Glory of Sattriya Dance Pays Tribute to Late Ranganayaki Rajan and Assam’s Culture

A tribute in the form of Sathriya dance was organized in memory of the late Karnataka Kalashree Ranganayaki Rajan at Seva Sadan in Malleswaram. The event, which took place on May 1, 2023, featured performances by Sridevi Jagannath and Rohini Ananth.

Sathriya is a classical dance form that originated in Assam in the 15th century and was introduced by Vaishnava saint Sankaradeva for the propagation of Vaishnava faith. Both Sridevi and Rohini have been trained in Sathriya and Bharatanatyam, and they performed Sathriya dance to pay tribute to Ranganayaki Rajan, who passed away in 2020 due to cancer.

Sridevi is the daughter of Ranganayaki Rajan, and Rohini is her daughter-in-law. They have been training in Sathriya under Adhyapak Dipankar Arandhara and Adhyapak Dipjyoti Das, who are Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar awardees from Assam. They have also been trained in Bharatanatyam under Guru Padmini Ravi and Guru Shobna Balachandra.

The event was attended by several dignitaries, including Group Captain P Anand Naidu (retired), Director of IASC, Natyacharya Padmini Ravi, and Dr Lalitha Srinivasan, Director of Nupura, who were the chief guests at the function. Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar awardees Dipjyoti Das and Dipankar Arandhara were also present on the occasion.

Rohini expressed that adapting to a new classical dance form has been a challenge, but it has also been exciting to embrace Assam and its rich culture as part of their training in this art form.

Overall, the tribute through Sathriya dance was a beautiful homage to the late Ranganayaki Rajan and a celebration of the rich cultural heritage of Assam.