Bhubaneswar, March 17: A five-day event will be held at Bharat Bhavan, a multi-art centre in Bhopal, from April 8 to 12 to showcase Odisha's rich culture.
The Madhya Pradesh government has taken an initiative to bring before the people of Bhopal vibrant cultures from various states of the country. Earlier, artistes from Bihar, Bengal, Rajasthan and Maharashtra have performed at the centre.
Eminent dancers, musicians and theatre troupes from the state will showcase prominent art forms at the Odisha Mahotsav. Hindustani vocalist and composer A. Maheshwar Rao will inaugurate the festival with renditions based on ragas Nat Kedar, Lalita Gauri, Barua and Gour Kalyan, among others. Rao has composed various dance dramas and music for Sanskrit hymns.
Three theatre troupes - Satabdira Kalakar of Dhira Mallick, Manana Natya Sanstha of Manoj Patnaik and New Quest Repertory of Nalini Nihar Nayak - will stage their productions.
Based on Pranabandhu Kar's story, Satabdira Kalakar's play Eka Mati Aneka Akasa will be staged on April 9. This will be followed by Nalini Nihar Nayak's play based on Manoj Das's story. Manana's play Amari Bhagaban will be staged on April 11.
"We are focussing both on facial expressions and the voice modulations. We have around 20 artistes in the play and all of them have chopped off their hair, which their parts demand," said Manoj Patnaik from Manana.
On April 12, dancers from Odissi danseuse Ratikant Mohapatra's group Srjan will stage their latest production, Yathagamanam. The recital, as Mohapatra says, is a "bouquet of contemporary creations".
"I have fused Odissi with ballet and a few folk art forms of the state. But, I have tried to keep the traditions of Odissi intact in the presentation. Apart from using Odissi costumes and the traditional musical instrument mardala, I have taken the lyrics of the song from the Rig Veda," said Mohapatra. Aradhana Dance Academy of Bhubaneswar will also present the traditional folk dance, Gotipua.
Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi secretary Dhira Mallick said the festival would enhance cultural relations between the two states. "Artistes from our state will get a platform to showcase their art forms and a scope to interact with the classical artistes from Madhya Pradesh," he said.
