Dance lovers and culture afficianados of Hyderabad were in for a treat as some of leading dancers in the country gathered to perform at the recently concluded National Dance Festival ‘Udvigna 2021’. With a lineup of top artistes performing live and parched dance buffs making a beeline, cultural fervour returned to the city with a big bang. The three-day dance festival, which took place from December 19-21, saw 12 troupes from across the country perform live and mesmerise the audience with their bewitching footwork, nrtya and abhinaya. From
Kathak
and
Odissi
to Mohiniyattam,
Perini
and
Shiva Tandam
— the repertoire was impressive.
The festival proved to be a welcome relief for performing arts and artistes.
Yamini Reddy
, a recipient of the
Yuva Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
from the city, who performed
Kuchipudi
with her troupe at the festival, said, “For a sector that relies on public gatherings for concerts, the pandemic was a sudden jolt. It has set back the performing arts community greatly. But we have been resilient a lot. Nothing can replace that joyous feeling when you connect with a live audience. It was surreal.”
For some artistes, putting on the makeup to perform live after a long hiatus meant both excitement and anxiousness. “It is always a lovely experience to dance at
Ravindra Bharathi
. Especially in Hyderabad, where you get audiences in large numbers who understand and appreciate dance. I missed performing live in front of such a turnout. I was excited to put on the makeup after a long break. The festival served as a great opportunity to interact with other dancers from all over the country,” said Kalaimamani Dasyam Gopika Varma, Mohiniyattam artist.
The three-day festival was curated by
B Sudheer Rao
, a Kuchipudi teacher from
Warangal
. Adhering to the new pandemic norms, the entire gathering masked up and followed COVID-19 appropriate behaviour. “Organising the National Dance Festival was an enthralling experience. In known history, there has never been such a long break in live performances. We could see the thrill and happiness in everyone who helped us conduct the programme,” said Sudheer.
- Paul Nicodemus
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