Arnab Bandopadhyay in Tasher Desh

Ananda Sandhya,the annual dance programme of Darpani, was held at Rabindra Sadan on June 2. Divided into two parts, the programme was conceived and choreographed by Arnab Bandopadhyay. The first part of the evening comprised Bharatnatyam and Odissi dance recitals while the second half showcased Tagore’s Tasher Desh in perfect grandeur.

Though experiments do not always succeed, they cannot be frowned upon. The composition, Nandanik, based on Odissi and Bharatnatyam with ghazal as the accompanying music, could hardly be called fusion. The essential characteristics of the genres were too different to be combined together. Young artistes presented simple Bharatnatyam compositions in groups. The invocatory stotram created a divine ambience while pallavi, a pure dance number based on raga Basant, was colourful. The young artistes of the institution were spontaneous in Babuder talpukure. Long and monotonous narration was a big letdown though.

Arnab proved his maturity as a dancer while portraying the rajputra in Tasher Desh. It was a colourful presentation what with bright costumes and well-synchronised movements. Debarati Kar Goswami, Tapas Mondol and Shubhasish Dutta did justice to the characters of haratani, chhakka and ruitan respectively. The set designed by Harekrishna Majumder helped artistes to build up the drama. However, the whole presentation was a bit too long.

The Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre organised a nine-day dance workshop at Bharatiyam from June 5 to June 13 under the aegis of Odissi dancer Aruna Mahanti. It was followed by a dance programme organised by the workshop participants. Mangalacharan, a traditional invocatory Odissi number, opened the show. Shivastuti was followed by pallavi, the most attractive piece of the Odissi dance style. Based on raga Ragesree, Jahnabi Behera and Bejoy Kumar Sahoo explored the delicate nuances of the raga with intricate footwork and supple body movements. The most significant number of the evening was madhurastakam, an abhinaya piece performed by Aruna Mahanti. Her emotive skill along with her beautiful stage presence stole the show. The concluding item was Sristi Pralay, an innovative choreography by Aruna. It was based on the theme of water being a source of creation and destruction.