Music & Dance :

Odissi :

Odissi is an Indian classical dance style from the eastern state of Orissa in India , being apart of the ancient Odra Magadha style of dance from the eastern region. Female attendants of the temple, known as Maharis, danced for the Gods at various times of day to accompany various rituals of the temple deity. This dance was to the accompaniment of Mardala or the pakhawaj, small cymbals, flute and veena, a string instrument like the sitar.

Odissi is a graceful style of classical dance that is inspired thematically by the literature, art and spiritual movements of the Vaishnava (worshippers of Vishnu) as well as Shaiva (worshippers of Shiva) sects of Hinduism, and in technique, by the ancient Hindu temple sculptures of Orissa .Odissi is similar to Bharatnatyam with respect to the mudras and expressions. The 'Tribhang' or the divison of the body into 3 parts, head, bust and torso is a striking feature of Odissi. Odissi performances are replete with lores of the eighth incarnation of Vishnu, Lord Krishna. It is a soft, lyrical classical dance which depicts the ambience of Orissa and the philosophy of its most popular deity, Lord Jagannath.
Odissi is based on the popular devotion to Lord Krishna and the verses of the Sanskrit play Geet Govinda are used to depict the love and devotion to God. The Odissi dancers use their head, bust and torso in soft flowing movements to express specific moods and emotions.
Kelucharan Mohapatra, an erstwhile Goti Pua, is the greatest exponent and guru of this ancient dance form. Some of the other exponents of this dance form are Indrani Rehman, Sonal Mansingh, Sanjukta Panigrahi, Protima Gauri Bedi, Madhavi Mudgal, Guru Mayadhar Raut, Guru Deva Prasad Das and Guru Durga Charan Das

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