Dancers of Rani Karnaa’s troupe perform at Konark Dance Festival

Bhubaneswar, Dec. 6: The five-day long Konark festival, one of the most famous national classical dance events in the country, concluded on Thursday. This year the festival was a low-key affair.

Organised by the tourism department, in association with the department of culture, Odisha Sangeet Natak Academy and Odisha Tourism Development Corporation, the festival, as always was hosted near the Konark temple that was set as the beautiful backdrop for the stage.

On the concluding evening, veteran Kathak dancer Rani Karnaa’s troupe showcased their repertoire. Starting off with a Shiv vandana, where in the artistes invoked Lord Shiv, the troupe went on to display Kathak movements in the dance items that followed.

These included a chaar taal ki savari and drut teentaal, both based on the changing pace of movements, mainly feet and hands, with the varying pattern of rhythm.

The dancers also presented enactments such as the Raas Sanyog Sringar that was set as a Lakshan Geet, depicting various nuances of Kathak dance tradition. The most loved item of Kathak, tarana, that is usually an intricate dance sequence, was performed on raag Hindol. A pleasant piece of choreography by Rani Karnaa was the chaturang that was the concluding item of the Kathak recital.

As is the tradition, the artistes of Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Odissi Research Centre of Bhubaneswar staged the final act of the event. They performed a dance drama titled Ekamra Leela that was adapted from Shivaleelamritam, a Sanskrit kavya by the 18th century poet Agnichit Nityananda Pandit.

The tale of devotion towards Lord Shiva in ancient times of Odisha was conceptualised by veteran Odissi musician Ramhari Das on the script of Pandit Nityananda Mishra. The music was composed by Swapneswar Charaborty, while the rhythm was designed by Sachidananda Das. The item was choreographed by Muktilata Pal.

It was also the concluding day for the Internation Sand Art Festival, which was being held simultaneously on Chandrabhaga beach. On the final day, the results of the National Sand Art Festival were also announced.

All Odia sand artists took the honours. Subala Maharana of Bhubaneswar won the top honour, while Puri-based sand sculptors Jitendra Kishore Jagdev and Badal Tarai stood first and second runners up.

Tourists visited the festival in good numbers and appreciated the art forms presented in the festival.

“The wide range of classical dances showcased at the festival helped us explore the diversity in art forms of our country,” said Nutan Kashyap, a tourist from Maharashtra.

Dancers of Rani Karnaa and Odissi Research Centre’s troupes perform on the concluding day. Picture by Sarat Patra