A classical dance fest, just for men

BHUBANESWAR - This Orissa capital is all set to host a three-day classical dance festival from Jan 27 featuring styles like Odissi, Bharatanatyam and Kathak — featuring only male dancers.

This unusual dance festival has been organised for the past three years by Srjan, the dance institute founded by eminent Odissi guru Kelucharan Mohapatra. The event is called Marga Darshana Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Purush Dance Festival.

“In the world of dance performances, the avenues for male dancers are sadly very limited. The need of the hour is to create a viable platform to showcase the talent and capacity of good male dancers,” Ratikant Mohapatra, son of Kelucharan Mohapatra and director of Srjan, told IANS Friday.

“It is an attempt to revive the all-important role of the male solo dancer in the classical idiom,” he said.

“History demonstrates that it is the male guru who has carried the tradition down the ages. Hence, it is urgently required that the male dancer be accorded the rightful status and opportunity that he deserves,” he added.

This year’s fest will see nine dancers perform different classical dance forms at the city’s Jaydev Bhaban.

Dance styles like Odissi, Bharatanatyam, Kathak and Kuchipudi would be performed by dancers from Orissa, West Bengal, Karnataka and Delhi, he said.

Apart from the performances, noted dance critic Ashish Khokar would deliver a lecture on male dancers, Mohapatra added.