Kolkata pays tribute to virtuoso Ananda Shankar; Tanusree Shankar announces Udayananda World Heritage Dance Tour
Kolkata, Dec 14 (IBNS): Kolkata paid its respect to late Ananda Shankar, on his 75th birth anniversary through a many-layered musical performance held at the Rabindra Sadan.
Son of renowned Indian dancer couple, Uday Shankar and Amala Shankar, nephew of sitar maestro Ravi Shankar, was considered a master of Indian and Western fusion music and was known for his bold experimentation.
Well-known musicians, including Debojyoti Mishra and Bickram Ghosh, along with their respective troupes, paid their tribute to Ananda Shankar.
A video message from Indian superstar Amitabh Bachchan was played on stage. Bachchan paid tribute to his friend and conveyed his best wishes to the Shankar family.
One of the highlights of the programme was a performance by Ananda Shankar's wife Tanusree and their daughter Sreenanda; said to be the first performance together by the mother-daughter duo.
It was followed up by a performance of the students of the dance academy initiated by the late Ananda Shankar.
But the most touching performance of all was when all the past and present students of the dance academy, part of the spectators at the programme, stood up and performed at the bidding of Tanusree Sankar.
During the concluding part of the programme, Tanusree Shankar announced that her troupe will be going on a world tour in 2018-19 as a tribute to Uday Shankar and Ananda Shankar.
“Named after both these iconic figures, the ‘Udayananda World Heritage Dance Tour’ is a series of concept-driven dance performances, which will see us performing in multiple cities in India and around the world, amidst diverse categories of dance lovers. The first show of this tour will be at Kalamandir, Kolkata on 23rd February 2018,” she announced.
Present on stage with Tanusree Shankar was Debasish Dutta, managing partner of Orange Corp, a multinational company present in the global film market with its US and European film co-productions.
Tanusree Shankar expressed her gratitude to Dutta and Orange Corp and said, “To support us in this cultural journey, we are fortunate to have with us our presenter and principal sponsor Orange Corp, who have come on board with us and are passionately taking this forward."
Dutta reciprocated, “We are delighted to work together to make this vision into a grand reality. The legacy that Tanusree Shankar is carrying is indeed a matter of great pride for all of us. We are pleased to be a part of their growth and international reach.”
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