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Devraj Patnaik | The Artistic Director of Chitralekha
Odissi Dance Creations, he is a multi-talented prodigy who bestrides
the Odissi world. His abilities as a dancer, dance choreographer,
music composer and percussionist combined with his innate create
drive have made him imminently qualified for his favorite endeavour:
the creation of new works.
His native talent for dance
has been nurtured by the tutelage of Kalasri
Chitralekha Patnaik, Padmasri Gangadhar Pradham, the late
Padmabibhusan Kelucharan Mohapatra, the late Padmasri Pankaj
Charan Das and Kumari
Ellora Patnaik. His skill in percussion extends to both the
pakhawaj and the tabla. He has received training in pakhawaj
from Guru Sri Banamali Maharana and Guru Sri Gangadhar Pradhan,
and training in tabla from Badya Samrat Sri Umesh Chandra Kar.
He has taught Odissi dance since 1986, performed professionally
since 1988 and taught himself tabla since 1991.
As a choreographer, Devraj
has dedicated himself chiefly to Odissi, but in music composition,
his ability spans the field of Indian Classical.
In 1994, he co-founded Chitralekha
Odissi Dance Creations Incorporated (CODC) with his mother, Chitralekha and his
elder sister, Ellora.
His directorial debut, 'Konark
Lasya Lila' was presented in 1996. In 2002, Devraj began working
on the 'Mahabharata Quadrilogy from the Kurukshetra Chronicles'
for which he created, over the course of five years, all of the
music and dance. He also performed the title roles of each of
the four productions: 'Bhishma'(2003); 'Drona' (2004); 'Karna'
(2005) and Arjuna (2006). Despite the intense effort demanded
by the quadrilogy, he also managed to create his magnus opus,
the landmark Odissi abhinaya, 'Shiva Naba Rasa', which premiered
in 2005.
Most recently, Devraj performed
in 'Devi' in 2007 and at the 2008
CanAsian Dance Festival. Currently, and as ever, Devraj is
engaged in the creation of new dance and music works.
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