VIJAYAWADA: The “Maha Brinda Natyam,” a Kuchipudi performance by 6,117 artistes, from 3-year-olds to 65-year-olds, organised at the Indira Gandhi Municipal Stadium here on Sunday made it to the coveted Guinness Book of World Records as the largest ever Kuchipudi dance performed anywhere in the world.
Dressed in traditional attire, the dancers enthralled the people - the event was telecast live across the State - with their synchronised movements and mesmerising Kuchipudi steps and expressions. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, clad in the traditional ‘panche kattu’, attended the event with his son Lokesh and grandson Devansh in tow.
Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu and legendary dancers Yamini Krishna Murthy, Shobha Naidu and others too graced the occasion. The three-day International Kuchipudi Convention, jointly organised by the US-based SiliconAndhra and the Department of Language and Culture of AP, attracted Kuchipudi dancers from 16 countries and culminated in the the record performance. The convention is a tribute to the late Vempati China Satyam, one of the greatest masters who practised the 700-year-old dance form and who has thousands of disciples across the globe. The group dance programme began at 6:04 pm with “Jayamu Jayamu” song composed by Vempati China Satyam. It ended at 6:15 pm, by setting a Guinness record for the largest ever Kuchipudi performance.
Earlier, the same Silicon Andhra team has set a Guinness record with 5,794 dancers during their fourth edition of the International Kuchipudi Convention held in 2014 at Hyderabad.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said his government was going to promote Kuchipudi in a big way and appealed to the parents to encourage their children to learn Kuchipudi. He said every family in the State should have a Kuchipudi dancer and a computer literate. Naidu also announced that the government will appoint Kuchipudi teachers in all schools and give Rs 12,000 honorary to them. The Siddhendra Yogi High School will also be developed with all facilities, he added.
Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu congratulated the participants and said Kuchipudi was one of the toughest and, the best dance form in the world. He said every citizen has the responsibility of saving fine arts, by practising them. “Now, time has come and people are showing more inclination towards their own culture and want to protect it,” he said.