1935–2004
Kelucharan Mohapatra (8 January 1926 – 7 April 2004) was a legendary Indian classical dancer, guru, and exponent of Odissi dance, who is credited with the revival and popularizing of this classical dance form in the 20th century.[1] He is the first person to receive the Padma Vibhushan from Odisha.[2]
A noted Sanskrit poet of India writes on this Guru: Saango-paanga-subhangi-laasya-madhuram samteerna-nrutyaarnavam, which translates as - "Each fraction of his dancing body leads to paramount sweetness, through miraculous poses and postures. In fact, Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra crossed the ocean of styles."[3]
Early life and History
In his youth, Kelucharan Mohapatra performed Gotipua - a traditional dance form of Odisha where young boys dress up as woman to praise Lord Jagannath. Later in his life he did extensive research on Gotipua and Mahari dance, which lead him to restructure Odissi dance. Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra was a master in Percussion instruments - Mardala and Tabla, which clearly resonates in his dance compositions. He was also skilled in the traditional Pattachitra painting.
Kelucharan Mohapatra along with his wife, Laxmipriya, herself a dancer, and their son Ratikant Mohapatra built Srjan in 1993.[4]
Awards
- Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, 1966
- Padma Shri, 1974[5]
- Padma Bhushan, 1988[5]
- Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, 1991
- Padma Vibhushan, 2000[5]
- Kalidas Samman from Madhya Pradesh government
Quotes Made By Kelucharan Mohapatra
- "Odissi is not a mere dance form to entertain people but to inspire and elevate. I don't actually dance but pray in compassion and the spectators say that this `form' is dancing."[6]
- "The real dance must convey the feeling of undivided existence, that a spectator can feel that he is not different from the thing observed".[6]
References
- ↑ DANCE REVIEW; Sculptural And Sensual, It's Odissi by Anna Kisselgoff, New York Times, 19 October 2000.
- ↑ Sun dreamer gets Padma. telegraphindia.com(26 January 2013). Retrieved 5 February 2013.
- ↑ SRJAN, Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Odissi Nrityabasa. Srjan.com(1926-01-08). Retrieved 2012-08-22.
- ↑ History Of Srjan. Srjan. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Padma Awards. Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India(2015). Retrieved 21 July 2015.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Glimpses of eternity. The Hindu(7 April 2006).
8. His work was referred in the movie [1] as being life-changing that forged the path for the protagonists love for the dance.[2]
Further reading
- The Making of a Guru: Kelucharan Mohapatra, His Life and Times, by Ileana Citaristi. Published by Manohar, 2001. Template:ISBN.
- The Dancing Phenomenon: mad boy, by Sharon Lowen, Kelucharan Mohapatra, Avinash Pasricha. Lustre Press, Roli Books, 2001. Template:ISBN.
External links
- Video links
Template:Padma Vibhushan Awards Template:PadmaBhushanAwardRecipients 1980–89 Template:SangeetNatakAkademiFellowship Template:Padma Award winners of Odisha Template:Padma Shri Award Recipients in Art Template:Authority control