Feats of Grace

The sound of the ghungroos is ready to resonate in the ruins of Purana Qila,yet again. Known for celebration of a variety of classical dance forms every year,Ananya Dance Festival,completes a decade this year. With the magnificent Purana Qila in the backdrop,the five-day festival organised by Delhi-based organisation Seher,begins on October 1,and will have a series of noted performers taking the stage. Talking about the change in the viewership of the dance festival over the years,Sanjeev Bhargava,director of Seher says,“Over the last ten years,we have seen a gradual,yet complete change in the profile of the audience. One can spot the younger lot,the kind of crowd,usually not seen attending these kind of events.”

The festival will open with a performance by Odissi exponent,Aruna Mohanty,who will enthrall the audience with the ‘grammer,music and structure of Odissi’. “It’s a historical site and a perfect venue for a classical dancer. As for the new generation,they are different and would probably like to see something which is more relevant to their times,” said Mohanty.

While the second day will see a Kuchipudi rendition by Vyjayanthi Kashi,whose choreography is known for its theatrical and experimental elements,day three will open with a performance by Kathak dancer,Vaswati Misra,who will perform some of her shorter works. Day four will have Priya Venkataraman,a Bharatanatyam dancer,who will perform the traditional Mallari and Nrityaharam,a specially composed,site-specific piece,amomg other pieces.

The finale performance will be by Parwati Dutta,who specialises in Kathak and Odissi. She will be performing Sannidhi,an amalgamation of seven classical dance forms. “In this production,the seven sacred rivers will represent the seven Indian classical dances. A tradition is often metaphorically correlated with a river that flows with time and nourishes mankind,” says Dutta.

The festival will take place at Purana Qila at 7 p.m. Entry is free