SPIC MACAY 'Kumbh' - A plethora of Indian classical music and dance

We all know the 'Kumbh' or 'Kumbha' Mela (Fair) to be one of the largest human congregations in the world. This 50 day festival is a pilgrimage of faith where people gather to bathe in the sacred river, Ganges. Traditionally, the ArdhKumbh (which is now celebrated as Kumbh) is held once in every six years at different locations (Prayagraj, Haridwar, Nashik and Ujjain) depending on Hindu astrological positions.

This year, the Kumbh is being celebrated from 15th January - 4th March 2019 at Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. SPICMACAY has come together with Ministry of Culture, Government of India, Dept. of Culture, U.P., District Administration, Mela Administration and got the opportunity to be a part of the Kumbh Mela 2019 Anahad Naad 'The Unheard Sound' and celebrate the richness and diversity of our Indian heritage. In this regard, SPICMACAY has invited students from different states to participate in the majestic SPICMACAY Kumbh Mela 2019 to be held between 17th January and 23rd February, 2019 at Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. 50 students from each state will attend this event for a period of 3 days and their food and lodging will be taken care by SPICMACAY.

During this period, a plethora of Indian classical music and dance exponents will raise the divinity of the Kumbh Mela by their performances. The Inaugural concert on 17th January 2019 will witness Mohiniattam by Padmashri Bharati Shivaji along with the Hindustani violin virtuoso by Padmabhushan Dr. N. Rajam.

The list of artists performing in the Kumbh Convention is as follows* :
(*tentative)

(1) Padmashri Bharati Shivaji (Mohiniattam)
(2) Padmabhushan Dr. N. Rajam (Violin)
(3) Gundecha Brothers (Dhrupad)
(4) Padmashri Ustad Shahid Parvez (Sitar)
(5) Padmabhushan Pt. Vishwamohan Bhatt (Mohan Veena)
(6) Padmabhushan Dr. L. Subramanyam (Carnatic Violin)
(7) Kaivalya Kumar Gaurav (Hindustani Vocal)
(8) Pt. Vinayak Torvi (Hindustani Vocal)
(9) Pt. Nityanand Haldipur (Flute)
(10) Padmavibhushan Pt. Shiv kumar Sharma (Santoor)
(11) Padmashri Ustad Wasifuddin Dagar (Dhrupad)
(12) Omkaar Dadarkar (Hindustani Classical Vocal)
(13) Padmashri Pt. Bhajan Sopori (Santoor)
(14) Pt. Ronu Majumdaar (Flute)
(15) Padmabhushan Viku Vinayak Ram (Ghatam)
(16) Pandit Ritwik Sanyal (Dhrupad)
(17) Rama Vidyanathan (Bharatnatyam)
(18) Pt. Tarun Bhattacharya (Santoor)
(19) Padmabhushan Uma Sharma (Kathak)
(20) Vidushi Shruti Sadolikar (Hindustani classical Vocal)
(21) Padmabhushan T. V. Shankaranarayanan (Carnatic Vocal)
(22) Malvika Mitra (Kathak)
(23) Pt. Sanjeev Abhyankar (Hindustani classical Vocal)
(24) Pt. Rajan Mishra and Pt. Sajan Mishra (Hindustani classical Vocal)
(25) Dr. M. Manju Nath (Carnatic Violin)
(26) Vidushi R. Vedavalli (Carnatic Vocal)
(27) Padmabhushan Begum Parveen Sultana (Hindustani classical Vocal)
(28) Pt. Kushal Das (Sitar)
(29) Dr. Prabha Atre (Hindustani classical Vocal)
(30) Kapila Venu (Koodiyattam)

Moreover, SPICMACAY is also organizing a Festival of Dance from 12 to 15 February, 2019. The eminent artists performing in the festival as are as follows:

Report by
Smt. Suman Doonga An Art Critic, frequently writes reviews in leading national news papers.

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