Odissi fest makes online debut, receives positive response

Bhubaneswar: The first presentation of Udayraga, the online dance festival of Orissa Dance Academy (ODA), left dance connoisseur Nivedita Scudder (72), a teacher, wanting more. “In an auditorium, we get distracted by the movement of people and sounds, but there are no such disturbances in the digital format. I watched the performance in one go,” said Nivedita, who watched the first video of the festival on YouTube.

Besides Nivedita, many others have watched the performance by dancer Leema Bhol (40) on YouTube and Facebook since Friday evening. Thrilled viewers were generous in their comments, with most looking forward to subsequent videos. One viewer suggested that the government should provide an auditorium for the videos to be recorded in.

“Some of my acquaintances told me that my expressions in Manini were better and more mature than when I first performed on this composition 15 years ago,” said Leema.

Manini is an Abhinaya-based piece on the works of Odia poets Bhaktakabi Banamali Das and Gopalakrushna. It has been choreographed by the late Guru Gangadhar Pradhan. The digital version of Manini was hosted by

Odissi

dancer Sripunya Mohanty, who spoke both about the composition as well as introduced Leema.

“In the live performance, I would get to see the stage, the musicians and lighting effects. In the digital format, your viewing choices are guided by the camera. But the online dance festival is the best option during Covid,” said Khirod Pattnaik (65), a behavioural science consultant and a regular at Odissi dance performances.

For the recording, Leema had to dance twice to provide different kinds of shots on recorded music. Currently, the ODA is using four technical persons to record and edit the videos at danseuse Aruna Mohanty’s home. “Before the video is recorded, I supervise the performing artist for a week, but after that they have to practise. After the first presentation, we have received suggestions on improving the backdrop,” said Aruna.

In the subsequent videos to be uploaded on July 17, July 24 and July 31, the ODA will be presenting Odissi dancers Subham Kumar Ojha, Arupa Gayatri Panda and Abhishree Priyadarshini respectively. Many more dancers have been selected from India and abroad for the festival that will go on till December.


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