The 10th Dhauli-Kalinga Mahotsav, jointly organised by the Department of Tourism and the Odisha Dance Akademi, got off to a colourful start on Saturday evening with Madhu Murchhana, a flute recital, set to Rag-Vairagi with a set of Talas presented by very young and talented flutist Srinivas Satapathy and group.
The main objective to have this annual festival with the Dhauli Hill in its background is to preserve, promote and popularise Odisha’s heritage at the national and international levels. It is a humble endeavour to bring together artists of diverse disciplines in the spirit of cultural solidarity against an enchanting ambience.
The second item of the evening was an Odishi dance by the students of the Utkal Sanget Mahavidyalya, Bhubaneswar. They started with an invocatory piece Bisheswar Bandana, an offering to lord Shiva, set to Rag-Madhyamadi and Tal-Ektali followed by a Pallavi on the same Tal and Rag.
There concluding item was Diksha, an Odishi ballet depicting the episode of Chandashoka being converted to Dharmashoka at the foothill of Dhauli.The last presentation was Thanga-Ta, the martial art of Manipur, by the students of Anjika, Kolkata led by Priti Patel which was exciting and ruminating. Ruchi Masala director Arabinda Sahoo presented the Ruchi Buddha Samman to Guru Maguni Kuanr, eminent puppeteer, for his outstanding contribution to the Indian rod puppetry.