Dance extravaganza with added flavour

Into its 22nd edition, the just concluded annual Konark national dance festival being hosted by Odisha Tourism turned international this year with participation of artistes and a large number of connoisseurs of Indian classical dances from abroad. And India’s first ever  international sand art festival that the hosts of the dance festival launched alongside the five-day dance extravaganza added a distinct dimension to the festival.Planned well in advance unlike the previous years, the festival could feature some of the most prominent dance troupes including Malayasian Odissi dancer Ramli Ibrahim’s Sutra Dance Theatre from Kuala Lumpur that generated much hype among the dance lovers.The five-day festival showcased five of the eight Indian classical dance styles – Kathak, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Bharatanatyam and Mohiniattam – besides the masked Chhau dance of Sareikalla. However, the dance forms of the North East – Manipuri and Sattriya – were conspicuously missing from the festival for the first time this year. Being Odisha’s own dance festival, Odissi continued to be a daily feature of the festival.Captivating Kathak by Aditi Mangaldas and her troupe from New Delhi emerged as the most favourite concert of the audience this year while Odissi by Ratikant Mohapatra’s Srjan troupe from Bhubaneswar, Sasadhar Acharya’s Chhau repertoire from Sareikalla, Kishore Masolikanti’s Kuchipudi troupe from Chennai and Mohiniattam by Neena Prasad and troupe from Thiruvananthapuram won their appreciation. However, three of the well-known troupes – Kalakshetra from Chennai (Bharatanatyam), Odissi Vision and Movement Centre, Kolkata of Sharmila Biswas and Ramli’s Sutra did not live up to expectations.A jugalbandi of art and dance was staged during the festival this year. While the troupes performed at the amphitheatre, Odisha’s well-known artist Baladev Moharatha painted his impressions on the canvas on-the-spot. An art exhibition of paintings by the artists of Odisha and an exhibition of crafts and handlooms were the other additional features of the festival.However, it was the sand art festival at the Chandrabhaga beach that pulled the maximum footfall. Six sand artists from abroad and 24 from various parts of the country including the largest contingent from Odisha participated in this ambitious event that had a competition section among the participants from within India.