Vizag hosts 18th Vysakhi Nrityotsav showcasing diverse classical dances

Visakhapatnam hosted 18th Vysakhi Nrityotsav, an all-dance festival helmed by founder and festival director B.R. Vikram Kumar, over the weekend at the Kalabharathi auditorium in the city. Padma Shri awardee Darshana Jhaveri, an exponent of Manipuri dance, received the Vysakhi Bharata Nritya Bhushan award, Vasundhara Doraswamy was conferred with the Guru Saroja Vaidyanathan Excellence award and Pavitra Krishna Bhat and Afsaan Gujaravat won the Yuva Puraskar awards.

Ms. Jhaveri and her troupe (Manipuri) and Hari Reddy and his troupe (Kathak) opened the festival on Saturday, alongside an animal-mask dance by an Odisha troupe led by Dhanu Bisai, a form seldom staged in the city. Ms. Doraswamy and her troupe (Bharatanatyam) and Mr. Gujaravat and his troupe (Rajasthani folk) closed the festival on Sunday.