Ahmedabad: Vikram Sarabhai Intl fest from Dec 28

Ahmedabad, Dec 24: Noted danseuse Mallika Sarabhai, acclaimed percussionist Bickram Ghosh, an Australian dance artiste and a Peruvian theatre personality, will take part in the 31st Vikram Sarabhai International Arts Festival, which gets underway in the city from Thursday.

Talking to reporters about the three-day programme here, Ms Sarabhai said Australian artiste Dianne Reid, who produces dance screen works, will present a live dance and a video titled 'Unfixed'.

''She has come to our academy Darpana as part of an exchange programme and spent three months here,'' she added.

Ms Sarabhai said the Peruvian director will stage an experimental piece, in which elements of pre-Columbian Peru and Hindu cultures are interwoven into a symbiosis of mythology.

Percussionist Bickram Ghosh will showcase his hugely popular composition 'Rhythmscape' at the festival.

Speaking on the occasion, Ms Reid said India has been a revelation for her, as it is very deeply rooted in spirituality and traditions.

''Coming from a country which is very modern, India with its varied cultural traditions has been very fascinating,'' she added.

On her work 'Unfixed', she said ''The piece reflects upon the idea that nothing is fixed -- our bodies, our futures, our destinies -- and that we, as trillions of particles of matter in a continuous state of flux, are connected to each other and the universe.'' Oscar Naters, a choreographer and visual artist from Peru, said his presentation ''Huaca'' is an experimental piece.

''Pachamama is the primary Peruvian deity, mother earth. It is her flesh or Huaca from which humans developed. This is representational of humanity's search for a return to our origins, to the whole of which we are part,'' he informed.

Later, the festival will be held in other cities like Mumbai and Pune, Ms Sarabhai added.

UNI