Famous Odissi Dancers who made India proud

Odissi is the oldest traditional dance originated from Odisha (which was known as Utkal), which still makes its mark on the International platform. You go to abroad and if mention about Odissi, then people know that you belong to India and Odisha. Odissi has been appraised by Buddhism and Jainism.

This fame and name to Odisha and India is possible due the dedication and talent of famous Odissi dancers. Even people from abroad countries are coming to Odisha and learning Odissi. On the occasion of second grandest Odissi Music Festival in Bhubaneswar, we present you a round-up of famous Odissi dancers who made India proud.

Late Gangadhar Pradhan
Ileana Citaristi
Kum Kum Mohanty
Sonal Mansingh
Madhavi Mudgal
Jhelum Paranjape
Nandita Behera
Devraj Patnaik
Ellora Patnaik
Sujata Mohapatra
Sharon Lowen

Above mentioned Odissi dancers are twentieth century cultural talents. But if we talk about the golden days of Odissi, we'll never forget to mention the Guru of Odissi dance Late Kelucharan Mohaptra, who is honored with Padma Sri, Padma Bhusan and Padma Vibhsan by the Government of India. Apart from that all of the above dancers are either the students of or related to Guru Kelucharan Mohaptra. There are also Ratikant Mohapatra, Sanjukta Panigrahi, Raghunath Dutta, Mayadhar Raut, Surendranath Jena, Deba Prasad Das and many more who have not only represented Odisha in International platform but also left their mark on Indian culture.

If you visit Odisha, you can see the carvings of Udayagiri and Ratnagiri to know the origin of Odissi. Odisha Tourism has always been ahead in promoting Odissi and people from around the world every year come to Odisha to know more about it.