Radhe Radhe! India Premiere in Delhi

Friends, 

Sutra Foundation’s Radhe! Radhe! presented by Kala Kalp Sanskrutik Sansthan, (helmed by dancer/director Dr Atasi Mishra), was a resounding success judging from the reaction of guests who clearly enjoyed the performance.

We were fortunate that Guru Gajendra Panda and Patachitra artist Bibhu Patnaik were also able to attend this last India performance of Radhe! Radhe!

The chief guest, Malaysia High Commissioner to India, Dato’ Muzafar Shah Mustafa was an elegant presence together with his wife, Datin Najwa Zainal. Senior dance critic Leela Venkataraman and dancer Sharon Lowen, artist Jatin Das, Shri Nirmal Swaraj Ji (Paridhi Art Group), former High Commissioner of India to Malaysia Preet Malik & his lovely wife Smt Aruna Mallik and several others were in the audience. 

Artist Bibhu Patnaik was visibly pleased that his Patachitra works came to life in Radhe! Radhe!. Master lighting designer, Sivarajah Natarajan, created a lavish atmosphere of Brindavan spring time love mood for Radha-Krishna. 

Sutra Dancers gave their best and Radhe! Radhe! achieved its epiphany, as if on cue, in its last India Tour performance. 

Geethika Sree, who is now at the peak of her dance career, was consistently sublime in the principal role of Radha; Jyotsnaa as Chandravali injected the right disruptive ‘other-woman’ aura in this divine ménage a trois; the boys were mercurial especially in their leaps; Tan Mei Mei excel in her soubrette role as the instigating Lalita; both Nithya & Vanizha were superbly convincing as the exuberant tribal flower girl and bird seller and so was Prithylasmi and Vickneshwaran as the story-tellers (bhagavatars). 

But the kudos go to Jagyandatta Pradhan, from Rudrakshya Foundation (Bhubaneswar), who took the challenging role of Krishna 2.0 from Harenthiran who missed this important tour. Jagyan improved by the day especially when he had to bring Krishna to the depth of abject pathos. Jagyan as ‘The Guilty-Krishna’ implored Radha to surrender her ‘manas’, her anger and sulk, thus bringing the Radha-Krishna reconciliation to its ultimate perfect ending of ‘sweet surrender’ in this timeless love drama.

This was excactly the gesture that released the floodgate of emotion and for some, tears, in the audience…
Sutra will give another chance of savouring Radhe! Radhe! 2.0 in 2026 for those who missed this remarkable Odissi production!

Sutra.