'Sattriya' in the land of Putin: How did this traditional dance form from Assam reach Russia?

Guwahati: In an attempt to assuage good cultural relations between India and Russia, a slew of initiatives have been undertaken by the Central Government among which "India In Russia" or the Indian Embassy in Russia has taken on the mammoth task of sensitizing the populace of Russia to the rich cultural attributes of India.

Increasingly good relations with Russia, be it in a trade or other factors, has been one of the driving forces of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's diplomatic decisions, ever since the onset tenure.

In July 2020, PM Modi got in touch with the Russian President Vladimir Putin and reiterated his zeal on the commitment of New Delhi and Moscow to further continually strengthen the "Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership" between the two nations.

Not only in terms of financial relations, but both embassies of the countries are also enthusiastically introducing their respective cultures to their citizens with the help of Twitter and Facebook, where they regularly update various interesting tidbits of information about our vast demographic; our attire that ranges from silk sarees originating from South India to the Mekhela Sador of Assam, all the way in the North East of India.

Recently, @IndiainRussia on Twitter and "India in Russia" on Facebook published a detailed description of the highly regarded folk dance of Assam known as 'Sattriya.'

The dance form was respectfully described along with intricate descriptions of the manner in which acting is an integral part of it. The dancers are astute actors along with excellent dancing abilities.

They manage to explain the main themes of the performances as "usually related to religious stories: Vishnu avatars like Lord Krishna and epics like Mahabharata and Ramayana."

What catches one's eye is the detailed precision in which one of Assam's most loved dance forms is presented.

They describe Ankiya Nat as "one-act plays of Sattriya, that combine several elements: dance, ballad, and drama."

The performances usually take place in the dance community halls of monastery temples.

In addition to the dancing part, the performance also includes singing and abhinaya (facial expressions). This way the dancer conveys the whole story to the viewer.