With one major dance festival concluding and another beginning almost immediately, the capital city is seeing a flurry of classical programmes.
While the Nishagandhi festival wrapped up on Friday after celebrating stalwarts of the field, the spotlight has now turned to the younger performers, with Chilanka bringing emerging dancers to the stage.
Chilanka festival, launched in 2014 by Vyloppilli Samskrithi Bhavan, functions under the Cultural Affairs Department of Kerala to provide a platform for talented young dancers. Initially conducted over five days, the festival was later extended to seven to accommodate more performers.
Over time, the festival has grown into one of the capital city’s prominent events in terms of quality and public participation.
This year’s edition, officially inaugurated on Monday by Higher Education Minister R Bindu, will conclude on March 1. Across seven days, 28 dancers from across the country will present Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Kerala Natanam, Nangiarkoothu, Kathak and Sattriya. The curator of the festival is Padma Shri awardee Kalamandalam Vimala Menon.
The opening day featured Mohiniyattam dancer Chithra R S, followed by Bharatanatyam performances by Nanditha Menon and Shaijaa Bineesh, and a Kerala Nadanam recital by Athira Das P.
Tuesday’s programme will begin at 6pm with Mohiniyattam by Aswathi Sankarlal, followed by Bharatanatyam by Keerthana Subramanian at 6.45pm, Meghana Manoj at 7.30pm, and Devika Sajeevan at 8.15pm. The remaining days follow the same timing pattern.
Wednesday will feature Mohiniyattam by Gayathry V S, Sattriya by Meenakshi Medhi, Bharatanatyam by Bhadra Sharma E, and Kuchipudi by Anjana Anand. Thursday’s line-up includes Kuchipudi by Avijit Das, Bharatanatyam by Soumya Menon and Saranya S Nair, and Mohiniyattam by Hridya Haridas.
Friday presents Nangyarkoothu by Margi Visishta, Kuchipudi by Sneha Sasikumar, Mohiniyattam by Dhaneesha Dhanpal, and Bharatanatyam by Anand C S. Saturday will have Mohiniyattam by Kalamandalam Sooryanandana M, Bharatanatyam by Drishya J S and Adrija Panicker, and Kuchipudi by Vishnuram S S.
The final day features Bharatanatyam by Malavika Nair, Kathak by Richa Gupta, and Bharatanatyam by Uma Govind.
As part of the concluding events, a group dance production titled Kavyakeralam, based on Malayalam poems, will be presented by Bharatakala Dance and Music Cultural Society.
“This year we received over 200 applications, from which 28 dancers were selected — slightly more than usual,” says Maneksh P S, member-secretary of Vyloppilli Samskrithi Bhavan.
“We avoided choosing artists who had performed in earlier editions, as we wanted to give new dancers an opportunity. We expect a large audience, the programmes will run on schedule, and entry is completely free for the public,” he adds.
All the performers will be honoured with remuneration from the institution. In addition, an interaction with artists will be held daily at 5pm, where the performers of the day will share their experiences with the audience.