STRAP: Jyoti Rout, a renowned Odissi exponent, believes that while technical proficiency is important, deep surrender is vital for divinity to shine through a dancer
Nidhi Sinha, OP
BHUBANESWAR: Hailing from Odisha, Jyothi Rout is an exponent of Odissi dance form and a renowned guru. She was trained at Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya, a prominent college of music and dance in Bhubaneshwar, under the guidance of Guru Deba Prasad Das and Guru Pankaj Charan Das.
She is a master of East Indian Classical Odissi dance, an art that is accompanied by extensive costume and makeup, bells around the ankles, stomping foot movements, and exaggerated facial expressions. Her specialty is the emotional expression behind the movements.
Jyoti Rout’s teaching is based on devotion, service and surrender. She is deeply committed to passing on the torch of Odissi dance. In Odissi classes, students learn exercises, body positions, stepping technique, and dance item stories, music and choreography. Jyoti Rout believes that while technical proficiency is important, deep surrender is most important so that the divine can truly shine through a dancer.
She is the recipient of an award from World Arts West for her outstanding choreography of Dasavatara at the prestigious Ethnic Dance Festival at San Francisco in 2006. She has been honoured by several national and international awards from around the globe, including Pride of India National Award, Shrishetra Mahari Award from Jagannath Puri, Shrestha Odiani, the Life Time Achievement Award from Kharabela Youth Club, Kalashree Award from OSA, USA and Nirtya Siramani from Olympiad Cuttack Odisha among others.
Guru Jyoti Rout’s mission is ‘to teach and share the beauty of this dance with devotion and pure love’. Hence, the focus of the school is on not merely the technique but overall philosophy of the Indian classical arts. The ancient systems of dance and music codified in the sacred texts of India state clearly that these practices are meant as a means of growth for the individual toward union with God.
Classical dance and music were originally performed before the deity in the temple as an offering. For the student who commits to the practice, it is a commitment to the internal transformations, as well as to the rigorous physical training. The training addresses both of these aspects of Odissi.
She said, “Before settling in San Francisco I travelled to Indonesia, Thailand and all over the world. As I started teaching students in San Francisco, I observed the difference in mentality of Indian and US students. The change in attitude is due to the difference in culture.
Advising budding classical dancers, she said, “Continue dancing even if the journey gets rough. One starts dancing as one loved it at the first place. I urge parents to support their children in artistic pursuits.”
Guru Jyoti Rout is a gifted choreographer. She has choreographed over 60 original items in the classical Odissi tradition. She was one of the few dancers who had the opportunity to dance in front of Lord Jagannath in Puri.
In 1993 she moved to the United States, where she founded Jyoti Kala Mandir in Berkeley California, one of the largest Odissi schools in the West.