In memoriam

The occasion also observes the 20th death anniversary of Kathak maestro Pt. Durga Lalji of the Jaipur Gharana,in whose memory the festival was first started two decades back. Uma Dogra,the brain behind the event says,“The festival began as a tribute to my revered guruji,after his death 20-years ago. I am the first Ganda Bandh Shagird of Pandit Durga Lalji,which is when the guru accepts a student as a part of his ‘gharana’ and blesses him/her to continue his legacy ahead.”

The event will feature performances from the Nad-Roop troupe and a solo by Uma Dogra. The Rain Drop festival has been an active stage for artistes to perform. In it’s history so far,close to 200 artists have performed at the event. “This year the idea was to make it big. We are performing in three more cities of Maharashtra apart from Pune – Mumbai,where the show was held in July,Nagpur and Nashik,” says Dogra.

Ameera Patankar,who has been a student with the institute for the past nine years,elaborates,saying,“We will begin the performance with a Guru Vandana. This will be followed by a performance style called Chatarang,where four elements of dance blend in. We will also perform a bhajan called Bitarit Karai Murali Gati,which praises Lord Krishna and celebrates the hypnotic effect of his murali vaadan on the people,animals,and even the trees around.”

There is a well-entrenched audience that follows the Kathak form of dance,and the burgeoning number of Kathak institutes in the city are testimony to it’s popularity amongst the city folks. The students of the institutes swear by the expert faculty available to them to train and ingrain in them the intricacies and legacy of the art form. Uma Dogra is a renowned exponent of Kathak and has been acknowledged as ‘Pandita’ in honour of her virtuosity. “I will be performing on a few my guru’s compositions,and will also present a few Abhinaya pieces,which are my forté,” says Dogra. The last segment of the event will showcase a film titled Nirvana through Dance – Pt. Durga Lalji,which has been conceived and produced by Dogra. “It is a documentary style presentation which features glimpses of his performances. Many other maestros pay tribute to guruji’s legacy in the film. It is my perspective of my guru,the impressions I made of him when I met him. It is a student’s emotional and reverential tribute to a beloved teacher,” explains Dogra who will be performing along with her student Rachna Parulkar.

(The programme will be held on on August 7,from 5.30 pm onwards,at Tilak Smarak Mandir)