A blend of unique dance styles

VIBRANT FESTIVAL

The Drishti Art Foundation recently organised the seventh ‘Drishti Dance Festival’ in the City, in which kuchipudi, odissi and kathak dancers performed some wonderful recitals.

At the beginning of the programme renowned flutist and composer Dwaraki Krishnaswamy was felicitated on behalf of the Drishti Art Foundation.

There was an invocation by Lakshmi Varun followed by a pushpanjali by the students of Drishti Dance Ensemble.

Anuradha Vikranth of Drishti Art Foundation stole the hearts of the audience with her amazing piece Krishnam Vande Jagadguru, set to the song Jaganmohanane Krishna composed by Purandaradasa in Raagamalika. In this bharatanatym piece, Anuradha portrayed three stories from Bhagawatha.

In the first part, she presented Pootani Samhara. Her quick transformation from the loving Yashodha to the cruel Pootani in this piece was impressive.

She later portrayed Kalinga Mardana, in which Krishna kills Kalinga, the serpent. The final dance act was Mohini Bhasmasura Prasanga, in which the dance movements were a visual treat to watch.
Anuradha got a thunderous applause for her performance. She then felicitated Mantapa Prabhakar Upadhyay, a veteran Yakshagana artiste known for his Ekavyakti Yakshagana, for giving her valuable inputs for the dance item.

Post this, Anuj Mishra and his team gave an energetic kathak performance called Krishnarang which included four breathtaking pieces. The first one was Raas and depicted the playfulness of Krishna and his relationship with gopikas.

Clad in colourful clothes, the dancers presented the Raas and made beautiful formations holding embellished sticks.

Their second offering was Dhruth Le and showcased some of the finest bandishes of the Lucknow gharana and was characterised by graceful movements, elegance and natural poise with dance.
They also presented Shyam Re and Prem, a fusion of kathak, flamenco, ballet and contemporary dance.

The main item of the day was Sangama — The Rhythm in which four well-known dancers — Madhulita Mohapatra, Seshadri Iyengar, Shama Krishna and Sweekruth B P — presented a solo performance of four distinct classical dance forms each.

Madhulita Mohapatra highlighted the costume and jewellery of odissi style of dance; Shama Krishna emphasised on vachika, the use of speech in kuchipudi; Seshadri Iyengar presented the sattvika part in bharatanatyam and Sweekrut B P stressed on angika, the use of body parts in kathak.
Shama Krishna performed a story from Bhagawatha in which Satyabhama is in search of Krishna. When a lady asks her what she is searching for, Sathyabhama who is unable to say her husband’s name out of respect describes his attributes without taking his name.

This item showcased how lyrical elements can be used in dance forms. All the four dancers were at their best and gave a memorable recital.