भारत का प्रधान कोंसलावास
,
बाली
Consulate General of India
Bali
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PRESS RELEASE
India weaves magic of her classical dances at Bali Art Festival
The Ksirarnawa Auditorium at the Bali Art Centre was overflowing when
Indian Classical Dances – Odissi, Bharatanatyam & Kathak – were performed by Supriya Nayak from India and the students of the Indian Culture Centre
(ICC) as well as Ashram Gandhi Puri in Bali. The audience greatly loved and applauded the mudras (hand gestures) and subtle movements as well as abhinaya of the artist. Odissi dance troupe led by Supriya Nayak rendered various dance items for over one hour as part of India’s presentation at the
XXXV Bali Art Festival.
There are eight classical dance styles of India - Bharatnatyam from the
State (Province) of Tamil Nadu, Kathak from Uttar Pradesh, Kathakali from
Kerala, Kuchipudi from Andhra Pradesh, Manipuri from Manipur,
Mohiniyattam from Kerala, Odissi from Odisha and Sattriya from Assam.
Indian classical dance forms are traced back to the Natya Shastra of Bharata
Muni written in 400 BC.
The Odissi dance is the typical classical dance form of the Eastern
Indian State of Odisha and has its origin in the temples. Odissi dance is an

effort to come near God and experience true bliss. The most popular deity in
Odisha is Jagannath, an avatar of Lord Krishna. The Odissi repertoire is influenced by the tales of Krishna. Supriya Nayak performed different items of the Odissi dance style such as Mangalacharna, Batu, abhinaya, pallavi, ashtapati and dashavatar.
During his remarks at the Bali Art Festival, the Consul General of India in Bali emphasized the close cultural relationship between India & Indonesia and the Province of Bali, in particular. He elaborated that their efforts are focused on deepening people-to-people relations between India and
Indonesia through a series of cultural activities, promoting educational ties, enhancing tourism exchanges and capacity building. He also informed of various scholarships scheme available to the Balinese civil servants, professors, lecturers & teachers as well as the students for pursuing higher education in Indian universities, including on subjects such as performing arts. He also informed that currently scholarships scheme for learning
Ayurveda, Yoga & Hindi are open for applications. He informed that Sanskrit can be learned at the Bali-India Sanskrit Institute in Denpasar.
He further elaborated that the State of Odisha has a special relationship with Bali as the people in Odisha st ill organize every year “Bali
Yatra” in Mahanadi River Bank at Cuttak on the full moon day of Kartik month
(October), to commemorate the glorious past of commercial voyages to the island of Bali by Odisha (Kalinga) traders. These traders also facilitated close cultural interaction between India and Indonesia. The tradition of establishing a Jagannath temple in every city of Bali is influenced by the centuries-old relationships enjoyed by the peoples of India and the Province of Bali. The scholars and practitioners of Balinese dance art forms observe several similarities between the movements of Odissi dance and the Balinese dance forms. Another common feature is the Hindu festival of Saraswati Puja which is celebrated both in the State of Odisha and in Bali offering prayers to
Saraswati, the Goddess of Learning.
The Odissi dance troupe would also be performing and conducting dance workshop on 19 June 2013 at SMKN3 in Batubulan, on 20 June 2013 at ISI Denpasar and on 21 June 2013 at UNHI Denpasar. These events have been facilitated, among others, by the World Hindu Parisad/ World Hindu
Centre.
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