association with the Andhra Pradesh State Cultural Association, Department of Culture and Shilparamam, South Zone Cultural Centre, Thanjore and Nagpur, Sonali Academy of Fine Arts, an Odissi Dance Institute in the city is organising the event. Run under the directorship of Sonali Acharjee, a dancer herself, the institute has come together to bring in “Rabindra Sangeet” and “Rabindra Nritya” flavour to the Hyderabadi auidence.
Dancers and musicians from India, Germany, Japan, Bangladesh, France, Sri Lanka and Nepal will be contributing for the Nrityotsav. Dance ballets like Chitrangada, Chandalika, Shyama and Bhanu Singer Padavali, along with other performances will be spread over the two-day festival choreographed by K Jatindra Singh, head of department, fine arts, Visva Bharati, Shantiniketan.
Expressing her desire to re-create the Tagore magic in the Nawabi city, Sonali says, “I have been living in the city for over 10 years, and I had a dream to create a small Shantiniketan here. I hope through this, we will be able to pay a small tribute to the legendary poet, who has been an inspiration to so many of us. We want to strike that perfect balance between his songs and our dance.” Another dancer from Manipur, who is pursuing her Phd in Manipuri dance from Shantiniketan is Khangembam Khoni. She says “I have been learning dance for over 20 years now, and performing in Hyderabad for Tagore is something I have always wished for. I am so influenced by his poetry, I guess there is no better way to pay a tribute to him.”
Daiki Fujinuma, a pianist from Japan, who has been living in India for over 6 months, says, Rabindra sangeet is universal. “I have been following his music very closely. And now I will be doing a fusion between Japanese classical music and Rabindra sangeet for the event.”
Bringing a contemporary flavour to the festival is Lelan, a dancer from Bretany in France. She says, “I will be performing three solos on “Esho ni pobo”, “Shri tero bone” and “Chavan Ghagane” and two group performnaces on “Ami Chinu” and “Phule Phule ”.