IN the Capital City’s cultural calendar, the annual Ekamra National Festival of Dance and Music being hosted by the city-based Suravi Odissi dance institution has emerged as a major event that attempts to present some of the best of the veterans and the promising Indian artistes. The recently concluded 7th edition of the event at Jayadev Bhawan (June 1 - 3) was one such occasion for the artistes and the connoisseurs to come together.
The three-day festival featured Kuchipudi, Kathak, Bharatanatyam and Odissi in dance segment while the music segment showcased the percussion instrument mardal, flute and Odissi vocal. With the thrust on promoting the artistes as soloists to bring out the best of them, all recitals were solo performances.
Each evening’s proceedings commenced with music recitals. While eminent flutist Guru Mohini Mohan Patnaik set the festival in motion during the inaugural evening, promising Odissi singer Sur Sarita Rout, daughter and disciple of Odissi vocalist and Guru Keshab Chandra Rout performed during the second evening. And it was mardal Guru Dhaneswar Swain who had an electrifying recital during the concluding evening. His recital assumes importance in view of the attempt to establish Odissi mardal as a solo classical instrument.
Of the three non-Odissi dance styles featured in the festival, Bengaluru-based Kuchipudi dancer Padmapriya, disciple of the well-known Guru Sobha Naidu, had the most mature presentation. Her neat and emotive presentation of the Krishnaleela was moving. Pune’s budding Bharatanatyam artiste Komal Gujarati and Kolkata-based young Kathak dancer Konkana Bhattacharya also performed.
A festival being organised in the land of Odissi and by an Odissi dance institution, Odissi obviously dominated the dance segment with six soloists in the three-day event. It included performances by the Suravi Samman recipients of the year – veteran dancer-choreographer and Guru Aruna Mohanty and Dipti Routray – representing the Kelucharan Mohapatra and Debaprasad Das gharana of Odissi dance. And of the four young soloists, American Odissi dancer Amanda Geroy, a disciple of Sujata Mohapatra, stood apart with her brilliant presentation of the pure dance number of Shankarabharan pallabi, a classic choreographic creation of legendary Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra. Mummun Chakraborty, a product of the Odissi Research Centre; Gayatri Ranbir, daughter and disciple of Guru Durga Charan Ranbir and Sangya Sucharita Nayak representing the host organisation of Suravi were the other three performers.
