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 Naadam Nrityotsava- Vijay Shankere-mail: vijaydance@gmail.com Photo credit: Suresh Muralidharan and team February 15, 2026 The two day Naadam Nrityotsava showcased the performances by young upcoming dancers and established performers too at the Terna auditorium, Nerul, Navi Mumbai on 27th and 28th December 2025. While the morning sessions commenced with dance competition by participants arriving from various parts of the country, the evening sessions were devoted to performances. It was refreshing to watch teenage dancers dancing with lot of enthusiasm and sincerity. This annual festival is organised by Naadam and the soul behind the festival is accomplished Mohiniattam exponent Vineeta Srinandan and Kerala Natanam exponent from Thiruvananthapuram, Dr Joy Krishnan.  Ratheesh Babu  Nisha Mangalampalli Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi exponent from Bhilai, Guru Ratheesh Babu, enthralled the audience with the rendering of Shankaracharya's interpretation of Bhaja Govindam incorporating the various stages of existence in the life of man, commencing with the birth, childhood, youth, old age and lastly death. The saint proclaims that most men fail to understand the philosophy of life, while chasing momentary pleasure that does not last long. When one surrenders to the lotus feet of the Lord with complete devotion and submission, forming a fine balance between 'karma' (duties) and 'dharma' (rightful and spiritual duties), it's only then that human beings can attain 'anandam' or spiritual bliss. Ratheesh succeeded in projecting various stages of human life with complete involvement and natural abhinaya attracting applause from the audience. Guru Ratheesh is also known as a successful teacher and choreographer, with many students who have become professional dancers. His disciple Nisha Mangalampalli created a fine impact with her technique and clarity of movements. Another highlight performance of the festival was the exposition of Swathi Thirunal's Bhavayami Raghuramam that portrays the complete charitram and life sketch of Lord Rama with the commencement of his birth as the son of Raja Dasharatha, Sita Swayamvaram, Jatayu Moksham, downfall of Ravana and the finale Rama Pattabhishekham takes the audience to a dramatic journey, displayed with dexterity by two commendable performers, Vineeta Srinandan in the Mohiniattam style and Dr Joy Krishnan in the Kerala Natanam style, forming a fine synthesis of elegant and vibrant movements. It was amazing to watch the fine harmony and synchronisation of the two styles, as they merged to form a fine spectacle of the Ramayana. The pinnacle of the performance that shocked the audience was when Joy fell flat on the ground to depict the death of Ravana but stood up within seconds to prove his fine command over body control and 'angika abhinaya'. Incidentally Kerala Natanam is gaining momentum in Kerala and other cities. This style forms a fine technical balance of movements pertaining to Kathakali, Mohiniattam and Bharatanatyam.  Dr. Joy Krishnan & Vineeta Srinandan  Asmita Thakur Pune based accomplished Kathak exponent Asmita Thakur commenced her performance with the ashtapadi by poet Jayadeva "Shrita kamala kucha mandala" that describes the beautiful divine presence of Lord Krishna, invoking his avatars, while incorporating the significance of his divine intervention. The next two compositions were by Pt Bindadin Maharaj, the first being "Pragate Braj Nandlala" that establishes the vatsalya rasa and the emotional bonding between Yashoda and the child Krishna; the second a 'Sadara' bandhish set to jhaptaal that showcased the pure aspect of kathak, clarity in taal, laya and precise footwork. The enriched intricate rhythm was composed by Pt Suresh Talwalkar. Asmita's commendable performance revealed her command over rhythm and the technique of Kathak.  Smriti Vaghela  Rasika Gumaste Dr Smriti Vaghela from Baroda and Rasika Gumaste from Pune impressed the audience in their flawless performances in Bharatanatyam and Odissi styles respectively. Aishwarya Harish performed Bharata Nrityam incorporating nritta karanas and the undulating torso movements with effortless ease and elegance, revealing her command over the dance style.  Aishwarya Harish  Tamanna Nair Guru Tamanna Nair attracted the attention of the spectators with an unusual number, Devarnama in praise of Lord Krishna, composition of Purandara Dasa "Gummana karayadire" in which mother Yashoda tries to control the mischief of little Krishna by telling him to behave properly, otherwise she would call the Gumma (demon) and the abhang "Yee hey ho Vitthala" by saint Namdev in which he preaches that utmost devotion is necessary to express godliness. Tamanna is also an accomplished voice over artiste and actress. The first prize winner of Bharatanatyam in the teenage category was Harini from Coimbatore. The other prize winners of the dance competition were Yutika Jha, Siddhi Narayankar, Avni Verma, Sreelakshmi Damodaran, Tanishka, Lakitha, Rajalakshmi and Revathi Iyer, Jhanak Hadap, Vaishnavi Suraj, Sanjana Srinandan, Chethana and Sanjana Arun, Shubha Murthy, Urzapriyadarshini, TD Meenakshi, Bhagya Nair, Adwita Nikam, Aparajita M, Mokshita and Aditi Ashwin. The group performances by Nalanda Bharatanatyan Nritya Niketan and Akansha Odissi Nrityalaya were commendable. It's heart warming to note that dancers are providing platforms to upcoming dancers and aspirants.  Vijay Shankar is a Kuchipudi and Kathakali exponent, teacher, bilingual journalist, arts critic and actor. |
