Ankur 2009 - Performers

PRIYANKI ROY (Kolkata) – Odissi

Priyanki Roy is a senior disciple of Smt. Sharmila Biswas and a repertory dancer in her institution, Odissi Vision And Movement Centre. She started her initial training in Odissi uncer Smt. Arundhuti Roy, receiving special training in Guru Deva Prasad Das’ style from Guru Durga Charan Ranbir and Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra’s style from Sri Lingaraj Swain.
She has received several awards for dance and is currently an awardee of the National Scholarship for Dance from the Government of India.
As a repertory member of OVM, Priyanki has regularly performed at major dance festivals in India and abroad, travelling to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the Far East. Priyanki started her solo career in 2008 with performances in Kolkata and Bhubaneswar. She has already been noted as a promising new-comer in the field of Odissi.

SREELAKSHMY GOVARDHANAN (Thrissur) – Kuchipudi

Sreelakshmy was initiated into the art of classical dance at the age of four. She has been learning Kuchipudi under the tutelage of Guru Smt. Vyjayanthi Kashi since 2001. For a brief period she also trained under Smt. Manju Bargavee.
She has been practicing and performing across India and numerous countries abroad for several years, having traveled to Switzerland, Germany, the UK and the UAE. She has also traveled widely and performed with Guru Vyjayanthi Kashi for various national and regional festivals in India. She has also performed lead roles in her gurus dance drama productions.
The recipient of several accolades, Sreelakshmy is the Artistic Director of the Avanthika Space for Dance and also organized a National Classical Dance festival for youngsters in her hometown under this banner.

Ankur 2009

Ranan presents Ankur - annual platform showcasing upcoming talent in Indian Classical Dance. Ankur 2009 features an Odissi recital by Priyanki Roy (disciple of Smt. Sharmila Biswas) and a Kuchipudi recital by Sreelakshmy Govardhanan (disciple of Smt. Vyjayanthi Kashi)

Ankur is an annual event featuring emerging talent in the performing arts. We first presented this in September 2004 in response to a growing conviction that we – as young dancers who had experienced the many issues involved in making a successful debut – had a responsibility to making the path somewhat smoother for promising dancers today. Over the past four years, Ankur has presented young talents in classical vocal and instrumental music as well as classical dance, providing them with all infrastructural and organisational costs including a good audience and press coverage. Over the years, Ankur has grown from a small, local event with uncertain audiences to a regular fixture in the Calcutta cultural calendar with full houses over the past two years. It has developed into an organised event with a well-regulated and defined system of application, selection and presentation. Ankur has earned a reputation for excellent quality, and is looked forward to by dance gurus, students and the layperson with even a passing interest in dance.
The plans for Ankur begin every year with a call for applications in April. The selection process begins in mid-May and is completed by the middle of June. Successful candidates are informed by end of June or early July. The programme itself takes place in the second half of August. This year we have received over 20 applications from all over India covering six classical dance forms.