When: 20th - 26th February, 2021 Where: Khajuraho, India
Where the hand goes, there the eyes should follow
Where the eyes are, the mind should follow
Where the mind is, there the expression should be brought out
Where the expression is, there the rasa or flavour will be experienced by the audience. - Lines from the Natyakram
Classical Indian dance returns to its roots - to the temples where it was conceptualised, defined and immortalised in stone. The exquisite 1000 year-old temples of Khajuraho serve as the idyllic backdrop to an art genre with an equally impressive pedigree.
As dusk gives way to the nights darkness, lamps bathe the temples in a surreal golden glow creating the perfect ambience for the past to juxtapose with the present. The mellifluous strains of the flute and the tanpura set the mood; the mridangam and the tabla beat out the rhythms echoed by the ghungroo of the dancer and time stops. Sculpted dancer come to life? Nimble footwork arrested in mid step? A dancer captured in stone or just a moment out of time?
Find out for yourself. Travel to the plains of Central India, to the temple town of Khajuraho. The weeklong Khajuraho Dance Festival features the finest young talents of Indian classical dance and presents a rare opportunity to see the maestros and grand dames of Indian dance perform.