The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Splendour marks close of MWG

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Oct 22, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Splendour marks close of MWG

V V Subrahmanyam

Crowd thrilled by fitting finale to one of the biggest sporting spectacles

HYDERABAD: Rhythm and splendour were the dominant themes at the colourful closing ceremony of the 4th Military World Games at GMC Balayogi Stadium on Sunday.

To start with, the holiday crowd was floored not just by the clinical precision of the skydivers from the renowned Akash Ganga and the flypast of the Sarangs – helicopters from the Indian Air Force performing splendid formations in the sky to set the trend for what was arguably a much better show than the opening ceremony.

Then it was the turn of Sonali Sharma giving an impressive performance with her Bharatnatyam dance segment ‘Ata Swagatham’.

Rich fare

The rendering of ‘Mile Sur Tera Hamara’ by Gayatri Shankar against the backdrop of a huge tri-colour roused the passion of the viewers. This was interspersed beautifully with the best segment of the day – the ‘Fusion Dance’ programme by St.Anns College girls, combining the aesthetics of classical Bharatnatyam, devotion and jazz. A wonderfully conceptualised segment, which captivated the imagination of the capacity crowd especially when they rendered the devotional Vishnu and Ganapathi stotras. The performances by 200 folk artistes from the rural regions of the State showcased the rich cultural heritage of Andhra Pradesh.

Dances of Kommu Koya of the hunting class, Dappu, a dance with simple percussion instruments, Chekkabommalata – a puppet dance in which wooden puppets are manipulated to dance and move by performers behind the stage and others like Dolla Vinyasam and Tiger Dance delighted the gathering and transported them into a different world of fantasy.

Amid all this, the military band performing the famous ‘Sare jahan se achcha Hindustan hamara’ during the marchpast of the 101 contingents was one of the highlights of the evening as no one really felt the tinge.

The roar of applause when Maj. Gen.V.K.Ahluwalia presented the CISM flag and the Games Flame to the Brazilian head of delegation Louis Antonio was symbolic of the Games motto itself – friendship through sport. When the skyline was dotted with the spectacular laser show, it was a fitting finale to the biggest sporting spectacle ever in India.

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