THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
Eminent Manipuri dance exponent Padma Shri Darshana Jhaveri has been selected for the prestigious Nishagandhi Puraskaram of the Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala, for outstanding contributions to Indian classical dance traditions.
Tourism Minister P A Mohamed Riyas will present the coveted honour to Darshana Jhaveri at the inaugural ceremony of the week-long Nishagandhi Dance Festival, one of India’s iconic classical dance fiestas organised by Kerala Tourism, at Kanakakunnu Palace grounds here on Friday (February 13) at 6 pm.
The award carries a prize money of Rs 1,50,000, citation and memento.
Padma Shri Jhaveri has contributed significantly to the preservation and propagation of the dance form for almost 60 years.
The danseuse was selected for the honour by a jury with Kerala Tourism Secretary Shri K Biju as Chairman and Smt Sikha Surendran, Director of Kerala Tourism, as Convener.
The festival has lined up India’s best classical dancers and upcoming stars to enthral the audience converging at the venue. The performers are drawn from diverse Indian classical dance including Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Manipuri, Kathak, Sattriya and Odissi.
A Kathakali Mela featuring hundreds of Kathakali artistes will also be part of the February 13-20 festival. Kathakali performances will be held at the venue inside Kanakakkunnu palace every day from 5.30 pm.
‘Lavanasura Vadham’ (Feb 13), ‘Ravanolbhavam’ (Feb14), ‘Nala Charitham Moonnam Divasam’ (Feb15), ‘Baka Vadham’ (Feb 16), ‘Karna Sapadham’(Feb 17), ‘Duryodhana Vadham’ (Feb 18), ‘Daksha Yagam’ (Feb19) and ‘Thorana Yudham’ (Feb 20) will be performed as part of the Kathakali Mela.
The Nishagandhi Festival also showcases recent trends in Indian classical dance forms and sets a stage for upcoming artists to present their talents and artistic expressions.
The inaugural ceremony will be followed by Bharatanatyam performance by Padma Shri Dr Narthaki Nataraj followed by a performance by Dr Rajashree Warrier. A Manipuri dance performance by Latasana Devi & Group will be held at 8.30 pm on the inaugural day.
Dance performances of noted and upcoming artistes will commence everyday at 6 pm.
Public entry to the festival is free.
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