When Eve seduced Adam to have that apple, she walked in Odissi style. She certainly didn’t do the Barathanatyam walk. Or so says Ramli Ibrahim, the artistic director behind ‘Stirring Odissi’, the fourth International Odissi Festival happening in Kuala Lumpur from May 23.

If you have seen an Odissi performance, you can appreciate the wit in that description. Odissi, having originated from the eastern state of Orissa in India, is one of the most graceful Indian classical dances. It is easily recognisable from the distinctive Tribhangi pose, which is the bend of the body in three parts — the head, bust and torso. This lyrical grace is Odissi’s mark of beauty. And that beauty is showcased in KL for the very first time this May and June.

‘Odissi has an element of Dionysian in it. Instead of cutting into space like Barathanatyam, it is curvilinear in the way it negotiates space and movement. And this somehow [gives it a sense of] unpredictability,’ says Ramli who believes Odissi has a lilt that makes it appeal to Visual Arts enthusiasts as much as lovers of the Performing Arts.

As such, ‘Stirring Odissi’ is not just a dance festival. It is, as Ramli puts it, a celebration of the many creative and intellectual expressions of Odissi. However, the main draw is indisputably the performances by renowned dancers from India and other parts of the world, but also including Kuala Lumpur, which is represented by Ramli Ibrahim himself, January Low, Tan Mei Mei, Jegatheyswara and others.

‘Stirring Odissi’ will also serve as a catalyst towards the development of this unique dance style. There will be an exhibition of paintings inspired by Odissi from both local and international artists, along with a photographic exhibition featuring the evolution of Odissi from the traditional to the contemporary form.
Galeri Petronas will also host a two-day seminar on making Odissi relevant to the 21st century. With the participation of scholars, critics and renowned dance gurus such as Guru Durga Charan Ranbir, Madhavi Muggal and Ramahari Das, the seminar will explore what Odissi means and its role in the modern arts scene.

Thanks largely to the efforts of Sutra Dance Theatre and Ramli Ibrahim, Odissi has garnered a respectable following in Kuala Lumpur. A world class festival like this will hopefully further stimulate the interest for Odissi, and also Dance in general.

But more importantly, Ramli thinks that this is one way to inspire and engage local audiences to the Arts. ‘Malaysia should see the best because we want to see the audience become the rasika, or informed audience. The more informed the audience is, the more discerning they will be,’ says Ramli.

According to Ramli, Odissi, or any Indian classical dance for that matter, perfectly illustrates that traditional dance can exist and compete for attention, even alongside more popular arts and entertainment options. While several other Dance forms seem to have fossilised or have been defeated, Indian classical dance is thriving all over the world.However, Odissi has weathered a long and broken history that stems back to at least the first century ( a bas-relief was discovered depicting dancers in the hills of Udaygiri dating back to this time).

Back in those days, Odissi had been upheld by the Maharis, who were the temple dancers offering Odissi as a homage to Lord Jagannath. Then came the colonial period when the Maharis lost their revered social position. Without patronage, the dance form overturned under British rule, Odissi started slowly disappearing.
‘Art cannot exist in a vacuum. So the Maharis became associated with temple prostitution,’ Ramli explains. At that point in time, dancing girls were considered to be little more than prostitutes. And the ‘anti-nautch’ movement of the British continued to bring Odissi to near extinction.

During this period, the dance was barely kept alive by a few castes or gurus. But one particular tradition emerged. Pre-pubescent boys — known as Gotipua dancers — were trained and dressed-up as girls to perform Odissi in the villages.

In the 1930s or 40s, people began to dedicate their lives, together with the Mahatma Gandhi movement, to reviving the dignity of India. Dance was one of the key tools used to achieve this. And when India finally achieved independence, there was a major change in official attitude towards Indian classical dance and it was soon regarded as a crucial way of defining national identity.

The reconstruction of Odissi during this period involved scouring ancient texts, examining intricate poses represented in temple bas relief (this explains Odissi’s sculpturesque style) and relearning the dance from the Gotipua dancers. As such, the revival of Odissi is largely attributed to the tradition of Gotipua. In fact, many modern day gurus have been Gotipua dancers themselves.

These gurus did not just re-enact the dance. They have created and offered new aesthetics that took the dance to a new, more evolved, level. This enriched consciousness has not only ensured the continuity of Odissi but has also added new elements to the repertoire and brought it to an international audience. ‘Stirring Odissi’ will be a testament to that as it will showcase the best of the various schools of Odissi.

While the themes of Odissi are almost exclusively religious in nature, it is no longer performed in temples, unless as part of a festival.

‘[Like any offering], you present what is symbolically the purest. Looking at this, you can say that Dance is an offering of yourself to the best of yourself inside. You mark your space because where you perform, it is the temple. It is the temple of the heart.’ says Ramli. ‘And this is why dance is divine.’

Stirring Odissi – The Exhibition

Stirring Odissi: Male (Solo) Performance

Stirring Odissi: Female Performance

Stirring Odissi: Group Performance