Bhubaneswar: Sushil Meher has been picked for the much-coveted role of King Kansa for the 78th edition of Dhanu Yatra Mahotsav in Odisha’s Bargarh, considered to be the world’s biggest open air theatre.
After a three-day selection process, the final list of selected artistes and their assigned roles was announced at the district collector’s conference hall by Additional District Magistrate and vice chairman of the Dhanu Yatra Festival Committee Mahendra Mahapatra.
A resident of Chichinda village under Bheden block of Bargarh district, Meher will portray the iconic character of the Mathura King for the first time. Kansa is the central character of Dhanu Yatra with its theme borrowed from ‘Krishna Leela’ and ‘Mathura Vijay’.
“Though the Bargarh stage will be new for Sushil Meher, he has been performing at various other stages,” said Bargarh Dhanu Yatra Mahotsav Samiti secretary Sureswara Satpathy.
A total of 291 artists had applied for various roles this year, of whom 186 appeared for the auditions. While 44 applications were received for the role of Kansa, 36 artistes turned up for the final round on Monday. Besides king Kansa, auditions were also held for his ministers besides Akrura, Narada, Devaki, Vasudeva and others at Biju Patnaik Town Hall, according to the organisers.
Judges evaluated candidates on their acting performance, voice modulation, stage presence, and dramatic intensity. Organisers had earlier clarified that former actors were excluded this year to give fresh talent a fair opportunity and to inject fresh energy into the age-old tradition.
Others picked for different roles include: Prabhas Kumar Tripathy (Mushtik), Himanshu Sahu (Chanur), Arttatran Mahapatra (Ugrasen), Kamaraj Bhoi (Narada), Manoj Sahu (Vasudeva), Jagannath Sahu (Akrura), and Jagabandhu Mahaling (Sarthaki). Hemant Pradhan of Ambabhona has been chosen for the role of Senapati while Gulab Chandra Dash will perform as Mahamantri.
Dhanu Jatra will be staged from December 24 for 11 days during which the entire town will be transformed into a mythological stage. River Jeera will symbolically represent river Yamuna and Ambapali, which is located on the other side of the river Jeera, will turn into Gopapura. A Raj Darbar (royal court) for King Kansa as well as a Rangamahal will also be constructed where the actors will entertain spectators with their performances.