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 Shraddhanjali as a tribute to Pt. Birju Maharaj- Tapati Chowdhuriee-mail: tapatichow@yahoo.co.in January 10, 2026 Artistic Director Paramita Maitra's festival Shraddhanjali celebration to pay a humble tribute to Pt. Birju Maharaj, provided a platform to established and upcoming Kathak dancers - all disciples of the maestro. The festival also provided a platform to Sujata Mohapatra, an ace Odissi performer and Pt. Brajeswar Misra, a Hindustani classical vocalist. To a draw a full house these days, with far too many distraction, is a problem faced by organizers. Paramita Maitra's planning had made sure that the hall was bursting at the seams. Both connoisseurs and the lay audience stayed put till the very end. The very first piece Krishna Vandana was by students trained by Paramita Maitra. The senior students paid their obeisance to Shiva and performed Taal Chhand which was a celebration of rhythm, divinity, and the timeless legacy of Kathak.  Gauri Diwakar The festival gave the audience an opportunity to see the talented Kathaka Gauri Diwakar perform her much acclaimed production 'Hari Ho Gati Meri'- Let my salvation be in You - to Samiullah Khan's composition. The piece is sourced from the lines of poet Sayyad Mubarak Ali Bilgrami. It reflected his love for Krishna which is part of a living tradition of shared heritage and oneness. The piece was in three parts. Resonance, based on the poetry of Sayyad Fazlul Hasan popularly known as Maulana Hasrat Mohani, the work revolved around the eternal resonance of Krishna's flute. The poetry of Malik Muhammad Jayasi unfolded the union of Radha and Krishna. The final part of the production is the eponymous piece 'Hari Ho Gati Meri' - "I search for you elsewhere, ignorant me! Waiting, waiting and letting life go by, while you reside within the deepest core of me. Let my senses be open to you, within me." Gauri's rendition was spectacular in its technique coupled with lyrical expressiveness.  Madhumita Roy Kathak exponent Madhumita Roy has created a niche for herself both as a performer and as a teacher. She has produced a number of good students while at the same time she has kept up with her stage performances. She started with the famous bandish.... "Aba mori baat maan le peharova"... executing thaat, amad, chalan in Vilambit Teentaal with gat nikas in shringar ras. Next she switched to Taal Ddhamar with its immense possibilities and concluded her recital with the famous Gazal "Tanha khud se baat koru" depicting a Nayika yearning for her beloved who has left her. Her subtle expressions with the movement of her eyes, eyebrows, lips and other gestures spoke volumes about her abilities to emote. Dancing flawlessly she mesmerized the audience.  Pt Deepak Maharaj Pt. Deepak Maharaj, Kathak dancer from the Kalka-Bindadin Lucknow Gharana, the son and disciple of Pt Birju Maharaj, carrying forward his father's legacy with poise, precision, and storytelling brilliance did not disappoint the audience. Deepak Maharaj's performance was a blend of rhythmic mastery, expressive abhinaya, and graceful compositions from the Maharaj family repertoire. He commenced his program with "Ham chabi ati bani," before presenting teentaal upaj, thaat, paran, amad, Pancham sawari bol and tehai. Makhan chori gat bhav, though a oft repeated number, blossomed manifold in his hands. Kathak practitioner Arpita Roy- disciple with more than twenty five years of experience, the Artistic Director of Jhanak Dance Academy, Northern Virginia (USA), and a recipient of prestigious UGC scholarships for excellence, made her mark too with her outstanding group of accompanying artistes.  Nilopa Maitra Nilopa Maitra, daughter of Paromita Maitra, is a budding Kathaka with an eye for details. A promising Kathak soloist trained under Paramita Maitra, Pt. Birju Maharaj and Saswati Sen, Nilopa has been recognized for her mature rhythmic precision and emotive abhinaya from a young age. Nilopa's performance began with an engaging musical dialogue between ghungroo, tabla, ghatam and sarod, followed by the shloka "Kari Pranam" which paid her homage to Pt. Birju Maharaj. She then presented shuddha nritya in Teentaal across vilambit, madhya and drut layas, featuring rhythmic exchanges with her able accompanists. An expressive abhinaya piece on Makhan Chori, portraying Yashoda and Krishna, added a narrative dimension. The presentation concluded with a lively sawal-jawab between the percussion and melodic instruments. Accompanied by an accomplished ensemble, Nilopa's performance captured the essence of Kathak's rhythmic dialogue and spiritual depth. She created magic on stage with subtle expressions, quick movements of her limbs and suitable gestures.  Sujata Mohapatra Sujata Mohapatra, disciple of Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra, gave a scintillating Odissi performance. Starting with Guru Vandana, she saluted to the lotus feet of her Guru in raag Bairagi, Bhairavi, Darbari and adi taal to a composition of S. Vignaraja in a choreography of Guru Ratikant Mohapatra. She followed it up with a traditional Hamsadhwani Pallavi in taal Ektali. Sujata began dancing Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra's choreography with slow, delicate movements of her body, neck and smiling eyes, that followed each of her dance phrases, joyfully, weaving intricate rhythms to the melody of Hamsadhwani raga, vocalized by Pt Bhubaneswar Mishra, to a fast paced crescendo which made the rasikas forget their sorrows momentarily. 'Barsha' was based on Ritu Samhara, the immortal work of Kalidas. Monsoon is the season when nature wakes up and displays its many moods of romance and sorrow. Peacocks, deer, elephants and snakes come out to enjoy rain showers. Amidst the gathering rain clouds in the sky accompanied by thunder, the parched earth sprouts new life with glee. Rain also has a destructive side. A raging storm leaving death in its wake is not uncommon. It was compelling piece, effectively danced in Ragamalika and Talamalika.  Pt Brajeswar Mukherjee and Pt. Gourishankar Karmakar Hindustani classical music presentation by Pt. Brajeswar Mukherjee, a senior disciple of Pt Ajoy Chakraborty, interpreted the ragas he sang in phrases that touched your heart. He was accompanied by Pt Gourishankar Karmakar, an acclaimed percussionist admired for his intricate layakari and dynamic rhythmic command. He sang raag Shankara in teental and drut ektal and Meera Bhajan "Bhokhat na binha ki raat" was like an icing on the cake.  Tapati Chowdhurie trained under Guru Gopinath in Madras and was briefly with International Centre for Kathakali in New Delhi. Presently, she is a freelance writer on the performing arts. She is the author of 'Guru Gopinath: The Making of a Legend.' |
