A visit to Konark, Puri and Bhubaneswar in winter can be enriching in terms of experiencing their tradition and culture, be it in the performing arts, paintings and sculptures or handicraft items.
The locale was right, the ambience befitting, and the message powerful when this year’s Konark Festival kicked off with the presentation of the national song, “Vande Mataram”, by the artists of Srjan, a premier odissi dance institute founded by the late Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra, the doyen of odissi. The opening presentation was in line with the tag line of the festival: Experience the rhythm... that binds India together!
Konark is a small town on the Odisha coast just 35 kilometres from Puri. As thousands of lovers of Indian classical dance and art connoisseurs converged in Konark to witness the five-day-long annual festival, which began on December 1, the historic Konark Sun temple, or Black Pagoda, which is known for its erotic sculptures, seemed to be basking in its own glory. The festival venue, decked up as an out-of-the-world place with its open-air auditorium set against the backdrop of the majestic temple, reverberated with the ethereal classical dances of India and the accompanying music. The auditorium is spread over several acres and has a beautifully constructed gallery with the stage in the middle.
The dance presentations on the five colourful evenings included those of odissi, bharatnatyam, kathak, kuchipudi, manipuri and sattriya. The artists enthralled the audience with their stunning performances. Many foreigners, dance lovers from different parts of the country and local people attended the festival. Winter had just set in and the cool breeze added to the mystic mood in the well-illuminated surroundings. A few people were seen burning firewood along with frankincense to warm the open-air auditorium and chase away mosquitoes.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
How Not To Handle An Epidemic
The lockdowns were meant to buy time to put in place appropriate health measures and contain the coronavirus’ spread, but they have failed to achieve the objective and heaped immense misery on the marginalised sections of society. India is still in the exponential phase of the COVID-19 infection and community transmission is a reality that the government refuses to accept.
Tragedy on foot
As the COVID-19-induced lockdown cuts the ground beneath their feet in Tamil Nadu, thousands of migrant workers are trudging along the highway to the relative safety of their upcountry homes.
Sarpanchs as game changers
Odisha manages to keep COVID-19 well under control because of the strong participation of panchayati raj institutions and the community at the grass-roots level under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Scapegoating China
As the COVID-19 death rate spikes and the economy tanks in the United States, Donald Trump and his advisers target China and the World Health Organisation with an eye to winning the forthcoming presidential election.
New worries
Kerala’s measured approach to the pandemic and lockdown has yielded results. But it still has to grapple with their huge economic impact on its economy, which it feels the Centre’s special financial relief package does little to alleviate.
No love lost for labour
Taking advantage of the lockdown and the inability of workers to organise protests, many State governments introduce sweeping changes to labour laws to the detriment of workers on the pretext of reviving production and boosting the economy.
Capital's Malthusian moment
In a world that needs substantial reorienting of production and distribution, Indian capital is resorting to a militant form of moribund neoliberalism to overcome its current crisis. In this pursuit of profit, it is ready and willing to throw into mortal peril millions whom it adjudicates as not worth their means—an admixture of social Darwinism born of capital’s avarice and brutalism spawned by Hindutva. .
Understanding migration
When governments and their plans are found to be blatantly wanting in addressing reverse migration, exercises such as the Ekta Parishad’s survey of migrant workers throughout India can be useful to work out creative long-lasting solutions.
Waiting for Jabalpur moment
The Supreme Court’s role in ensuring executive accountability during the ongoing lockdown leaves much to be desired. Standing in shining contrast is the record of some High Courts.
An empty package
The Modi regime, which has been unable to control the COVID-19 infection, restore economic activity and provide relief to millions exposed to starvation, trains its sights on Indian democracy, making use of the panic generated by fear and a lockdown that forecloses paths of resistance.
