Guru Ratikant Mohapatra
Guru Ratikant Mohapatra
In the universe of Indian classical dance and music, Ratikant has
carved for himself a enviable niche as a dancer, percussionist, teacher,
choreographer and archivist. In the last 30 years he has been able to
establish a firm imprint of Odissi in the consciousness of audiences in
many places in India and abroad.
He has also created a world-class dance
institute which attracts students from all over the globe for extended
periods of Odissi dance training which gives them a unique opportunity to
absorb the intricacies of the Guru Kelucharan Gharana in Odissi. Building
upon his guruji’s creative ideas and concepts Ratikant has at least 50 new
choreographic works to his credit since guruji’s passing away in the year
2004 which have received enthusiastic response for choreographic
innovation and quality music.
Ratikant’s versatility and creative energy have found expression in
celluloid as well, in the choreography of Odissi dance sequences for the
Indo–Chinese film “The Desire”. In 2011 he choreographed traditional
Odissi group dance bringing 555 dancers together in one platform, creating
a Guinness Book of World Records for the state of Odisha.
Ratikant is widely travelled, and of late spends quality time abroad
teaching and performing and holding workshops in various countries. His
work abroad has given him new insights into imparting the subtlety of the
highly nuanced Odissi dance tradition to students and audiences the world
over. Ratikant has often commented that his greatest joy has been in the
grooming of numerous young dancers of commendable credibility both at
home and abroad.
