30th Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Award Festival Ends On An High Note With Award Ceremony And Srjan’s Entrancing Production Tantra

Bhubaneswar : After a week-long celebration of dance and music of the highest calibre, the 30^th Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra (GKCM) Award Festival 2024 at Rabindra Mandap organised by Srjan-Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Odissi Nrityabasa along with the able institutional support of Sri Sri University (SSU), Cuttack, concluded here on Wednesday. The week-long Award Festival came to a close on Wednesday, commencing with the prestigious award ceremony, followed by the much-awaited finale by the Srjan ensemble led by the artistic direction and vision of Ratikant Mohapatra.

As on previous days, the proceedings of the evening began punctually at 7 pm, with the auspicious lighting of the lamp, in the presence of esteemed guests and dignitaries Dr. Smt. Sandhya Purecha, Chairman, Sangeet Natak Akademi Chairman W20-G20 India 2023, and renowned Bharatanatyam exponent and Guru; Smt. Mahasweta Ray, eminent cinema and television actress; and Guru Ratikant Mohapatra, Director, Srjan, and Dean, Faculty of Arts, Communication and Indic Studies, SSU.

The coveted Awards were presented to four iconic figures in India’s and in particular, Odisha’s rich and diverse cultural milieu. The Shalimar Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Awards 2024, carrying a respectable allocation of Rs. 1,00,000/- and a citation, were presented to Smt. Kumkum Lal for her immense contributions to Odissi dance; to Guru Lakshmikanta Palit and Guru Dhaneswar Swain for their lifetime achievements in the field of Music and Percussion, respectively; and to Shri Uttam Mohanty, for his outstanding contributions to the realm of Odia Cinema. Additionally, Shalimar’s Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Yuva Prativa Samman awards, with a cash prize of Rs. 25,000/- and a citation were presented to four exceptionally talented performing artistes under the age of 40 years in the field of classical dance and Odissi music to acknowledge their outstanding performances. Dr. Pompi Paul and Smt. Rajnita Mehra received the same for Odissi dance, while Shri Avijit Das will be honoured for his dedication to Kuchipudi and Shri Rohita Pradhan, to Odissi music (Mardala).

Following the award ceremony, Guru Ratikant Mohapatra’s famed Srjan ensemble presented the dance ballet Tantra, inspired by a spiritual and philosophical tradition that has shaped Indian culture for centuries, since the Vedic times. Contrary to the vilified notion of Tantra that is prevalent globally, Tantra Sadhana is one that teaches that life, in all its material and sensory experiences, must be embraced to transcend worldly attachments. It is a path of discipline through which one progresses to a state of divine liberation. Tantra is embodied as a woman, and the sadhaka cannot attain salvation without the invoking of the omnipotent Mahabhairavi, whose seed sustains the circle of life.

Through this spectacular narrative, Guru Ratikant Mohapatra ventured beyond traditional Odissi, using dance, music, and innovation to express the essence of the profound and timeless subject of Tantra, invoking the divine feminine for the betterment of society and humankind. Presented as an evocative blend of haunting imagery and distinctive elements of Odissi subsumed in the esoteric tradition of Tantra, Srjan’s presentation featured unique embellishments in the music, choreography, and costumes that providing a delightful visual and aesthetic experience to the audience. The dancers, Smt. Sujata Mohapatra, Shri Rajib Bhattacharya, Smt. Rajashri Praharaj, Aishwariya Singhdev, Santosh Ram, Preetisha Mohapatra, G Sanjay, Madhabi Rout, Alisha Dhal, Daina Ghose, Rajkumar Kar, Angelina Pal, Priti Prangya Paikray, Subhashree Senapati, Sushree Sangita Swain, and Amrita Suhani, presented the choreography with wonderful stage presence, energy, and coordination.

The exquisite light arrangement by Shri Debiprasad Mishra and Shri Dilip Kumar, with the thorough and professional sound engineering of Shri C Anand Krishna and Shri Bharath Krishna, provided able audio-visual support to the artistes, delighting the audiences, while Shri Mrutyunjaya Rath ably conducted the proceedings for the evening. The entire festival is meticulously curated and designed by Guru Ratikant Mohapatra, with seamless programme execution by Shri Debiprasad Mishra. The 30^th GKCM Award Festival has received patronage from MGM Minerals Ltd. and Shalimar Chemical Works Pvt. Ltd. Supported by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, and the Department of Odia Literature Language and Culture, Government of Odisha, the gold sponsor of the festival is Odisha Mining Corporation Ltd., and its festival sponsors include Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd., Shalimar’s Coconut Oil, NALCO, SBI, IMFA, Priyadarshini Handloom, and Paradeep Phosphates Limited. The Royale Midtown Hotel is its hospitality partner. Dharitri and OrissaPOST, and Narthaki.com are the media partners and web partner respectively.

Celebrating three exquisite decades dedicated to excellence in Art, Srjan hosted the 30^th edition of the Award Festival 2024, from September 5–11 at Rabindra Mandap at 7 pm each day, with the aim of furthering awareness of our classical traditions in dance and music. Over the seven days, Srjan played hosted renowned Ghazal singer Chandan Dass; acclaimed Bharatanatyam exponent Vaibhav Arekar and his Sankhya Dance Company; celebrated Carnatic vocalist Kalaimamani OS Arun; famous musicians Ambi and Bindu Subramaniam; illustrious Hindustani Flautist Rakesh Chaurasia and brilliant Tabla artiste Ojas Adhiya; and reputed Kathak exponent Ashimbandhu Bhattacharjee and his dance troupe, Upasana Centre for Dance. With Srjan’s presentation of Tantra, Ratikant Mohapatra and the Srjan ensemble concluded the festival on a captivating note.