Nrityanjali 2, presented by the Aloka Kanungo-helmed Shinjan Nrityalaya and recently staged at Sisir Mancha, bore the imprint of the veteran Odissi exponent’s success in practising with and imparting her skills to her wards. The group’s annual programme saw her disciples offering glimpses of their potential, rigorous training, and unwavering commitment to dance. The nine-year-old Aradhya Goswami unveiled the event with a promising recital of Mangalacharan, displaying skills far beyond her age. The presentation of Jayadeva’s Dashavatar (picture) explored the myths in a framework originally designed by Kanungo’s guru, Kelucharan Mohapatra. Jayita Ganguly and Srijita Bhattacharya, two 16-year-olds, coordinated steps and gestures and adhered to still figures to depict the evolution of the 10 incarnations of Vishnu, from matsya to kalki.

The element of religiosity deepened in the presentation of Durgastuti, with Mohapatra’s choreography visualising Durga’s essence and beauty. Lalita Labanga, another Jayadeva piece where Radha is being told by her sakhis about Krishna’s dalliances with other gopis by the Yamuna, was presented by a set of seniors whose gestures and understanding of the vocabulary were adequate. Their drapes of varying colours, as they etched out diverse sentiments ranging from love to jealousy through their persuasive abhinaya, articulated the sublimation of eternal love amidst the vibrancy of spring. Movement and stillness, communicative expression and classical codes were alternated and fused in Kanungo’s direction of the piece choreographed by Mohapatra.

This stylisation also shone through in the two recitals, Makhan Chori and Raas. The former saw Goswami, playing the mischievous Krishna, and other tiny tots pitted against the graceful Poulami Chakraborty (Yashoda). Raas, on the other hand, depicted the transcendental yearning for the divine. While Radha (Swaralipi Roy) and other gopis demonstrated their dexterity in Odissi, Krishna, played by Yaajnaseni Sarkar, danced with gay abandon in the Manipuri style, thereby marking the juxtaposition of two different dance forms.