After two days of breathtaking dance performances, the Mayurbanji Chau ‘Natki’ National Festival has come to an end. The festival will feature artists from Project Chawny unit Mayurbhanj Chhau, along with Nichuapada Uttarsahi Chhau Nritya Pratisthan from Moroda Block, along with various choreographed by Vidushi Sharma Bhate from Pune and Padmasree Dr Ileana Citarist from Bhubaneshwar. Appeared in creative productions. The choreography combines modern and traditional elements of the Mayurbanji Chow dance.
Three performances were held on the final day of the festival: ‘Panchabhuta’, ‘Yodda’ and ‘Mysterious Forest’. Speaking to ANI about the motivation behind ‘The Mystical Forest’, Delhi dancer Mahisharma said: If we do not protect the environment, forests will gradually dry up, and we will lose important natural resources for humans. Our dance was intended to spread the message of forest conservation to the people.”
The festival was put on by Chauni as a means for the ‘Chau’ dance of Orissa to gain exposure and recognition among the masses. Chhauni was an initiative led by the Mayurbhanj District Administration. In 2016, it launched its activities “to preserve and promote art forms and provide livelihoods for artists”.
Chauni conducted a survey in Mayurbanj, surveying 11,738 people associated with 202 social organizations and dance forms. The performance unit was created in 2017 after auditioning over 400 artists. Her ANI, Maharajah of Mayurbanji, Praveen Her Chandra Her Banideo shed some light on the initiative’s origins.
“In 2016, Sri Rajesh Patil, a former Mayurbanji collector, led Project Chauni after years of neglecting the old gurus of the dance form….He is a dancer, I picked up all the young artists with Shubhoshree Mukherjee who did Chow,” he said. “‘Natki’ is the first national event for Chau He dance, presenting the dance form in a contemporary way,” he added. (Ani)
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