A CULTURAL EXTRAVAGANZA

Indian Habitat Centre in collaboration with Mudra, The classical dance society of Lady Sri Ram College for women conducted a cultural evening of dance and music on 1st April, 2015. The show was graced with the presence of Guru Smt Geetanjali Lal as the chief guest. Guru Smt. Geetanjali Lal is a leading Kathak exponent and has carved out a special niche in the world of Dance.

The show began with an instrumental recital by Amar Sangam and his troop. He performed a solo on the guitar and tenor banjo. Amar Sangam is one of the most prominent artist in the field of music and has performed in Coke Studio and has had the honour of playing with Late Jagjit Singh, Abida Parveen, Pandit Jwala Prasad Ji and various other artists.

This beautiful instrumental was followed by a Sattriya recital by Smt. Anita Sharma and Aarhie Kaushik. Sattriya is the traditional dance form of Assam that was developed under the aegis of Srimanta Sankardev. It was only in the year 2000 that Sattriya was recognized as one of the eight classical dance forms of India. Since then, it has received widespread acclaim and has found a huge audience.

The highlight of the evening was “Shree”, which showcased the portrayal of women in Mythological Epics. The Sattriya dance showed the story of Meera and her devotion to Lord Krishna. The Bhatratnatyam dance form showed the powerful and enchanting story of Draupadi. The Odissi dance form told the story of Urmila, the forgotten hero, whereas, Kathak portrayed the story of Radha. All these dance forms were later amalgamated to show the tale of Chitrangada, someone who every woman could relate to. It showed how every woman has a Kurupa and Surupa in her and how she battles with them.

The show came to an end with the performance by Vidha Lal, who had also choreographed “Shree.” The show received a standing ovation and was appreciated by all.