South Gurukul Society presented Bahamana, an initiative supported by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, featuring Rabindranath Tagore’s Mayar Khela — a musical and dance extravaganza in the Odissi dance style. The production explored the challenge of making Maya (illusion) visible, creating a world of wonder, mystery and curiosity even before the story unfolded.
Mayar Khela succeeded in taking the audience on a journey through the juxtaposition of love, illusion, dreams and reality. With melodious music, graceful dancers and intense expressions, the presentation stirred the hearts of the spectators and created a lasting impression. This spectacular performance was held at Bal Gandharva Rangmandir in Bandra, Mumbai, on 11 September.
The highlight of the performance was its distinctive approach to expressive dancing. Unlike many presentations where intense expressions are accompanied by minimal body movements, Vidushi Sutapa Talukdar’s choreography took the audience to a different level of expressional dancing. The dancers continued to move while conveying emotions through their expressions, with the movements becoming slower or faster depending on the intensity of the emotions portrayed.
Another speciality of the performance was the fine uniformity, synchronisation and team spirit displayed by the dancers. All the performers danced remarkably well, presenting a fine combination of pure dance and expressive movements, blending classical and naturalistic elements of the Odissi style.
The music was composed by Padma Shri Tejendra Narayan Majumdar, while the direction and choreography were by Sangeet Natak Akademi Award recipient Guru Sutapa Talukdar from Kolkata. The script was by Padma Bhushan Sankha Ghosh.
Vocal support was provided by renowned Rabindra Sangeet artists Jayati Chakraborty, Supratik Bhattacharya, Saheb Chattopadhyay and Ranjini Mukherjee. Bengali narration was by Sreela Majumder, while the English narration was by Rudraprasad Sengupta. The lead dancers were Sabarnik De as Amar, Srijoni Nandi as Pramoda and Oishanee Bhattacharjee as Shanta.
On the whole, Mayar Khela was a wonderful presentation that brought together music, dance and expressive storytelling to explore the delicate relationship between love and illusion.
Before the presentation of Mayar Khela, leading Odissi dancer Namrata Mehta and Bharatanatyam dancer Prachi Mehta presented an impressive duet on Shiva and Shakti. The performance explored the distinctive characteristics of Odissi and Bharatanatyam through their respective movements and expressive styles, creating an engaging interplay between the two classical dance traditions.
