Independence Day celebrations: Meerut team of kathak dancers to represent UP in six-day ‘Bharat Parv’

MEERUT: A team of six kathak dancers from Meerut will be dancing away to glory on August 16 at Rajpath. The team of kathak dancers will be representing Uttar Pradesh’s cultures in in the six-day 'Bharat Parv' -- India Festival -- organised by the Union Tourism Ministry at Rajpath to mark Independence Day celebrations. The festival which started on August 12 and will end on August 18 and is being broadcasted live on television on Doordarshan. As many as 17 states are a part of the event wherein one performance from each state will represent their cultures.

Detailing on how they got selected, Raja Balooni, principal, Shivangi Sangeet Mahavidyalaya, said, “It was all a matter of luck. Earlier, a team of dancers from Lucknow was selected for the Bharat Parv. But incidentally, a team of tourism department from UP saw the girls performing kathak at an event in Delhi. That is when they changed their choice and selected us for the event. It is a matter of great pride for the six girls to be a part of the Independence Day celebrations.”

The six kathak dancers will be assisted with six sangatkaars (musicians) for the event who will be playing the musical instruments and singing for the dance performance.

An excited Neetu Singh, 19, one of the kathak dancers, who is studying Eco Hons fom Hansraj College, said, “I am both excited and nervous for the event. It is such a matter of pride for all of us to get a chance to perform in front of the ministers of the country and even foreign delegations who are supposed to be attending the event. I have been learning kathak ever since I was five years old and I guess this is the biggest opportunity till date.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Ministers will grace the event. About 100 stalls will be set up to display handicrafts of various states. Among states, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Odisha will bring local associations and cultural groups to showcase diverse flavours of the country.

The six kathak dancers include Ruchi Balooni, Neetu Singh, Aditi Bhardwaj, Ipsa Narula, Prerna Sharma and Sumedha Gupta.

Detailing, the concept on which their performance is based, Aditi Bhardwaj, 19, another kathak dancer, said, “We will begin with how we welcome a guest and how he is taken care of by the means of our dance form. It is a 18-minute performance and we really hope that it is liked by all.”