KOCHI: In the hustle and bustle of the city, do you crave for some traditional hues? Sometimes it is necessary to sit back, relax and realise how blessed we are for the rich heritage we grew up to take granted for.
To remind of one of this, the Edappally Nritha Aswadana Sadas is organising the six-day annual dance festival ‘Nrutholsavam 2018’ at Changampuzha Park from December 1.
The festival will see performances by contemporary Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam, Odissi and Mohiniyattom dancers from across the country. On Saturday, the curtains will rise in the presence of actor Niranjana Anoop, who will be the chief guest of the inaugural ceremony.
The first day of the festival will see a seminar on the possibilities and future of kuchipudi. The seminar, jointly organised by Edappally Nritha Aswadana Sadas and Nrithyoham Centre for Indian Classical Dance, is expected to include the participation of Sangeetha Nataka Academy award winner Vedantham Radheshyam, Akhila Bharateeya Kuchipudi Natyakalamandali founder Pasumarthi Kesavaprasad and Sathyanjali Academy of Kuchipudi Dance director Anupama Mohan as keynote speakers.
In the evening, Seethalakshmi Prasad and Pasumarthi Mrithyujjaya will entertain the audience with their kuchipudi performance.
On the second day, Sithara Balakrishnan will grace the stage with her mohiniyattom performance. Sonu Satheesh Kumar will lead a kuchipudi kacheri along with the students of Kuchipudi Parambara Foundation on December 3. On December 4, Suhaag Nalini Das will grace the stage with her Odissi performance. P S A Manu will lead a Bharatanatyam performance in the Thanjavoor style on December 5. The final day of the festival will see a Bharatanatyam performance by Anuradha Vikranth.
Apart from this, the festival will also honour veteran dance teachers. “The Edappally Nritha Aswadana Sadas will give tribute to those teachers who have been in the field for more than four decades. It is our way of giving back to them,” says Chandrika Sundaresan, secretary of the Edappally Nritha Aswadana Sadas. The entry to the festival is free and open to the public.