Colours of Happiness - a dance recital: The evening of 7th November, 2009 was just right to unleash a unique spectrum of colours to celebrate the existence of the Indian Institute of Technology for the past 50 years. But the mood was set in a different style and tempo as "The Womens' Association" of the IIT fraternity rendered its salute to this magnanimous institution with a dance recital -'Colours of Happiness'.

With the help of seven separate dance sequences, the performance stringed a unique synthesis of the seasonal cycles, portrayed in the form of scintillating dance formations and expressive mudras. This dance extravaganza was a fusion of classical and semi-classical dances, leaving the audience spellbound at the novel way of elucidating the seasonal whispers in the air. The ensemble of colours of happiness is a concerted effort of the ladies on IIT campus.

On the 7th of November, just when dusk began to set in the lamp of enlightenment was lit by Dr. Medha Dhande, patron of The Womens' Association. The entire auditorium wore a very festive air and the tune of the evening was initiated by invoking the blessings of Siddhi Vinayaka in true Karnatic style. Before the audience could get over the superfluous flow of melody, the dancers welcomed the guests with the traditional tamasoma jyotirgamaya.

However, the highlight of the evening was the dance recital "Colours of Happiness depicting the gamut of Indian seasons - Saawan, Sharat and Basant with the related festivals. Rich diversity of every region contributes in emitting the ethos of folk with a unique display of happiness. A synthesis of pleasure and prayer portrayed a unique description in the form of dance formations and "mudras" represented by these groups of dancers who were mainly members of The Womens' Association.

Taking a break off from the mundane schedule of academics and campus paraphernalia, Colours of Happiness indeed provided a sheer moment of joy, happiness and pleasure to the entire community of IIT Kanpur, on their special year.

Narration was done by Ms. Vatsala Misra and the dances were choreographed by Ms. Nishtha Sharma. Nishtha ji is a passionate disciple of Guru Shri Shridharan Nair. She is a Bharatnatyam dancer, an actress and a dance choreographer. She has been associated with the national level theatre group Darpan since the last 25 years. Nishtha ji has done her Alankar in bharatnatyam and MA in vocal music. She received Nirtyamani samman in 1989 by Darpan.

A short description of the dances:

Shub Swagatam: A poetic welcome dance.
Sawan: A kathak based rain dance.
Durga Stuti: A bharatnatyam performance in the reverence of Goddess Durga.
Garba/Dandiya: A Gujrati folk to depict the colours and happiness associated with autumn.
Ram Stuti: A prayer dance for lord Rama.
Deepmala: A dance sequence of shining lights which symbolizes the victory of lihgt over darkness.
Phalgun Dance: A dance welcoming the season of spring, a time of joy and colour.
Grand Finale: A dance fusion depicting joy and zest-the essence that is India.