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 Celebrations in North Bengal in honour of Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra- Shyamhari Chakrae-mail: shyamharichakra@gmail.com Photos: Satyajit Sarkar February 18, 2026 North Bengal Chapters of Odissi Dancers' Council of Kolkata and India International Dance festival (IIDF) came together to host a two-day dance festival in the Himalayan foothill city of Siliguri recently in honour of Odissi legend Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra whose year-long birth centenary celebrations began on January 8 this year. Though both the Chapters belong to two different outfits - the Council promoting Odissi dance across West Bengal while IIDF, a countrywide network of 12 city chapters bringing classical, folk, tribal and contemporary dance forms together onto a single platform - the two events had a common thread. Both the events were mounted as a tribute to the Odissi legend at Dinabandhu Manch, the city's cultural hub, with eminent Odissi exponent Guru Aruna Mohanty from Odisha as the chief guest while several dancers performed in both the festivals for almost the same audience. Incidentally, the city based popular Odissi dancer Pompi Paul was the chief coordinator of both the festivals as the Convener of IIDF North Bengal Chapter and representative of Odissi Dancers' Council in the twin cities of Siliguri and Jalpaiguri. While Guru Pranati Utsav of the Council staged on day one showcased 19 performances featuring Odissi, Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Mohiniattam and Sattriya dance forms, IIDF staged 24 presentations featuring folk, Sattriya, Mohiniattam, Bharatanatyam, Kathak and Odissi on the second day.  Aruna Mohanty As expected, Odissi exponent Aruna Mohanty was the principal attraction of the event with a peerless performance of her avante garde choreography Pratinayak (Anti-Hero) that highlighted the relevance of darkness that heightens the glory of light. Similarly, Pompi Paul's Kalpodip all-male dancers' Odissi group from Jalpaiguri staged a pulsating performance of Shiv Tandav Stotram, a classic Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra choreography.  All male Odissi ensemble of Kalpodip The Odissi segment further featured Assam's lone professional Odissi dancer and guru Anjanamoyee Saikia and Sabina Sweta Sen Podstawska from Poland in IIDF as soloists. Upcoming soloist Afrin Hossain from Malda town of West Bengal, disciple of Guru Ratikant Mohapatra, proved her potential as a polished and promising dancer. Similarly, two budding soloists - Simontini Mani and Debatri Goswami from Kalpodip Odissi institute and disciples of Pompi Paul - stood out for their aesthetic appeal coupled with perfection in presentation.  Sabina Sweta Sen Podstawska Among the many Odissi group presentations, the young brigade of Nataraj Dance Academy from the nondescript Balurghat town of West Bengal's Dakshin Dinajpur district groomed by young male dancer Suman Mondal impressed with their involved dancing with a perfect synchronization.  Noopur Kala Academy Despite having close geographical and cultural proximity to Assam, the land of Sattriya, Siliguri city is yet to have any Sattriya dancer. Thus, the large number of solo and group presentations of Sattriya staged during the two-day event generated much curiosity among the audience and artistes alike. And the seven-member Sattriya troupe from Assam's Dibrugarh based Noopur Kala Academy led by its founder-director Minakhee Gogoi offered them the much desired exposure to the dance tradition in its purest form. Among the six solo performers, young male Sattriya dancer Ayush Dutta was outstanding. In Bharatanatyam segment, four young solo dancers put up neat and impressive performances. They were Mahima, a Merchant Navy officer by profession and a dancer by passion from Mysuru and disciple of M Pankaja Ramakrishnaiah; Hrishita Das and Kasturi Das Barman (both from Siliguri and disciples of Guru Sangita Chaki) and Trishani Biswas, disciple of Ipshita Chakraborty from Siliguri.  Avipsha Adhikari Two tiny girls from Bengal and Assam aged below 10 - Avipsha Adhikari from Siliguri, disciple of Sangita Chaki and Manyata Sharma from Guwahati, disciple of Aligunjan Kalita Mudiar respectively - proved their potential as promising solo dancers. And aptly, both received IIDF Future Face titles from the jury. Seven-year-old Avipsa, the youngest performer in the festival who danced with an amazing degree of involvement, eloquence, command and confidence, could be safely billed as the Find of the Festival.  Sreeja R Krishnan The most mature and moving performance of both the festivals was the solo Mohiniattam recital by Kerala's Sreeja R Krishnan. The Chennai-based alumnae of the prestigious Kerala Kalamandalam, Sreeja has been performing across India winning hearts as a performer and choreographer. Her concerts featured two of her choreographies - Omanathingal Kidavo, a lullaby composed by poet Irayimman Thampi at the behest of the then ruler of Travancore, Maharani Gowri Lakshmi Bayi, to put the baby Swathi Thirunal to sleep, and Sreeman Narayana, an Annamacharya composition of devotion.  Rajbongshi folk dance A fitting finale to the festival was the mesmerizing folk dance presentation of Rajbongshi tribe by Shree Chhanda Dance Academy led by its founder-director Camelia Roy from nearby Maynaguri region that offered glimpses into North Bengal's rich folk culture.  A former journalist with The Indian Express and The Hindu, Shyamhari Chakra is a Delhi-based freelancer who writes on dance. |
