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Anjali: Homage to Odissi Guru Sri Deba Prasad Das Review by Tan Ju An
 The full-house crowd was clearly waiting in anticipation for the start of the dance. Anjali: Homage to Odissi Guru Sri Deba Prasad Das. I was glad to note that the dance, though classical Indian, attracted fans from other races and other countries steadily fills up the auditorium.The opening notes by the musical team of Guru Durga Charan Ranbir on cymbals, Dhaneswar Swain on mardal, Dheeraj Kumar Mohapatra on vocals, Abhiram Nanda on flute and Kalpana Paranjothy on sitar silenced the crowd. The unmistaken jingles as the dancers made their way centre stage into the spotlight signals the beginning for a night to remember. The narration by Sukania Venugopal prepared me for a strong entrance and I was not disappointed as the dancers clearly put their hearts out for the first scene which is the Surya Upasana. The colorful costume which they don provided a contrast to the sorrowful tune belted by Abhiram Nanda as the dancers beautifully swayed to the haunting tune.. It could be due to opening night jitters, but I did not get the impression that the first scene was well-rehearsed. There was also lack of chemistry amongst the dancers and some of the poses were not tightly formed.  The next scene, titled Krishna Nata, portrays a love story that is told by the movements of Leesa Mohanty and Parveen Nair. Both of them performed the gentle courtship portraying emotions of shyness and happiness as they exchanged tender caresses. As they ran off-stage, I wished that it was just a chasing game but the sound of applause from the crowd marred that hope and I was stuck with a longing feeling.
The next item portrayed devotion towards the male lead, as the female dancers formed a merry circle around him. The hands of the female dancers constantly reached out willing for him to acknowledge their existence even if it’s just for a brief moment. He in turn does not disappoint them and shows off his affection to all of them.
Geeta Govinda depicts a different Krishna – one who struggles to win back the love of Radha who has again fallen into her insecurities when she sees Krishna succumbed to other devotes. Her anger, jealousy, sadness, resignation and helplessness stirred pitied emotions in me. Radha’s refusal to forgive him and going as far as trying to end her own misery proved just how much she was hurt by his actions. After numerous attempts by Krishna, she finally realizes that she is the one who should understand Krishna’s deity responsibilities. Radha is finally free of her rage.  In this next scene, the dancers, Leena Mohanty, Gayatri Ranbir, Daisygarani Tamilselvam and Nritta Ganeshi Manoharan skillfully portrayed the Lords Murari, Govinda, Damodara and Madhava respectively. Once again the music composed by Sri Nirmal Kumar Mohapatra accompanied the dance as it sets the pace of the dancers in displaying their actions.The two dancers in Ardhanariswara symbolized chemistry, as they seem to complement each other very well. Ardhanariswara tells a story of the relationship of Shiva and Parvati and how they came together as the ‘auspicious, kind, and gracious god and a ’supreme goddess’. The swift moves and formation changes between them were done smoothly. In the following scene, the lights and the fast-paced and loud music set the mood for Jaya Bhagavati Devi. The entrance was strong as images of slavery, war, terror and power were shown in the various formations and motions. It truly embodies the meaning of being a Goddess who is feared and at the same time drives a parallel expression of adoration. The scene is a definite eye-opener to why we worship the gods.
 The final dance, Moksha, which was choreographed by the great Guru Sri Deba Prasad Das was performed by all eleven dancers. I was intrigued by Sukania’s narration, “…parallel to the concept of Mokshya or liberation in Hinduism, is where the dancer attempts to attain liberation or salvation in the ultimate surrender to God through dance.” This particular scene shows just that as they danced with such joy on stage. As the curtain closed and the applause died down, an affirmation came to mind, and that is, it was certainly a night to remember! |
Copyright 2012 Asia Dance Channel