SPIC MACAY concerts enthrall audience at
IIM Kozhikode
 

Press Release

KOZHIKODE, September 21: Budding managers at the Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode got a taste of India's unique styles of classical music and dance at the concerts organized by the IIMK chapter of the Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music And Culture Amongst Youth (SPIC MACAY). The programmes included a performance of traditional Manganiar music and dance of Rajasthan on Monday, 18^th September and an Odissi dance performance by the famed danseuse Smt. Sujata Misra on Wednesday, 20 ^th September. The programmes were held at the Institute's campus at Kunnamangalam, as a part of Virasat 2006 a nationwide series of programmes being organized by SPIC MACAY.

Monday night saw the institute auditorium come alive to the tunes of traditional Rajasthani music performed by Roje Khan Manganiar and his group of artistes. Having performed in various countries across Europe, America and Asia, the Manganiars represent a traditional Rajasthani singer group, residing primarily in Barmer and Jaisalmer districts of Rajasthan. Due to the high patronage of the art, these dances and music are presented on various religious and traditional functions throughout the stste.

Using a variety of traditional instruments like the Kamayacha, Khadtal, Dholak and Shehnai; the musicians breathed life into renditions of century old traditional Rajasthani folk music compositions including the ones popularized by Bollywood such as 'Nimbooda' and 'Damadam Mast Kalandar'. Accompanying the musicians were two talented dancers who captivated the audience with their flawless performance of the Kalbeliya Dance where the specialty is a display of artistic bends of their body to perform acrobatics to the tunes of the music and included among others, the artiste bending backwards to collect currency notes or lifting rings using the eyes from the floor. They also performed the Bhawai Dance where the artiste danced with 11 pots on her head and did many feats like dancing while standing atop plates, glasses and swords. There was also a performance of the Terahrali Dance wherein the dancer wore 13 pairs of manjiras and performed in sync with the fast paced music with a 'pooja-thali' on her head.

The second part of the two-day series saw a highly entertaining and interactive performance by the famed Odissi danseuse Smt. Sujata Mishra who explained the nuances of the traditional dance form of Orissa. She started off, much to the surprise of the audience by calling for volunteers on stage with whom she tried to explain the various aspects of Odissi. This was followed by a beautiful lecture-demonstration of the various 'bhangis' of Odissi. She explained that the beauty of the traditional dance forms is that we can tell a story through music and movements of the body alone… movements in space and in time.

Accompanied by Shri. Manoj Kumar Behera on the manjira, Shri. Prashant Padhi on the violin , Shri. Dibakar Parida on the pakhwaj and the vocals of Shri. Nimakanta Routray; she proceeded on to performances of  Nayika, Abhinaya and Kanhaiya bringing to life the mythological stories of Shri Krishna and Sita Swayamvara. She then carried onto Thandava, the eternal dance form of Lord Shiva. Unlike traditional dance performances, Smt. Sujata's session was highly interactive and informative in nature, as she explained in detail the beauty and intricacies of each of the items that she performed, thus ensuring that the audience truly appreciate the beauty of the dance form.  The evening ended with Mokshya, a beautiful instrumental number by Shri. Prashant Padhi on the violin; wherein she requested the audience to close their eyes and intently listen to the soulful music.

A dancer par excellence Smt. Sujata Mishra is a multi-faceted personality - a scholar of tribal dance forms, a teacher, a choreographer, a producer of an award-winning feature film in Oriya and a recipient of several awards.  Introduced to the dance form by the late Dr. Debaprasad Das,  Sujata Mishra's dance style is earthy, more true to the tradition of Orissa without being affected by modernity. In recognition of her contribution to Odissi dance, she received the Babita Smruti Samman from Tridhara & Debaprasad Kala Tirtha in March 2004; as well as the Sur Shringar Sansad Award in 2004. Determined to encourage the youth to learn Odissi, she started her own dance school 'Mokshya' in 2001. Today, Mokshya functions as a charitable trust and aims to revive the cultural scenario in the country by spotting new talents. Mokshya also arranges interactive camps that brings together the older and the younger generation of artists from various fields.

The programme was attended by staff and students of IIMK and students from Calicut Medical College. Speaking to Smt. Mishra; Harshal Kalamkar, a second year PGDM student of IIMK said "The dance performance was so perfect that it was self explanatory. The interactive nature of the event ensured that we fully appreciate the beauty of the dance form."

Speaking on the occasion, Prof. S S Sane; Students' Affairs Chairperson, IIMK, congratulated the SPICMACAY team of IIMK and said that such avenues are a great opportunity for us to get to know and appreciate our rich classical art forms.

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For Digital Photographs, please get in touch with:
Kaushik Pal
Mobile: 9895662921
E-mail: spicmacay@iimk.ac.in

Contributed by:
Rakesh E R
9895026412 (M)

E-mail: media@iimk.ac.in
Website: www.iimk.ac.in
 

Source: By E-mail (September 21, 2006)

published on IndianMBA.com on September 21, 2006

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