To celebrate the 75th year of Independence under the banner of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, Sangeet Natak Akademi, an autonomous body of the Ministry of Culture, the Government of India is organizing Kalanjali, a unique cultural spectacle as part of the ‘Amrit Yuva Kalotsav’ - a series of festivals showcasing young artists and the continuum of our myriad performing art genres, traditions, and expressions on 29 and 30 April 2023 at the Kartavya Path, Central Vista, India Gate, New Delhi. The program details are as follows:
Programme: 6.30 pm daily
Saturday, 29 April 2023
Mayur Raas of Uttar Pradesh by the artists of Umashankar Deshala and Group, Mathura
The Mayur Raas dance is created from an episode in the love lore of Radha and Krishna: Radha, pining for Krishna after a brief separation, decides to console herself by the sight of peacocks, whose feathers Krishna wears on his crown, at the Mor Kuti pavilion. Krishna, knowing her mind from afar, playfully causes the peacocks to disappear, leaving Radha distraught. He eventually yields to Radha’s entreaties and appears in the guise of a peacock to dance with his beloved. This dance belongs to the Braj region of Uttar Pradesh with its core at Mathura and Vrindavan, places associated with Lord Krishna.
Parikrama – a Kathak dance choreography by the artists of Upasana Centre for Dance, Kolkata
Synopsis of the Item: Life is a journey. A journey is never without a destination. When the journey and destination both coalesce the cycle is complete. And the divine descends.
Everything moves in these whirls in their destined determined orbits. The nascent dawn and the melancholy dusk; the omnipotent Sun and the frail earth; the malevolent happiness and the feminine agony. Everything. We thus are God's journeymen. Blessed in our lives. For Him, we traverse such miles. Life remains an infinite track between the blurred past and the un-harboured future. It's always an ever-endless Parikrama.
Concept, Choreography, and Direction - Shri Ashimbandhu Bhattacharjee
Name of the dancers: Ranjani Bhattacharjee, Madhuka Dutta, Trisha Chatterjee, Anwita Saha, Durjaya Bardhan, Sandip Sarkar, Susanta Ghosh, Shubhradip Shaw, Avik Chaki,
Sunday, 30 April 2023
Phag Dance of Haryana by the artists of Sandeep Sharma and Group, Rohtak
Phag dance also known as Faag or Phaag dance is a popular folk dance form of Haryana. This folk dance is performed by the agricultural community of Haryana. Phag dance is celebrated primarily in the months of February and March. These months fall in Falgun month in the Hindu calendar, which has lent its name to the dance. It is a mixed dance involving men and women but is sometimes performed by men only. Both men and women wear colorful clothes. The dance accompanies drumming on the Tasha, Nagada, and Dhol.
Tritatvam - Trinity in Tandem – a dance choreography of Bharatanatyam, Kathak, and Odissi
by the artists of Kalavardhini Charitable Trust, Pune
Tritatvam is a concept visualized to present the varied themes through 3 dance styles such as Bharatanatyam, Odissi, and Kathak. The concept is based on the power of the Trinity, something we all subconsciously observe around us. We intend to present the different Threes - the three important deities of Indian dance (Shiva, Krishna, and Devi). All of these would be presented in the three different Indian classical dance styles – Bharatnatyam, Kathak, and Odissi. While the medium of expression is the same, there is a variety in the music, language, movements, and pace, thus creating different emotional patterns in the viewers' minds. This showcases the purest form of upbeat rhythm and dynamic vibrancy of Indian dance. Also, there are a variety of themes depicted that showcase the diversity of Indian art and an apt representation of the principles they represent.
Concept, Choreography, and Direction - Arundhati Patwardhan, Rasika Gumaste, and Asmita Thakur
Name of the dancers: Gauri Abhishek Shukla, Sai Mangesh Bakshi, Shariva Chandrakant Ponkshe, Surabhi Kiran Kulkarni, Sayli kedar Kane, Sagarika Patwardhan