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Devadasi award for Kathak dancer

Parwati Dutta

BHUBANESWAR: Aurangabad-based Kathak dancer and choreographer Parwati Dutta would be the recipient of the 3rd Devdasi National Award for Dance this year. The award has been instituted by city-based Devdasi Nrutya Mandir that hosts the annual Devdasi national dance festival here in association with the departments of tourism and culture of Government of Orissa.

Festival coordinator Jagabandhu Jena informed The Hindu that the award is conferred on an artiste, performing any of the Indian classical dance styles, below the age of 40, who has the devotion of a devdasi (temple dancer) towards dance as a profession. US-based Odissi dancer Shibani Patnaik was the recipient of the award in 2006 followed by New Delhi-based Kuchipudi dancer Yamini Reddy, daughter of the celebrated dancer couple Raja-Radha Reddy, last year.

The last living devdasi of the Jagannath temple of Puri presents the award during the concluding evening of the forthcoming Devdasi dance festival from September 24 to 26, Jena added.

The three-day festival will feature a number of young, solo dancers from India, Japan, US and Peru representing all classical dance styles except Kathakali.

It would also have the ritualistic dance styles of Mahari of Orissa and Vilasini Natyam of Andhra Pradesh. Vilasini Natyam is being revived by the renowned Kuchipudi danseuse Swapna Sundari and it would be presented in Orissa for the first time, it was learnt.

The artistes scheduled to perform in the festival are Anupama Kylash from Hyderabad (Vilasini Natyam), Aishwarya Narayanswamy (Bharatnatyam, Chennai), Manju Nair (Mohiniattam, Kerala), Vrata C and Katyayani, both Kuchipudi artistes from Bangalore and Hyderabad respectively, Anwesha Mahanta (Sattriya, Assam), M.Hemolata Devi (Manipuri, Manipur) and Parwati Dutta (Kathak).

In Odissi segment, Sachiko Murakami (Japan), Amanda Geroy and Sonali Mishra (both from US), Anjanamayee Saikia (Guwahari) and Maria from Peru are slated to perform.

Mahari dance would be performed by Swarnaprava Biswasroy.

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