Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre, Bangkok, a cultural division of ICCR, organized an evening of Cultural Extravaganza on 2nd March 2019. Esha Banerjee, a Bharatnatyam exponent from Kolkata, was invited to perform. Esha, who is a disciple of Smt. Rajalakshmi Venkateshwar (Thanjavur Vani) has done her Araangetram at the tender age of 15.
Esha started her performance with Chatur Sloka set to Talam Adi seeking blessings from Lord Ganesha (who destroys the evil), Saraswati (Goddesses of Education), Lakshmi (Goddess of Wealth) and Shiva (the cosmic dancer). Her next performance was a composition of UtthukkAdu Venkatasubbaiyar (Ragam Natta Kurinji Talam Adi) Palvadiyum Mugam, explaining the meaning Immersed in the thought of that innocent face, my heart reaches heights of ecstasy.
She moved on to exhibit her abhinaya skills with an Ashthapadi-Chandana Charchita Neela Kalevara, where the 12th-century poet Jayadeva explains Krishna Leela to mortals. Her next performance was on Dhanalinga, sung by Padmabhusan Sudha Raghunathan informing the audience of the presence of Dhanalinga in South India. She concluded her performance with Padmabhusan Bala Murali Krishna’s Shiva Mangalam.
Esha’s choice of items, her timing and expressions were impeccable. What stands out is the fact that she explained each and every detail of the dance to her audience, which consisted of Diplomats, Foreign dignitaries and fellow Indians, hence it was easy for all to comprehend the emotions.
Esha Banerjee quoted that “As a dancer, it is just not enough to put on a great show”. She feels that all the artists have to shoulder the responsibility of spreading Indian philosophy, culture and awareness in the world. Esha spoke on “Relevance of Indian Classical dance to the modern world” and “Empowering Women through Dance”. She went ahead to emphasize the importance of government and private collaborations to bring in people from every strata of society and spread awareness to build a strong socio-economic community. Her message was strong on becoming a global citizen destroying the barriers through Art.
Mr. Bhuvaneshwar Sharma, Dy. Director ICCR, Bangkok said, “Esha’s dance confirms the fact that she is blessed by the Gods”. Mr. Chakravarti, of ICCR Malaysia, said, “I would love to see this kind of performances in my country of operations”.
The evening was a part of spreading the message of “Incredible India”, promoting tourism.
