Fete fiesta

Odia actress Anu Choudhury celebrates Holi with students of Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences, Bhubaneswar. Telegraph picture

A spectrum of creativity was on display at Sparkle-2012, the annual cultural fete of the DAV Public School (Chandrasekharpur), Bhubaneswar, which started on March 14.

On the first day, tiny tots of the kindergarten classes, dressed in bright, colourful costumes, presented a dance on the theme “Essence of Flowers”, which was choreographed by the teachers. The little performers shook a leg to groovy western music as the audience cheered them on.

Some others showcased the diverse culture of India in the dance medley titled Atulya Bharat by matching their steps to folk beats from around the country. Another group staged a skit based on Vikram-Betaal stories, which was followed by other drama performances and mass drill.

The students also paid tribute to the legendary actor, Shammi Kapoor. They had put up flex banners of the actor throughout the school campus and danced to some of his memorable songs.

Tiny tots of DAV Public School, Chandrasekharpur, Bhubaneswar, perform at Sparkle-2012 — the annual cultural fete. Telegraph picture

On the second and final day of Sparkle, the school celebrated Parents’ Day by conducting a host of competitions among parents and students. Former bureaucrat Suresh Chandra Mantry was the chief guest of the event that was held in the evening today. He gave prizes to the winners of different categories.

Child prodigy of the school, Seetal, a Class II student, who had received the National Child Award-2011 from the Union ministry of women and child development last November for exceptional achievement in the field of academics, art and culture, was honoured on the occasion.

Earlier, additional director general of police Sanjeev Marik and actor-turned-director Ajit Das inaugurated the cultural extravaganza.

Myriad hues

Holi turned out to be very colourful for the students of Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), Bhubaneswar, who celebrated the festival with stars from the Odia film industry.

The 15,000-odd students of the residential school cheered up at the sight of popular actors Anu Choudhury, Akash Das Nayak, Sabyasachi, Sreetam, Akankhya Kabi and Kuna Tripathy who played Holi with them.

Dressed as little Krishnas and Radhas, the students went around the campus with plates full of powdered colours and smeared them on the faces of their friends, teachers and the cine stars.

Later, a group of boys climbed on each others shoulders to reach the traditional dahi matka suspended at a height of 20 feet — an enactment of Lord Krishnas efforts to steal butter from an earthen pot hung from the ceiling. Other artistes who celebrated the festival of colours on the KISS campus were father-son singer duo Prafulla Kar and Mahaprasad Kar, musician Laxmikant Palit, Sangeeta Gosain, veteran actor Banamali Pandia, several child artistes and film-makers.

Saluting women

The International Women’s Day was observed at the Sai International School, Bhubaneswar, on March 8 with great fervour.

A special assembly was organised to celebrate the day, which was attended by Usha Padhi, special secretary, panchayati raj department.

The event started with a welcome song dedicated to the indomitable spirit of womanhood and was followed by a powerpoint presentation on women achievers in different fields.

The girl students of senior classes had dressed as inspirational women such as Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Nobel laureate Mother Teresa, Odia freedom fighter Ramadevi, President Pratibha Patil, sportswoman P.T. Usha and astronaut Kalpana Chawla. Taking turns, each of them narrated the life history of these women personalities and their achievements.

“Women’s Day celebrates women’s emancipation and empowerment. This day also marks the celebration of social, economic, cultural and political achievements of the woman of today,” said Padhi, citing examples of women who had left their footprints in the sands of time. School principal Arun Prakash also highlighted the importance of the day, focussing on an egalitarian society.