Sangam city artistes to perform at R-Day Parade in Delhi
The Republic Day Parade in New Delhi will feature the folk dance form of Prayagraj, called 'Dhediya', and the folk song and dance genre of Uttar Pradesh, called 'Kajri'. Two teams of artists have been practicing since December for the event. Additionally, 101 female sanitation workers from Uttar Pradesh will be special guests at the parade.
The Republic Day Parade set to take place in New Delhi on January 26 will witness Sangam city artistes presenting ‘Dhediya’, the folk dance form of Prayagraj, besides ‘Kajri’, a folk song and dance genre of Uttar Pradesh, on the Rajpath.
Two teams comprising a total of 25 artistes are already in Delhi since December practising for the event, said officials.
For the ‘Dhediya’ folk dance presentation, director of North Central Zone Cultural Centre (NCZCC) of the Union Ministry of Culture has selected the troupe of noted folk artiste of Prayagraj Anand Kishor following which he along with his team left for Delhi on December 26.
“We are presently taking part in the one-month practice ahead of the grand parade to be held in Delhi on the Republic Day. After the practice, all the artistes will get an opportunity to perform on the Rajpath on January 26 along with selected artistes from across the country,” said Anand Kishor while talking from the national capital.
The 16 artistes from Prayagraj who are part of Anand’s team are Prayag Sangeet Samiti’s Bharat Natyam teacher Arshita Yadav, besides Prachi, Nandani, Priyanka Mali, Shubhi, Shivangi, Shraddha, Tanushka, Rashi, Uma, Simran, Geetanjali, Khushi, Supriya Kumari, Muskaan and Aditi.
Anand, who has received many honours from all over the country and plays as many as 18 musical instruments, has written and composed a song for Dhediya folk dance, which is today famous not only in the country but also abroad.
The song ‘’Bade Bhagya Se Aaye Shri Ram Prayag Me Ude Dhediya Jug Jug Jiye Dhediya’ written by Anand was used in the Delhi Parade in 2023, and also in the G20 programmes held across the country. He is currently working as a tabla teacher in Prayag Sangeet Samiti and is also a music PGT teacher in Allahabad Public School- Chauphatka.
Likewise, a team of Kajri folk dancers from Prayagraj is also in Delhi. This team is led by Sapna Dwivedi and comprises nine female artistes who will present Kajri folk dance in the parade among a total of 1,500 artistes who would be performing on the occasion.
101 female sanitation workers to be special guests
This year, 101 women sanitation workers of Uttar Pradesh will be special guests at the Republic Day Parade to be organised in New Delhi. Around 10 female sanitation workers from Prayagraj have been invited as guests on this special day. Female sanitation workers of Prayagraj will go to New Delhi on January 24, officials shared.
The responsibility of taking the female sanitation workers to New Delhi and bringing them back has been entrusted to the municipal corporations. State mission director of Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) Nitin Bansal has issued orders to the municipal corporations in this regard, said additional municipal commissioner Deependra Yadav.
A total of 257 women sanitation workers from 10 states of the country have been invited to watch the parade with 101 from Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj, Varanasi, Agra, Mathura-Vrindavan, Aligarh, Firozabad, Moradabad, Bareilly, Ghaziabad, Saharanpur, Jhansi, Gorakhpur and Varanasi municipal corporations. Other states to be represented are Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh.