Seasons depicted through Indian dance forms | Bangkok Post: Arts & Culture

Review

Ritu Samhara, a Sanskrit poem by Kalidasa, was brought to life on Sunday by the colourful imagination of Pandit Birju Maharaj, as part of Bangkok's 12th International Festival of Dance & Music.

The recipient of India's 2nd highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibushan in 1986, Pandit Birju Maharaj's dance interpretation described the six seasons of the subcontinent: summer, spring, monsoon, autumn, frost and winter. Depicting each season were six classical Indian dance forms: Bharat Natyam, Kathak, Mohiniattam, Manipuri, Kuchipudi and Odissi, which also portrayed the rhythms and moods of the seasons as they change from one to another.

The performance opened to a wonderful stage setting, with all six dance forms and their dancers onstage to give the packed theatre a taste of India, and of things to come in the next hour and a half. Apart from the exquisite silk outfits, fresh flowers in the hair and bells on the feet, each dance form stood out from the rest. All the feelings that these six seasons evoke were not only brought to life through dance; the colourful costumes added an extra thrill.