Glimpses of Indian traditional dances at Purana Quila Dance Festival

New Delhi, Sep 27 (IANS) From classical dance forms like Kathak and Bharatnatyam to contemporary Indian forms, the ongoing five-day Purana Quila Dance Festival is showcasing glimpses of Indian traditional dance and various choreographies by veteran artists.

Organised at the Purana Qila in the national capital by the Delhi government's Sahitya Kala Parishad, the five-day festival showcases manuscripts adapted in different dance forms of India to present a cultural and visual treat for art lovers.

Santosh Nair presented the "Mahabharata" saga through contemporary dance while Sadhya Dance group performed Kathakali on Tuesday. Saroja Vaidyanathan and Ganesa Natyalaya will perform Namami Gange - a Bharatnatyam recital telling the story of Ganga with a contemporary relevance. 

Kiran Segal will be presenting Odissi while Kathak dancer Kumudini Lakhia and her dance troupe will perform Vivarta. The last day of the event will see performance by Vanashree Rao based on one a Mahabharata episode. Lastly, there will the performance depicting the story of Mahisasura Mardini, inspired by Pandit Jasraj's rendering of the song on the killing of Mahisasura by goddess Durga.

"Despite our rich cultural heritage and the hard work put in by artists to carry on this legacy, there is a constant threat of traditional arts being endangered. This problem will persist until we increase the patronage and make the arts accessible to more people. We need to create a mahaul and audience for traditional arts to thrive, that would in turn provide an alternative to mainstream entertainment for people," Manish Sisodia, Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, said in a statement.

"To reach more people of Delhi, we have made a special effort to improve outreach and communication through social media. Additionally for the first time, we have sent special invites to music and art teachers and principals of schools and colleges of Delhi for this particular event," he added.

The dance festival will end on September 30.