Classical Recital & Dance Dramas Mesmerize Audience at OMC-Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Award Festival

Bhubaneswar, September 7: Enchanted by the hypnotic brilliance of the Carnatic Violin duo of  Lalgudi GJR Krishnan and Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi, preceded by the inaugural Odissi recital of Shashwati Garai Ghosh, the first day of the 29th edition of the OMC Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Award Festival came to an end.

The second evening commenced with the lighting of the lamp by the chief guests Ashwini Kumar Patra, Minister of State, Tourism, Odia Literature Language and Culture, Excise; Sudhi Ranjan Mishra, Head, Corporate Affairs, Paradeep Phosphates Limited; Manoj Sharma, General Manager, East Coast Railway; Pandit Lakshmikant Palit, Eminent Music Composer and Singer; and Guru Ratikant Mohapatra, Festival Director.

The programme commenced with a solo Kathak dance recital by Shila Mehta, renowned Kathak exponent of the Lucknow Gharana and the founder-director of Nupur Zankar Academy of Performing Arts and Research Centre, Mumbai. She was accompanied on the live orchestra by Sunando Mukherjee on the Sarod, Vivek Mishra and Amitangshu Kumar Brahma on the Tabla, and Jaydeep Sinha on Vocals.

Her recital comprised three eclectic and beautiful dance presentations that stayed true to the integrity of her Gharana. Commencing with the powerful Shiva Stuti, the dance and music composition of which were directed by her Guru, the renowned Pt. Vijay Shankar, Shila Mehta later moved on to an eclectic Bhava Tihai in Teen Taal, illustrating pure nritta sequences characteristic to Kathak, portraying Gopucha—the gaits of different animals, representing the rhythmic flow and ebb of the waves of the ocean through the movement oeuvre of Kathak, and bringing life to the bhava of the episode of Sita Haran from the Ramayana. In the style of the legendary maestro Pt. Birju Maharaj, the incredible vitality of life was brought to the fore through the subtleties and nuances of the Kathak idiom as Shila Mehta’s years of experience immensely enhanced the aesthetics of the performance.

Her third and final presentation was Geetasara, the epic dialogue between Lord Krishna and Arjuna and the episode of the Vishwarupa Darshana. This exploration into the divine vision that Arjuna was bestowed with was a befitting finale to the dance recital. The synchronous musical accompaniment, dramatic lighting, and appealing stage effects added to the climax of this composition.

The second recital for the evening was by feted Hindustani Vocalist and torchbearer of the Kirana Gharana, Jayateerth Mevundi with Smt. Anushula More on the Harmonium and Narahari V. on the Tabla, whose musical accompaniment added great depth to Jayateerth Mevundi’s harmonious surrender to the divine on the auspicious occasion of Krishna Janmashtami. With a diverse spread of bhajans and presentations in obeisance to the endearing Lord Krishna, Jayateerth Mevundi’s absolute Bhakti enraptured the audience, who were captivated till the very end by his mellifluous voice.

The third evening will feature a Bharatanatyam solo by the renowned  P. Praveen Kumar, known for his technical virtuosity and inspiring professionalism. This will be followed by the Sitar recital of Niladri Kumar, acclaimed world-over for his stellar Sitar performances and his pioneering work on the Zitar.

The artistes were aided by the radiant light designing of Debiprasad Mishra and Sujith Raj, the meticulous sound engineering of Shri C. Anand Krishna and Bharath Krishna, with the elegant and striking visual media, both live and in the background, by Dhilip Kumar. 

The entire festival has been curated, conceptualized, and designed by Guru Ratikant Mohapatra, with the programme execution by  Debiprasad Mishra. Mrutyunjaya Rath ably conducted the proceedings of the evening. The 29th OMC GKCM Award Festival has been  sponsored by Odisha Mining Corporation Ltd. (OMC). The Award Festival is supported by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, and the Odia Language Literature & Culture Department, Government of Odisha.

The event has sponsors, MGM Minerals Limited and Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), and festival sponsors State Bank of India (SBI), Indian Metals and Ferro Alloys Limited (IMFA), Paradeep Phosphates Limited (PPL), and Priyadarshini Handloom, with a special mention to Mishra Group of Companies.

The hospitality sponsors are Mayfair Hotels and Resorts, Swosti Group, and The Royale Midtown Hotel. The Dharitri and Orissa Post newspapers, which enjoy very large circulation all over Odisha, and narthaki.com, the hugely accessible cultural website read worldwide, are the media partners and web partner, respectively.