Folk dance troupe from Kalahandi gets Republic Day stage

BHUBANESWAR: When Guru Dhyanananda Panda (41) arrived in New Delhi early this month, he was a happy man. This was not his first visit to the national capital, but it surely was the most special one, as his students will be performing ‘Bajasal’ or ‘Bihasal’, a folk dance from Kalahandi district, during the Republic Day parade on Rajpath.
“It is a matter of pride for us that we will be performing in front of President Ram Nath Kovind,” said an emotional Panda.
As the name suggests, ‘Bihasal’ is traditionally performed during weddings. Young boys and girls sing songs alternatively, dance to music and tease each other as part of the performance. Nowadays, it is performed at functions too.
“Usually we perform for 15 to 20 minutes. On January 26, we will only dance to music. No songs will be sung. We have been given three minutes to put up our performance,” said Panda, who said the art of the dance is passed from generation to generation.
On Republic Day, the dance will be performed by a troupe of 80 – 52 men and 28 women – of Pratibha Anusthan, Bhawanipatna, an organisation run by Panda. The performers, aged 15 and above, will be playing the ‘panchabadya’ — a set of five musical instruments comprising nishan, dhol, tasa, mahuri and jhanj.
The selection process started in October 2020. Troupes were asked to send videos for review by an expert committee of the ministry of defence. “The dance form was selected because it is lively, colourful and belongs to a backward region of Odisha. We are very happy that the Bajasal group from Kalahandi was selected,” said Gouri Basu, director of the Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre (EZCC), Kolkata.
Practice sessions in Bhawanipatna started from December 25, 2020. Currently, the group is in New Delhi to practise on Rajpath. “We are practising from 8am to 11.30am and again from 4 pm to 7 pm every day. The dress rehearsal will take place on January 23,” said Panda.
The troupe has performed in New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai and even abroad. “Despite Delhi’s chilly winter, we are up by 4am to reach Rajpath for practice at 8 am. It’s a lot of hard work but that does not matter to us,” said Shweta Rani Patra, one of the dancers, who had last been to New Delhi for a stage presentation six years ago.
The younger performers are honing their performance under the tutelage of Panda, who has composed the dance. The performance has been choreographed by Chintu Prasad Naik, who, along with Janmejay Naik, will be leading the troupe. “We have to explain the dance to the performers through both practical and theory classes,” said Panda. The traditional Habaspuri handloom and masks will also be on display during the performance.
The troupe is making time for some sightseeing in the meanwhile. It has already visited the Lotus Temple, the Qutub Minar and the Lal Qila. “The students also have to study for two hours every evening as they can’t neglect their studies,” said Panda.