Smooth swirls, perfect poses

The girls of Adruta Dance troupe presented the items with trained ease

Flawless formations The Adruta Dance troupe

Sixteen young girls stood eagerly in the wings dressed in the finery of Odissi costumes while their guardian Prof. A.K. Mohanty introduced the event at the Bhakti Kalakshetra, Iskcon, Juhu, Mumbai.

The girls of Adruta dance troupe, a unit of Rawa Academy, (Home for parentless deserted children) had come from Bhubaneshwar. The Academy has 11 centres, housing about 450 abandoned children.

Besides providing them with food, accommodation and clothing, the Academy also encourages them to pursue academics and other interests thus helping them carve a niche for themselves.

“Classical dance is grounded in spirituality. Every step we take is dance. It is a spiritual quest, a Ras Sadhana,” said Mohanty.

The invocatory mangalacharan ‘Shantakaaram’ dedicated to Lord Vishnu found girls in the age group between five and ten dancing to the dot while the audience comprising both adults and children watched in awed silence.

Aesthetic depiction

This was followed by the Dasavatara verses from Gita Govindam, which was the main item, presented by the senior girls.

Crisp movements, quick formations, story depictions of Maya Mareecha, Sita abduction, Draupadi vastrapaharan, death, distress and disease alleviated by the avatar Buddha and Kaliyug waiting for Kalki were all depicted with aesthetic accuracy. The portrayal of the avatars, particularly Buddha and Narahari, were well-visualised.

Kudos to Guru Bharat Charan Giri for the impeccable training whereby even little girls held on to Tribhangi, unique to Odissi, and executed the swirls with subtlety and fell in flawless formations.

In the Raas, again a composition of Jaidev Goswami, the girls shared the stage with trained ease. Krishna casting his spell on the gopis, Holi revelry and bathing in the river were all pictured well and the sound of the flute, the variations in its tune — fast, medium and slow — aided the imagery.

The next item was a composition of Salabega, a Muslim saint for whom the Rath of Jagannath waited for 17 days.

Three feats of the Lord were brought out: emancipator of Gajendra, saviour of Draupadi and protector of Prahlad.

A brief solo prelude by dancer Anjali was followed by a group celebration depicting the beauty of Brindavan, birds fluttering around, bees humming, peacocks dancing, cuckoos singing, the trees swaying, the sound of the ankle bells, playing of the ‘madhur mridanga,’ etc.

The movements by the dancers adhering to the Odissi format made the ecstasy of Vasanth season palpable.

Though it was the first time they had presented this item, it was amazing to note the coordination, which is possible only with rigorous practice.

In the Moksha piece the bol and the music contributed to consummate spiritual ambience with the chanting of the Shanti mantra.

Before ushering in the penultimate folk number indigenous to Sambhalpur, Mohanty waxed eloquent on the rich folk culture of Orissa.

The young girls performed with spirit and grace. The heads of Iskcon felicitated Mohanty, motivator of these artistes.

With so much inherent talent, focus and dedication to the art who would call these children marginalised or deprived.