|     |
|
| |
 39th Sradhanjali Samaroha by Tridhara, Bhubaneswar- Dr. Nita Vidyarthie-mail: nitavidyarthi@gmail.com Photos courtesy: Tridhara September 3, 2025 The 39th Sradhanjali Samaroha 2025 at the Rabindra Mandap , Bhubaneswar, was organised by the premier Odissi dance institution Tridhara in collaboration with the Odia Language, Literature and Culture Department, Government of Odisha, to pay homage to its founder, the legendary Odissi dance Guru Debaprasad Das, on his death anniversary through dance, under the supervision of the Guru's prime disciple, custodian of the gharana and its present director Guru Gajendra Panda. The main objective of this festival is to keep alive the Guru's style, while popularizing and acquainting the viewers with it. This year, the annual two-day event on 15th and16th July (the Guru's death anniversary) saw more than a thousand artistes of greater than 70 dance institutions out of which 10 were from outside of Odisha and one from the USA. The inaugural morning of July 15 began at 10am and was graced by esteemed guests Chandrasekhar Hota, Secretary, OSNA, Dr. Snehaprava Samantaray, Guru Harihar Mohanty, Guru Niranjan Rout, Guru Dhaneswar Swain, Guru Sachidananda Das, and Pt. Laxmikant Palit. The session was presided over by Simanchal Panda, Working President of Tridhara. The session began with the ceremonial lighting of the lamp by the distinguished guests at Rabindra Mandap, followed by captivating performances by troupes from across India, marking a grand and auspicious beginning to the festival. The afternoon session at 4pm featured more than ten troupes from various parts of Odisha - Bhubaneswar, Burla, Choudwar, Cuttack, and Brahmapur including Surobani Kala Mandir, New Delhi - presenting captivating Odissi and folk dance performances. The evening session commenced with the lighting of the ceremonial lamp by esteemed guests Bibhuti Bhusan Jena, Minister, Dept. of Commerce, Transport, Steel & Mines, and eminent Odissi dance gurus Aruna Mohanty and Ileana Citaristi. A regular feature of honouring distinguished gurus, second generation gurus, troupe leaders and senior artistes, the Guru Debaprasad Nrutya Ratna Award has been introduced for the past few years. This year's Award Distribution Ceremony followed the inauguration of garlanding the portrait of the Guru, thereafter followed by Pushpanjali.  Jaya Ram The first presentation of the evening session was a riveting dance drama "Jaya Ram" by the senior artistes of Tridhara. It was a collage of the key episodes from the Ramayana, conceptualised and directed by Guru Gajendra Panda, portraying Rama as the Maryada Purushuttom. Drawing heavily upon Ram Leela and Rama Natakam, with strong influence from traditional folk forms of Daskathia and Sakhi Nata from Ganjam district, the piece did not replicate the jatra format remaining very much grounded to classical Odissi incorporating elements like the Mangalacharan, Sthayee, Pallavi and other elements of the dance form. It commenced with the benedictory verse invoking Lord Rama - the Mangalacharan 'Shri Rama Dhyana' "Ramam Lakshmanam Purvajam Raghuvaram Sitapati Sundaram Kakustham Karunakaram..." meditating on Lord Rama with the shloka praising his glory and divine attributes and was based on raga Abhiri and Madhyamadi. This was followed by Sita Swayamvara. The music by Guru Gopal Chandra Panda and Guru Gajendra Panda was impactful with Ukuta by Guru Sachidananda Das. Sprinkled with Gajendra Panda's sabdaswara patha, his choreography highlighting Sita Swayamvar based on raga Ghanakesi, especially when Rama lifts the Hara dhanu (the mighty bow) with the lines of poet Lokenath Pattanayak: "Dhanu dharante kare raghumani, kampe dharani Dharu dharu duru netre nirekhile salaje Janaka nandini" Depicting Sita's coy glance at Rama smeared with reverence, it was a dramaturgical delight offering a gripping imagery. Quality performance, skilled dancers and impressive repertoire, especially the royalty of the tall dancer Prabhutosh Panda as Rama, powerfully drew the audience into the narrative and needs special mention.  Dr.Atasi Misra A number of top-grade performances by Gurus and troupes followed next, beginning with 'Rasanubhuti', a solo displaying the navarasa by Jyoti Rout from the US, founder of Jyoti Kalamandir, one of the first dance institutions in that country. Dr.Atasi Misra, back again this year from New Delhi, portrayed vividly the plight of mother Yashoda managing naughty Krishna in "Uthilu ede begi Kanhiki" with her nuanced execution. It was choreographed by Guru Debaprasad Das and directed by Guru Gajendra Panda. Once again, it was a pleasure to watch Aanchal Pandey, now a reputed Odissi and Kathak dancer and a former Odissi student of Guru Gajendra Panda, on stage with her Kathak group of Nrutyadhara, Bilaspur. And truly the Debadhara group from New Delhi trained by Guru Binayak Panda impressed.  Aanchal Pandey & group The program was coordinated by Guru Gajendra Panda and Prabhutosh Panda, the present Assistant Director of Tridhara, the evening being anchored by Punya Darshan Sahoo and Rutuparna Mohapatra.  Bagha Nata & Katha Nritya dancers  Tiger dance by Sameer Dance Centre The second day, the 16th July being the death anniversary of the maestro, the morning session began at 9am with the usual garlanding of the Guru's statue at the premises of Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya by dignitaries, esteemed gurus, distinguished guests, disciples and well-wishers of Guru Debaprasad Das, followed by a short performance, a gala exhibition and a vibrant march through dancing from the Mahavidyalaya to the Rabindra Mandap. Drums have a special place in every culture and as a tool they have existed time immemorial. The marching and dancing along the road with the pulsating beats of the traditional drums of Odisha produced a colourful, carnival effect. The festival began with the presentation of Ghanta Mrudanga Badya (playing of brass gongs and bells and mridanga), Bagha Nata (tiger dance), and Katha Pada Nata of Ganjam. The dancers and dance institutions participating in this morning session were from Sameer Dance Centre of Chhatrapur, who performed energetic "Bagha Nata" dressed as tigers and Katha Pada Nrutya (dancing on wooden stilts) giving an exciting glimpse of the folk culture of Ganjam and Southern Odisha. The morning session continued on reaching Rabindra Mandap with the inaugural performance of "Panchadev", a regular ritualistic invocatory every year, by the Tridhara Junior Group. Thereafter, presentation continued by artistes of Nirjhara Cultural Academy (Bhubaneswar), Nrutya Kala Dance Academy (Cuttack), Guru Savita Mishra and group (Ranchi), Sree Sai Dance Academy (Nirakarpur), Prasannakshee (Brahmapur), Nrutya Prativa (Bhubaneswar), Maa Tarini Nrutya Sikhya Kendra (Ghatgaon), Sur Ghungroo (Redhakhol), Aradhana Princess Dance Academy (Bolgarh), Swara Jhankar (Balangir), Nritya Sreedhara (Raipur) and Nrutyankshi Institute of Odissi Dance (Bhubaneswar). The afternoon session showcased Odissi performances by dancers from six institutions of Bhubaneswar, then from Parlakhemundi, Talcher, Angul, Krushnamani Nrutya Kala Pitha (Puri), Nityanjali Creations (New Delhi), Debdasi and Bharatanatyam by Garia Nataraj Cultural Society, Kolkata.  Bagmishree Das The evening session was in continuity with the previous day's Guru Debaprasad Nrutya Ratna 2025 Award Distribution Ceremony. The performance segment opened with the regular indispensable Odissi dancer Bagmishree Das, granddaughter of Guru Debaprasad Das. She presented a scintillating "Lakshmi Nrusingha Dhyana", one of a masterpiece choreographed by Guru Gajendra Panda embracing raga Mangalagujari and Lalita with music composition of Guru Gopal Chandra Panda set to rhythm by the acclaimed Guru Banamali Maharana.  Tridhara group The dance institutions and dancers who participated in the evening's cultural program were Nupur (Bhubaneswar), which stood out for its item "Barsha" written by poet Mangala Prasad and choreographed by Guru Niranjan Rout, Nrutyashree (Karanjia), Biswanath Sangatalaya (Bhubaneswar), Nrutyanilaya (Angul), Shree Dance Academy (Bhubaneswar), Bhubaneswar Kala Kendra (Bhubaneswar), Debaprasad Kala Tirtha (Brahmapur) and Tridhara (Bhubaneswar). The programme was anchored by Punya Darshan Sahoo.  Dr. Nita Vidyarthi is a veteran critic of performing arts and writes on dance, music and theatre in leading publications. |
