Mysuru: Gayana Sabha and Naatya Sabha, Mysuru, have organised a music and dance event on Republic Day (Thursday, Jan. 26) at RamaGovinda Rangamandira in Ramakrishnanagar here from 5.30 pm onwards. There will be two programmes on that evening — Bansuri recital by Sameer Rao, followed by a Dance-Drama ‘Hamsa Damayanthi’ written by poet Pu.Thi.Na.

Profile: Sameer Rao, one of the most promising and prominent disciples of Padma Vibhushan Pt. Hari Prasad Chaurasia, began his musical journey at the age of 11. Trained by Panditji himself in the traditional Guru Shishya Parampara at the Vrindaban Gurukul, Mumbai, Sameer has performed extensively in India and abroad. An “A” Graded artiste of the All India Radio and Doordarshan, Sameer is a recipient of ‘Suramani’, ‘Nada Kishore’, ‘Yuva Prathibha’ and many more awards.

He will be accompanied on the tabla by Adarsh Shenoy.

‘Hamsa Damayanthi’, the story of Nala and Damayanthi from Mahabharata, is a very popular and frequently told story. Poet Pu.Ti. Narasimhachar’s Hamsa Damayanthi gives a part of the story in the form of Navodaya Literature in Kannada. The story narrates about a swan becoming a messenger between Princess Damyanthi and Nala of Nishadha Kingdom.

Nala and Damayanthi fall in love with each other after hearing about their respective noble traits, intelligence and  with beauty through the swan. Thus the golden swan, which is on its way to the lake by the Himalayas, acts as a messenger to spark a romantic relationship between them. The dance-drama adapts Bharatanrityam style of dancing. Bharatanrityam is a style which incorporates the ancient movement methodology of Natyashatra, that is Karanas into existing style of Bharathanatyam.

Choreography of this dance-drama is by Samudyatha Bhat and Samanvitha Bhat. Music is composed by Sameer Rao. They are supported by an ensemble dancers, musicians and instrumentalists.

Samudyatha Bhat and Samanvitha Bhat sisters are trained in Bharatanatyam under the tutelage of their father Vidwan G.B. Janardhan. Their quest towards the ancient art of Natyasastra took them to seek the guidance of Dr. Padma Subramanyam, a legendary scholar and dancer. They have Masters in Performing Arts from Sastra University, Thanjavur. The sisters are graded artistes of Doordarshan.