Jun 20 2024 to Jun 20 2024 7 p.m.

EVENT HAS ENDED

Where

Bangalore International Centre

7 4th Main Rd, Stage 2, Domlur 560071

Event Description

Living the Past, Dancing in the Present is an illustrated lecture-demonstration of the Sattriya dance tradition of Assam. The presentation will be supported by audio-visuals and archival recordings that elaborate upon the historical roots of the dance form, its distinctive features, the present context in relation to changing time and space and the celebration of dance as a living art heritage. 

Performer

Anwesa Mahanta Dancer & Scholar

A national award-winning dancer-scholar, specializing in the field of Sattriya Dance with solo concerts across several nations, Anwesa Mahanta is known for her unique interpretations of the Sattriya Dance keeping intact the core philosophy of the form and its ritualistic practice. One of the senior most disciples of maestro Bayanacharya Ghanakanta Bora, she completed her doctoral study from University of Delhi and served as an Artist in Residence at IIT Guwahati. A recipient of CWIT Fellowship, British Council, to pursue further research at Queen’s University, Belfast she has several scholarly publications to her credit and has also conducted research on various aspects of the intangible cultural heritage of Assam with fellowships from Sangeet Natak Akademi and Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India. Acclaimed as a “star ambassador to represent her art form on a global stage” (Narthaki) she has been honoured with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Yuva Puraskar for the year 2013-14 for her contributions. She has presented her work extensively across India and also abroad (Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, England, Japan, Northern Ireland, Canada, USA, Sri Lanka, France, New Zealand etc.) Last year she performed in the Namaste France festival conducted by the Embassy of India, Paris and the Ministry of Culture, GoI. Anwesa Mahanta is an empanelled artist of the ICCR, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India, and also winner of several prestigious awards like Aditya Vikram Birla Kalakiran Award, Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Yuva Samman, FICCI YFLO Women Achievers Award to name a few. Recently, she was honoured with the ‘Arirang Culture Master’ by Culturemasters Foundation, Republic of Korea. She is the Artistic Director of Kalpa and Pragjyoti International Dance Festival and contributed towards the promotion of international understanding and social harmony through promotion of arts. She also worked on collaborative research and archival recordings with University of Otago and INTACH documenting work in the area of performance ethnography and community performances.