Odisha Biennale 2017 to begin from Oct 28

Bhubaneswar: The third edition of international art and cultural festival ‘Odisha Biennale 2017’ will begin here from October 28.

Since this is the year of Japan-India friendly exchanges, it is being organised in collaboration with Japan Foundation and Mudra Foundation. The nine-day long festival will feature 40 artistes from 10 countries.

Acclaimed Odissi dancer of Japanese origin Masako Ono will set the tone for the festival on the opening day. Trained in ballet, hip-hop and other modern dance forms, she has been learning and performing Odissi for the last 15 years. She will also conduct a workshop on Odissi on November 5.

There will be a number of workshops and performances during the festival. While it is Rs 500 per person for attending the workshops, there will no entry fee for the performances.

Cultural troupe ‘Africal Ensemble’ will bring the curtains down on the nine-day festival, which will also see performances by Fujima Rankoh, Mandeep raikhy, Ivhiko Funai, Ronita Mookerji, Hemabharathy Palani and Moya Michael, among others.

As a global convocation of visual and performing artistes, Odisha Biennale was launched in 2013. It aims to highlight Odisha as a dynamic hub for current ideas and an open society that encourages freedom of expression as well as sponsoring significant and lasting benefits for the area and its inhabitants, socially, economically and culturally.