The first edition of Takita Dhin: The Inter-school Choreographic Classical Dance Competition, hosted by Calcutta School of Music, was an attempt to highlight the rich cultural heritage of Indian classical dance.

The day-long programme at Sandre Hall was a collaborative effort by FREED and the Indian dance and music section of Calcutta School of Music. The theme was Panchali: Gender Roles, Relationships and Empowerment and the 13 participating schools put their best foot forward to portray it on stage.

A total of 13 schools including teams from Modern High School for Girls, The BSS School, Adamas International School, Hariyana Vidya Mandir, Lakshmipat Singhania Academy, Shri Shikshayatan, DPS Howrah, Dolna Day School and more, took part in the competition.

Adamas International School was declared the winner for its depiction of the theme through Draupadi's appeal to Lord Krishna for protection. "We were not expecting the first prize at all and we are thrilled to have made it to the top. We practised for the last two weeks," said Prerana Ghosh, Class VIII.

The team from DPS Howrah gave a unique touch to the theme as they focussed on women's empowerment through Panchakanya - Ahalya, Tara, Seeta, Mandodari and Draupadi. "We had three to five weeks of practice and the school supported us a lot. It is a really exciting moment for us to be rewarded for all the hard work we have put up on stage," said Purbasha Sen, Class VIII.

Two schools, Dolna Day School and Hariyana Vidya Mandir, shared the third position. The all-boys' team from Dolna Day School mesmerised all with their Kathakali performance to Tagore's Sankocher biubhalata nijere opoman. "We had a great time on stage and loved performing this dance form. We practised for almost a month," said Samay Spandan Mohanty, Class VI.

The team from Hariyana Vidya Mandir presented Krishna Katha in Kathak style. They showed the various stages of Krishna's life. "We were taught this performance in school. A month's practice and hard work helped us reach this position. We are really excited with our performance today," said Shirin Anwar, Class IX.

The judges for the event were dancers Rina Jana, Luna Pan and Malabika Sen. "The theme was Panchali and the teams tried to express the theme through various stories. Women's empowerment was one of the predominant expressions that we saw. A lot of teams deviated from the theme but all the performances are proof to the amount of thought and vision that has gone behind each of them. This is a celebration of classical dance and they have tried to keep the elements of classical dance in most of the performances," said Sen.

For Jita Roy Chowdhury and Sunita Chowdhurie, the conveners of the event, it was a celebration of Indian classical dance and they were overwhelmed with the performances they witnessed on stage. "We felt that this is an important subject for young people to explore, given the dynamic nature of not only our social structure today but also our inter-personal relationships. Through the character of Draupadi, who symbolised the many-hued nature of not only womanhood but humankind in general, we would like the students to examine their own lives, attitudes and beliefs and establish what they would like the world order to be," Chowdhurie said.

Chief guest and dancer Priti Patel encouraged kids to pursue dance as a career. "It is wonderful to see such initiatives. Our country has a very rich heritage of literature, music and dance. Everyone has danced beautifully today. I wish more and more people join the spectrum of dance be it as a dancer, teacher, photographer, filmmaker etc. We want more and more participation," she added.

It was also a proud moment for the Calcutta School of Music. "I saw a lot of wonderful performances today. The students have performed with so much zeal, research and practice. Calcutta School of Music will put in solid support for this initiative. We are happy that it happened on our centenary year," said Dickoo Nowroji, the president of Calcutta School of Music.

Dahlia Raut, the head of the Indian classical dance and music section at Calcutta School of Music, too was there to encourage the participants.