When the golden rays of the autumn sun turned copper, Satyananda Devayatan echoed with Esho Ma Durge? thako Ma Dur-ge, indicating the bodhan of the deity on Mahashashthi. The students of Satyananda Sangeetpeeth presented a bouquet of Agamani. Spiritual aroma sprang out from the rich soil of Sur Yoga cultivated by Sreethakur Satyananda under the wings of his guru Swami Abhedananda ? a close companion of Swami Vivekananda. The vibrant colours of pure raga, traditional kirtan, baul, bhatiyali, adhunik and even full-blooded Bhojpuri lyrics and melody composed by Sreethakur and his spiritual daughter Archanapuri Ma, the beacon of the ashram now, shaped them into rare gems. Swami Mrigananda threaded them in an equally beautiful script.
Meena Banerjee
Ranan staged ?Taal Mela Taal Shringar? on October 22 at the just-renovated Star Theatre. The performance, supported by Happenings and the Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre, depicted the importance of rhythm in a dance form. Ninaad, the inaugural piece, in literal translation, signifies sound without any particular meaning. Mnemonic syllables were blended to perfection as the performers ? draped in blue Jaipur costume ? moved swiftly from one taal to another. The best of the five items was Mandalakar. Accompanied by Sohini Debnath and Sudeshna Banerjee, the dancers showcased a variety of pirouettes. The music was by Bikram Ghosh. The production used divergent themes giving scope to innovation within traditional framework.
Sulagna Mukhopadhyay
With a total number of 42 works, the Chitrakoot Art Gallery has put up a marvellous exhibition, ?Devi?. Dominated mainly by a collection of old oil paintings and tempera dating back to 100 years and more, the show has a few of the contemporary artists ? like Bikash Bhattacharya, Ganesh Haloi, Shymal Dutta Ray ? all depicting the goddess in their own styles. The collection of early Bengal paintings showing the goddess in different forms and moods, such as Lakshmi, Saraswati, Annapurna and Durga, draws the viewer with colour, intricate detail and linear quality. Samir Aich?s Durga in a single colour shows his experience and understanding of the subject. Monoj Roy?s Devi needs special mention for his excellent use of colour combined with well-balanced composition.
Suman Choudhury
