It was a cultural programme befitting the festival of colours. Bidhan Sishu Udaan, the children’s multi-activity centre in Ultadanga, held a Basanta Utsav starring the very kids who come over to learn different art forms there.
First up was a procession where girls, dressed in yellow saris and orange marigold garlands, and boys, in yellow kurtas, walked the lanes outside their campus. They danced and sang to numbers like Ore grihobasi, Aji dakhino duyar khola and applied colour to one other.
After the colorful walk, everyone gathered at the open stage in the campus and students from different departments took stage.
The folk music department sang songs like Aji dakhin duyar khola and Basante basante tomar kobire dao dak, while students of the recitation department recited Bajlo chhutir ghonta together. Dance students performed to songs like Mor bina othe, Dokhin hawa jago jago and Phaguner mohonaye.
Anwesha Mallick was happy to be part of the celebration but was also slightly upset when her group’s recitation performance was cancelled at the last moment due to paucity of time. “I have been learning recitation and dance here for three years. I enjoy both but recitation is my favorite. I performed in school too this morning. They loved my performance,” said the seven-year-old from Baguihati.
Kids were happy to dress in colourful saris and garlands tied around their wrists. While a few were busy posing for pictures, Anurima Ghosh was busy throwing petals at others. “We’ve come to watch my niece perform today,” said Mohima Ghosh, mother of the three-year-old Anurima. “But ,y daughter is more interested in the garland around her neck than in her cousin’s dance.”
Tanishi Jha was happy to wear a red lehenga and appear as Radha on stage for one of the dances. “I joined these classes just three months ago and am very excited to be part of this celebration. This is my first time seeing such a big bash,” said the six-year-old.
Recitation teacher Ruby Gandhi said the students were very interested to learn new skills. “I have been teaching here for some 10 years and have 65-70 students in my batch,” she said. “We celebrate every occasion here but basanta utsav celebration holds a special place in our hearts.”
Star attraction
The headlining act in the evening was folk band Dohar.
“This year’s celebration is special and on a grander scale as we are inching towards our 50th year (2025-2026). We have more than 4,000 students and most of our courses are taught free of cost. We have children from different backgrounds come and learn together,” said secretary of the centre, Gautam Talukdar.
As for Dohar, he said the band members were close to them. “After the death of their founder member Kalika Prasad Bhattacharya, we named our open stage after him. It’s where they performed today too. They join us every year for Basanta Utsav, said Talukdar.”