A paean to Rabindranath Tagore must strive to comprehend his universalism. An attempt to this end was made recently by the West Bengal Dance Group Federation to mark Tagore’s 162nd birth anniversary at Jorasanko. Kobipronam saw 31 dance recitals performed to Rabindrasangeet.
The opening act, “He nutan”, punctuated with the recitation of “Prothom juger”, ushered in the novelty of life spirit on a sultry May evening. But the backup dancers rarely matched the lead performers in terms of energy. Next were the renditions of "Nabo anonde” and “Akash jure”. “Aguner parashmani”, choreographed by Mamata Shankar, was engaging, with the use of fabric heightening the inherent drama of the song. Bharatnatyam and Odissi movements were integrated with the Rabindrik style in the recitals of “Modhuro dhoni” and “Basonti he”, respectively. The homage also included impromptu recitals of "Ami Chitrangada" and "Trishnar shanti" by the two veteran exponents, Purnima Ghosh and Pradipta Neogi.