Ramparts of the Old Fort are once again calling out to the city's classical dance lovers of the capital, offering a musical treat by the likes of Birju Maharaj and Leela Samson, virtuosos in Kathak and Bharatnatyam respectively.
The Old Fort Dance Festival is being organised solely by the Delhi government for the first time, pioneered by its cultural wing Sahitya Kala Parishad.
Preceding editions of the festival of choreographies were collaborations between the government and other cultural organisations.
The festival was inaugurated by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Art, Culture and Languages Minister Kapil Mishra here late last evening.
The opening of the five day long festival was marked by a special performance of Kerala's traditional Mohiniyattam by Bharati Shivaji and her troupe.
"Art and culture unites people and I think we need it badly right now. This is just the beginning, more such things will come," Mishra said.
The festival includes performances by Leela Samson, dancing couple of Raja and Radha Reddy, Madhvi Mudgal and Pandit Birju Maharaj, each of whose groups would enchant the arena with their fortes of Bharatnatyam, Kuchipudi, Odissi and Kathak.
"We have the legends this time. We have taken five very good artistes and we want to make it an annual event," Sindhu Mishra, Deputy Secretary, Sahitya Kala Parishad said.
The inaugural performance was over an hour-long rendition of one of Rabindranath Tagore's earliest works - Bhanusimha Thakurer Padabali - set up in a Bengali background but voiced in Brijbhasha in the Keralite expression of Mohiniyattam.
"The audience of Delhi should take note of this, this is a certain direction they are being shown. This is a wonderful opportunity for parents to bring their children and prepare the younger generation because classical dance is not just a discipline of the body, but also of the mind. This is a philosophy that we try to interpret through the dance, language, music, bhavas," Shivaji said.
Mishra informed about the upcoming festivals lined-up in the city, which includes a performance of Ramayana in Central Park beginning from October 16 besides a programme at Sanjay Jheel and the Delhi classical music festival that is set to begin from November 2.
