Disciples of Ustad Kamal Sabri perfromed at the Youth Festival in Delhi

The biting cold failed to keep Dilli’s music lovers away as many gathered at Central Park in Connaught Place for the Youth Festival recently.
DANCING ON THALIS
The festival kicked-off with a Sarangi ensemble by disciples of Ustad Kamal Sabri, much to the delight of Indian classical connoisseurs. This was followed by a contemporary dance performance by Santosh Nair’s disciples.All eyes and camera phones were focussed on the stage during the kuchipudi performance by disciples of Jayaram Rao and Vanshree Rao, which had dancers on brass thalis. The perfect coordination displayed by the performers continued in the next act as well – a Bharatanatyam dance performance by the disciples of Saroja Vaidyanathan. Nawaz Sabri and his group also made everyone clap along to their qawwali beats.
GIVING B-TOWN NUMBERS A CLASSICAL TOUCH
The graceful and energetic contemporary dance performance, which had elements of martial arts moves from Odisha, enthralled the crowd with moves choreographed by Neha Singh. “It is commendable how well these kids are performing despite the cold,” said Shalini Khanna, before cheering the performers on. But the highlight of the evening was the dance performance by children from Butterflies, an NGO for street children. The kids presented a skit about classical dancers being asked to dance to Bollywood numbers while participating in a reality show. As they did semi-classical steps on songs like Right Here Right Now and Hawa Ke Jhonke Aaj, the cheering didn’t cease. “They did an amazing job,” said Sangeeta, one of the audience members.