Protest by artistes, scholars
Bibhuti Mishra
It was a unique event, dancers, dance gurus, musicians, writers in Bhubaneswar got together to lodge a strong protest against the corruption in Odissi. They were protesting against the flouting of norms, especially in terms of traditional Odissi costumes.The immediate cause for the protest was about the distortion of traditional Odissi costume in a programme At a recent programme held recently by the Sutra Theatre of Malaysia and Ramli, Ibrahim.Ramli's female dancers wore tight blouses without draping the `odhni' or saree.
This made Odissi dance scholars, gurus, performers and critics condemn this departure from the traditional costume. A rally was taken out with placard-holding celebrities and a memorandum was submitted to the Orissa Governor Rameswar Thakur. The event took place under the aegis of city-based socio-cultural outfits Prerana, Sanskruti O Sanskruti and Orissa Cine Critic Association.
Tasteless
Says D. N. Patnaik, considered a founder of Odissi dance as it is known today, "I have not seen Ramli's programme but have seen the photos of his dancers. It definitely strikes me as tasteless and I would not like any such distortion to be allowed."
Guru Durga Charan Ranbir who had been Ramli's teacher too says, "I never made him dance [in] such [a] costume. This is an aberration that should stop." This protest gathering was the first of its kind in Orissa.
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