Jai Jagannath!

One is in the official state of Lord of the Universe literally, Jagannath! He is everywhere. Even in the lift, as in photo below, one can see the devotion. The beauty of Odiya culture is its total surrender to Lord Jagannath through flowers, food and fan club of the lord. On every table, in most homes or on stage, there’s the idol of Sri Jagannath Swamy with sister Subhadra and brother Balabhadra. The trio. Family first! Odiya culture even today has family as its centre. Unlike in many states and places in India, where the family system has broken up or got compressed or marginalised, in Odisha the family as a unit is the kernel truth.

The Trio worshipped every where

Odisha is a state that ought to be the called the culture and hospitality capital of India. Actually, hospitality is its culture. Its people maybe simple (read non greedy! unlike most of India) and stress-free looking but they are deep and dignified. Hassle free. Culture sits on them with ease. It is not a new patina that they gave acquired. They don’t show off, run after material things or clamour for more.  Of course, few can these days escape the effects of Netflix or assorted junk TV shows! There’s a renewed focus on using Odia language now, as days of English-speaking, westernised netas is literally in the opposition now!

Odisha as a culture is ancient. Truly so, Kalinga war, all recall, as do Utkal desh. Add the various architectural delights the state regales in from Rani Gumpha in Khandagiri and Udaigiri Cave Complex to Konark temple and Mukteshwar; Dhauli and and and… The list goes on. Odisha’s beaches are pristine, its wild life, especially bird sanctuaries, are a feast for the eyes and its food, down to earth. Neempada Jhilli or Dalma. Beats Punjabi Rajma and Shakar-paara!

Patachitra

Odiya artists – the sculptors and dancers, musicians and Patachitra makers – are all part of the pallette that gives East India its symbols and identity. Why, the Konark Wheel itself is world famous as are the Lingaraj Temple Ekamra Kshetra Complex and Puri temples. Wow! If there is one glorious temple by the sea that flourishes in everyone’s imagination as ultimate symbol of unity, it is the Puri and its rath yatra and the fervour and devotion of millions.

In all this, where does the youth stand? Smilingly. The youth is down to earth, not spoilt by fashion and fiesta of other states and the youth is busy working in whatever life opportunity has given them. Odisha youth has respect for elders, gurus and society. I see at airport lot of feet touching, a sure sign that respect remains a kernel truth even in a fast-evolving Odisha.

With the young Culture Minister Suryabanshi Suraj

There’s a new energy with the new government. The kumbhakaran mode is over and there’s a new buzz in Lok Seva Bhawan, the hive of sarkari activity. The officers and offices are without fuss, and youth power is in place, if one sees young ministers like Suryabanshi Suraj, in-charge of not one but three portfolios – Higher Education, Sports & Youth Services, Odia Language Literature & Culture. His department’s Principal Secretary In-charge of Language, Literature and Culture is a cultured, literary IAS Bishnupada Sethi, who has a photographic memory and deep insights and his speeches are well-articulated with content and context. Such IAS officers also add to Odisha’s status and standing in branding the state. Bijay Ketan Upadhyay as the Director of this department works, and delegates – a sure sign of leadership. When the idea of platforming pioneer scholar Mohan Khokar’s centenary celebrations in Odisha was first mooted a month ago, Odissi artiste-academician Dr Sikata Das was heading the ORC – she made much of the arrangements, which the new officer in charge, Anuja Tarini Mishra, delivered with panacea.  Here’s an ebullient lady officer, full of spunk and substance.

With Deputy Chief Minister KV Singhdeo

Tall and stately, the DNA shows in Deputy Chief Minister KV Singhdeo’s demeanour. Agriculture, Farmer’s Empowerment and Energy are in his charge and despite these high-octane portfolios, what cool efficiency he exudes. Calm authority with a radio-voice, he represents a lineage his forefathers started and grandfather once headed the state too as its CM. The current CM Mohan Majhi himself is youthful and a busy bee, getting investments to Odisha, a state he took charge of just three months ago. A man of letters, Singhdeo sahib hails from the royal family of Patnagarh-Bolangir and when I tell him I’m Baroda born, he shares his mother’s side of family with the Rajpipla connection. He is art-sensitive and sensitised, with culture in the DNA of even his granddaughter, an Odissi aspirant in faraway Udaipur.

A lamp has been lit. Overall Odisha government is in action mode. Museums and cultural bodies have younger talents – sports – and hockey being Odisha’s almost official state sport now – has new synergy awaiting action. Odisha’s best kept secret are its villages. Go into the interiors, just a hundred kilometres from the capital Bhubaneswar and you are joined by Chaunsath Yoginis in Hirapur or the vast clean water bodies of Sambalpur. Go south to Ganjam or Balasore .

In Bhubaneswar, I missed meeting my dearest Mr Odisha urf Dr JP (Das) poet, bureaucrat, thinker and intellectual. Forty years ago, as one of the directors of INTACH, with charge of East and South India (that’s 40 cities!), I had the privilege of doing much work in Odisha – saving or listing monuments, including the overall plan for Ekamra Kshetra (the Lingaraj temple complex) in Bhubaneswar. Mukteshwar too.  I’ve been to Odisha 20 times in 40 years and from the good old ITDC hotel as the only one those days to the Cactus Park outside the capital city; from zoo with White Tiger to Chilika Lake Bird Sanctuary, one has seen much. The old Railway hotel by the beach in Puri was so cute and quaint that the swanky Wayfare now in Bhubaneswar is no match, but gave me adventure tourism experience for free when I found a baby cobra in my room.  Fortunately it was dazed, perhaps coming in high spirits from the lagoon bay or bar! So didn’t bite. And so, he attained the last item in Odissi repertoire, Moksha! Housekeeping found it easy to put it to rest, I thought it should be caught and released in the wild but the truth is we were on their land! A quick fact-check by my worried wife in faraway Bangalore led us to realise baby snakes’ bite are more fatal as they have no fangs so inject directly. I sure didn’t sleep that night! I love wild life and, some say, I even look like it too, but I prefer the real reptile variety in jungles. In fancy hotels such pets are not good news. Next morning, I saw a mongoose in my porch, so it reaffirmed that snakes were around in plenty. I’ve had long experience in dealing with human snakes (far more deadly) so these baby ones didn’t worry me much. I didn’t tell anyone, as didn’t want to add to my local guests’ woes and work since we had a huge function at hand that evening. A cultural one. No, no nagin snake dance by Sridevi clones but a straight classical Odissi dance by ORC. That was the original name of the Odissi Research Centre, for all gurus and styles of Orissi to be platformed. The history of Orissi (that was the original spelling) is detailed in the below book – 333 pages with 400  rare black and white photos – maybe a few copies still left on Amazon.

Cuttack being the original (cultural) capital, my father had deep forays with dance and helped establish Odissi as a main classical form, way back in 1958. His work has also given me links to many gurus whom the family knew first hand. Deba da was not merely a great guru for me but a very round, healthy uncle! Adi guru Pankaj Charan Das was the fountain head. I tried to learn Orissi from guru Mayadhar Raut in Delhi but he gave up after six months saying my body was angular because of having learnt Bharatnatyam for six years and Kathak for four. Orissi needed lalitya, lyricism. But today when I see how Odissi looks more and more like Bharatanatyam (and having the speed of Kathak), I wonder if I was not ahead of my times!? Ganga Babu was short but tall in talent; Kelubabu was first at mother’s shows often and they danced together too. Odisha for me is a home-state more so as younger lot of gurus like the ever-smiling and helpful Hanuman to Ram, guru Gajendra Panda, lives there. He is the only one who supported 25 years of attendance yearbook (www.attendance-india.com) by buying for all students. Gokul is another young dancer who loves books and collects these. It is a pity that young dancers are in Facebook more and read real books, less. God and life has given me the bandwidth and ability to freak with all kinds of people but I prefer those with no politics, no agenda, just goodness of being. That’s also so Odiya: The goodness of being.

The four gurus of Odissi

Young musicians need mentoring, and when I meet a Milu or Pintu, I feel there’s so much goodness on their face then what potential the state has? Dancers have survived changing times and also feel at home globally today. If Micheal Jackson could platform Odishi in his music visuals then why not others? Odisha has so much material for branding.

Sports, culture, languages then add mineral, steel, iron ore wealth! Gold too. The state of Odisha is rich in more ways than one. It is time these synergies are used for betterment of its people. We are only sevaks who can do selfless seva to the state…. And wish it well. Acche din aa-gaye!

Ashish Khokar uses humour to make serious points on our culture and society. A historian by training, artiste by disposition and organiser by nature ,in his spare time he has also published /authored 50 books; over 5000 articles in mainstream media in the last 45 years and served many cultural institutions in India and abroad, making him a renaissance man. He is also a pioneer in arts administration and international culture education since the 1980s. He is hailed as the gold standard of archiving, documentation and dance history.  For full bio : www.attendance-india.com