Eminent Kuchipudi danseuse Shallu Jindal mesmerised the audience with her solo performance on the third and ultimate day of the 8th Devdasi National Dance Festival here at the Rabindra Mandap on Thursday.
She was conferred with the Devdasi National Award-2013. The award was presented by Minister for Energy and I&PR Arun Sahu.
Padma Bhushans Raja and Radha Reddy choreographed Jindal’s entire repertoire in typical Kuchipudi classical dance style.
A second solo performance was the Dashavataram, a traditional Kuchipudi segment where Jindal depicted the 10 avatars of lord Vishnu. It culminated with her portraying the Vishwaroopam of lord Vishnu.
The extravaganza concluded with a performance on the Thaali on Tarana, a classical Hindustani composition by late Pt Ravi Shankar. Jindal executed intricate footwork by dancing on the rim of a brass plate and coordinated them with complicated rhythmic patterns.
Jindal said, “It was really a great feeling for being conferred with such a prestigious award presented by the great and last Devdasi of lord Jagannath Temple Sashimani Devi.”
She announced setting up of a Kala Kendra at Angul which would be a centre for excellence in heritage and culture to promote the rich tradition of performing and fine arts of Odisha.
Besides Jindal, this year’s Devdasi National Award was also conferred on seven other dancers of Indian classical dance styles, Sujata Mahapatra for Odissi, Rama Vaidyanathan for Bharat Natyam, Jayaprabha Menon for Mohini Attam, Anita Sharma for Sattriya, Vidha lal for Kathak, Kottakal Devadas for Kathakali, Dr Sohini Ray for Manipuri and Rupashree Mohapatra for Mahari.