Srjan artistes perform at the Mukteshwar dance festival. Telegraph picture

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 17: The three-day Mukteshwar dance festival concluded here on Thursday evening. The festival was organised by Odisha tourism near the beautiful Mukteshwar temple.

A chorus dedicated to Lord Shiv marked the opening of the dance concert while veteran Odissi danseuse Jhelum Paranjape was the solo artiste for the final evening. She presented a Shiva Upasana Stotra followed by a touching abhinaya on Dhira Sameere, a romantic poem from Geeta Govinda.

Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra had choreographed the dance and music was by Pandit Bhubaneswar Mishra. Odissi couple Manoranjan Pradhan and Minati Pradhan presented an invocation to Lord Shiv on the song Nagendra Haraya that described the appearance of the deity and his nature.

The duet segment continued with their second dance sequence when they enacted the tragic tale of the devotee Jatayu who, despite being an old eagle, tried his best to save Sita from being abducted by Ravan.

The festival came to a befitting end by the well-groomed artistes of city-based Srjan troupe.

They began their performance with a patriotic composition Bande Mataram and then showcased a beautiful Hansadhawani Pallavi that was well co-ordinated and included innovative formations by the artistes on the stage. Their last item was Ardhanariswara that received appreciation from the viewers.

Earlier on Wednesday, Lakshmikanta Palit and his troupe presented the musical chorus as a tribute to Lord Shiv. Young dancer Saswat Joshi was the solo artiste on the second day. In the opening invocatory piece Rama Bibhu Namami, he presented a sequence dedicated to Lord Ram and Lord Shiv. He then depicted the struggles of mythological hero Karna in his abhinaya.

Shalakha Rai and Shobha Bisht from New Delhi staged the duet.

They started with a medley of mangalacharan or opening recitals that included Puspanjali, Matrubandana and Shree Jagannath Stutee.

They also showcased a pure dance item Ragamalika Pallavi that was choreographed by Guru Madhavi Mudgal and the music rendered by Anup Mudgal.

The concluding item was a group performance presented by Tridhara, Bhubaneswar.

“The festival witnessed 7,877 domestic and 99 foreign audience members,” said a tourism department official.