vited to perform at two local venues. The first was a special New Year celebration at the ISKCON New Goloka Temple in Hillsborough. The performance began with a Manipuri duet dance entitled Yugal Nartan where the crowd was dazzled by the unique costumes and mesmerized by the grace and power of the Lasya (represented by Radha) and the Tandava (represented by Lord Krishna). The audience was then treated to a classical Kathak solo where Rinku displayed the intricate techniques, mathematically sophisticated footwork, and complex usage of rhythm and time management inherent to the Kathak dance style. Sanjib concluded the performance with an electrifying Manipuri piece Geet Govinda based on the writings of Jaydev. Rinku joined Sanjib in the last moments of the dance to provide a spectacular finish to the spiritual performance. The diverse audience consisting of devotees and dance enthusiasts were visibly moved. Temple founder and spiritual leader Srila Gurudeva Bir Krishna das Goswami stated: “I was amazed at their expertise and overwhelmed with the intricacies and bringing out of the different models of the dance. It was inspiring.” Adult workshop participant Karuna Shakti summarized the experience on behalf of the devotees: “It was as if The Lord Himself was dancing through the performance of the artists.” At the invitation of Guru Asha Bala and Dr. Kalpana Krishna, Sanjib and Rinku performed an hour-long Manipuri dance recital entitled Samarpan for the Fayetteville Hindu Temple’s Sankranthi/Pongal/Lohri celebration. The show consisted of three main parts—tradition, collaboration, and innovation. Performing before a captive and attentive audience numbering in the hundreds, the duo initiated the program with Yugal Nartan as the traditional Manipuri dance duet followed by a collaborative ManiKatha routine that was conceptualized with palace Manipuri and Jaipur Gharana Kathak styles. As a brief respite from the dancing, Sanjib performed a live Mridang instrumental routine entitled Pung Rachana that displayed the power of the sacred Manipuri percussion instrument and timekeeper. The night’s finale was an innovative piece, Dash Avataar, which depicted an improvisation of Guru Bipin Singh’s depiction of the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu upon the Earth. A two minute dance drama coupled with audio visual effects depicted prominent moments for each incarnation resulting in a 20 minute long finale that was physically demanding for the performers. The complete efforts of the performers using dance movements, facial expressions, props, video, and music resulted in a moving spiritual masterpiece that drew a standing ovation from the audience. All of the hard work invested into Samarpan paid off as Sanjib and Rinku received well-deserved praise, appreciation and commendation. After three very productive weeks in NC, Sanjib made a somber yet satisfied departure. He found great potential for Manipuri classical dance in North Carolina that would certainly be realized through continued collaborations and Rinku’s efforts to promote and maintain local interest. Guru Bipin Singh would be proud.
olina and several locations in the US. She has received the India Heritage Award for Excellence in Kathak as well as being crowned the 2010 NC Boogie Woogie Adult Champion. As an instructor at Natya Academy in Cary, Rinku has always strived to maintain dance interest by introducing new styles and forms to the area. In this regard, Rinku reached out to Sanjib in an effort to introduce North Carolina to the wonders of Manipuri dance. Despite the rigors of travel exacerbated by the recent snowstorm, Sanjib conducted an energetic workshop at Natya Academy for thirteen local children varying in age from 8 to 16 and for seven adults of diverse backgrounds. Sanjib, with the assistance of Rinku, introduced the workshop participants to the grace and beauty of Manipuri classical dance as well as the novelty and physical challenges of contemporary Indian dance. The children were very engaged and eager to learn the new dance forms thanks to Sanjib’s gentle yet demanding guidance. Ten year-old Pranika of Cary captured the children’s feelings on the workshop: “We loved the camp and learning all the unique steps from Sanjib Uncle and Rinku Auntie.” The adult participants were even more impressed, especially with the novel artistic techniques that were conceptually simple but very challenging to execute properly. Sanjib exhibited his mastery of choreography as he blended the respective styles and strengths of the adult participants without compromising the standards of his art form. Proper posture and balance were coupled with contemporary movements derived from different classical styles. The underlying message of happiness was maintained with the ever-present positive facial expressions. Maitri Acharya of Durham commented: “Sanjib-ji was an inspiration. His down-to-earth approach and gentle critiques allowed us to give him even more.” Two weeks of instruction, practice, and rehearsal culminated with a presentation at Natya Academy that was packed to capacity. The audience was treated to an exciting Mridang drum solo by Sanjib, which was followed by demonstration of Manipuri poses and techniques. Sanjib guided the students through the entire demonstration where his presence on stage provided strength and re-assurance for his students. Informative documentaries were also presented to give the audience and the students an appreciation of Manipuri dance as well as a glimpse of Sanjib’s accomplished career. The presentation ended with a beautiful contemporary piece that merged both youth and adult groups into one performing troupe. Guru Asha Bala gave an eloquent speech on the evolution of contemporary dance and commended Sanjib for his care in utilizing classically based movements and proper music selection that resulted in such a beautiful presentation. Natya Director Arvin Maniktala was impressed by how quickly the students were able to learn the new techniques and perform cohesively on stage. Motivated by the success of the workshop, Arvin announced plans to provide Manipuri and Contemporary Dance programs in the upcoming sixth year of Natya Academy operations. Adult student and workshop veteran Dhanya Sandeep of Raleigh proclaimed: “This was the best workshop I’ve attended in terms of the amount learned and having the opportunity to present at the end.” During the course of the workshop, Sanjib and Rinku were inSaathee.com
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February 2011