The Odissi dance lovers of the city witnessed mesmerizing performances at the Bhanja Kala Mandap by artists representing various parts of the world. The fourth edition of Odishi International, an annual union of the global Odissi family in the land of Odishi, was organised here.
‘Samskritiki’, a 25-year-old cultural organisation, hosted the programme. The show was first started in 2010 with 150 dancers from 12 countries. This year, the participants’ number swelled to 227, who came from as many as 15 countries, including India. The opening piece of the festival was staged by Malaysia based Odishi dancer Nritta Ganeshi Manoharan who is of 16-year-old.
“This year, the programme’s focus is on discovering young talent,” said festival director Syamahari Chakra. The youngest participant of the event was a three- year- and- six- month old baby Sritika Purohit from Bangalore, he informed. Famous danseuses like Aruna Mohanty, Sujata Mohaptra, Meera Das and Rahul Acharya also performed in the festival. Some of the group performances were staged by US based Ratna Roy, Urvasi Odishi troupe, Ommkara Odishi group from Moscow, Nirtyantan Odishi troupe from Bangalore and Nirtya Upasana Pitha from Bhubaneswar etc.
The most attractive dance piece was the duet by Eleonara and her daughter Angelina Ukhanova from Russia. Biggest crowd puller of the festival was a dance item staged by the granddaughter of late Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Preetisha Mohapatra. Her dance piece held the audience spellbound.
The objective of organising the festival is to unite the ever growing Odishi fraternity in the land of Odishi, said Chakra. This festival also showcased the dance compositions of Gurus like Pankaj Charan Das, Kelucharan Mohaptra, Debaprasad Das, Natabar Moharana and Surendra Nath Jena.
Artists from Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, France, Japan, Poland, South Africa, the UK, the USA and Singapore participated in the festival. “The participants came at their own travel and accommodation cost. This shows their interest in performing on stage here,” Chakra added.