Folk dance of Saurashtra delights crowd |02 May 2015

The Shree Vasuki Sanskrutik cultural group from the Indian state of Gujarat recently gave an explosive performance of Indian folk dances at the International Conference Centre.

Under the attentive, watchful eyes of a crowd of dignitaries, government officials and other guests and members of the general public, the colourful troupe professionally performed dazzling pieces of the world famous hudo, doca ras, mix ras, gajaro, ularyu, zalawadi, combination of bollywood  dances, etc.

The show lasted for one hour and fifteen minutes.

The group’s visit to Seychelles was in the main to take part in the Carnaval International de Victoria where many had had the chance to see them performing in the streets of Victoria. As the group is world famous for its folk dances, the high commissioner of India Sanjay Panda said his office saw it fit to seize the opportunity to allow the Seychellois and the Indian community a unique chance to see other folk dances performed by the Gujarati folk group apart from what was seen in the streets during the carnival.

The group’s trip to Seychelles was sponsored by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) based in Delhi through the Indian high commission in Seychelles.

“India is diverse in the many types of cultures and it’s not easy even for Indians to witness all the different aspects of Indian culture. For me, it’s the first time I see the group. With the different bilateral ties that India and Seychelles have, culture through people to people contacts brings us very close together,” he said.

The 12-member Shree Vasuki Sanskrutik group formed in 1986 consists of seven men and five women with Yogesh Patadiya as team leader. The group was formed  with the aim of preserving the culture of the colourful land of Panchai. It has performed in many countries such as Russia, United Kingdom, Qatar, Korea, among others.

The group left Seychelles on Tuesday this week for Bulawayo in Zimbabwe to take part in a cultural event.  
The accompanying photos show highlights of the performances.

Text and photos by P. Joubert