BHUBANESWAR: Odissi artistes and senior disciples of Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra paid tribute to the legend on his 14th death anniversary by performing on his lesser-known compositions at Rabindra Mandap on Saturday. The event was organised by Art Vision, in association with GKCM Odissi Research Centre under Department of Culture.
The audience was treated with seven enigmatic performances. The show started with a solo recital by artiste Pranati Mohanty titled 'Pada Bandhe Gananatha'. Students of Odissi Research Centre performed on Guru's 1959 composition. Artistes Meera Das, Illeana Citaristi and Sikhata Das performed Abhinaya.
It was his humility that led to his success, said Ratikant Mohapatra, son of the Guru.
"There was a time when I had turned arrogant as a kid and was over-confident about my skills because he was my father. On realising this, he asked me to play a particular syllable on the pakhawaj. I couldn't play it perfectly. He asked me to practice for 10 minutes twice a day for a month and use a stopwatch. When he returned home, he made me play it again and this time I played it well. He then explained me how practice made me perfect," he said. Manoranjan and Minati Pradhan also performed.