Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav (RSM) 2019, after its conclusion in Jabalpur, travelled to Sagar in Madhya Pradesh today and met with exceptional response from locals and visiting audiences across the state. The venue at PTC Maidan, Pilli Kothi road, Civil Lines, Sagar was packed with spectators as the first day opened with dance presentation by the zonal cultural centres and followed by traditional performance-‘Mati ke Laal’ presented by locals of Madhya Pradesh on main stage. North-east dance forms presented by artists from NEZCC caught the eye of visitors for its beautiful choreograph.
Rastriya Sanskriti Mahotsav has been receiving continuous praise and popularity among the masses of our country for playing a major role to bridge our cultural diversity with the ancient ideal of ‘Oneness in all’ and thus it received commendable amount of love and admiration by artists and audiences alike, as it gave them an opportunity to discover rare and unexplored cultural traditions of our country, under the Ek Bharat Shresth Bharat Matrix.
The festival brought together craftsmen of Gujarat showcasing their metal-crafts; Jodhpur exhibiting items of block-printing, West Bengal selling handmade silk materials, Rajasthan displaying colourful glass bangles. Different states under seven zonal cultural centres put up stalls where visitors thronged in multitude and procured number of items elapsed all previous records. Other than the handicrafts, under the same roof, traditional flavours in the likes of LittiChoka-Chandra Kala-Khaja from Bihar; Dhokla- Thepla-Khandvi from Gujarat, Chole-Bhature-Amritsari Naan from Punjab and other partnering states were put up for sale in designated stalls. The people of Sagar experienced an unequalled shopping journey viz. handicrafts, cuisines, sculpture, photography, and performing arts, all under one campus.
First day at Sagar was replete with unprecedented performances like Rasleela by Vrindavan Research Institute where the immemorial narrative of Krishna-Leela was presented with a beautiful direction and composition, leaving audiences awe-struck with the grand illustration; ‘Chhau’ Presentation by Shiv Charan Sahu was next which mesmerized the spectators in a much grander scale.
Lastly, melodious performance of Roop Kumar Rathod and Sonali Rathod received graceful fervour and jubilation from the audience. Roopkumar’s voice elevated the classical gharana to a melodious state and Sonali Rathod’s voice gracefully captured the emotion of each song she has sung in the evening.
The Mahotsav will continue in Sagar tomorrow also with attractions of Bharatnatyam presentations, traditional and folk dances and Sangeet Programme in the end.