Rajashree Chintak Behera

Rajashree Chintak Behera is one of the brilliant exponents of the Odissi dance. Rajashree’s dance is marked by gaiety, lyricism and beauty. She is trained under Guru Durga Charan Ranbir and Guru Harihar Mohanty in the Odissi style of Late Guru Durga Debaprasad Das. She is a holder of Bisarada Purna in Odissi Dance from Akhila Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya Mandal, Mumbai, as well as a Master in Economics from Utkal University, Bhubaneswar.

Accolades
Widely acclaimed Solo Danseuse
Recognized as “A” grade Dancer by Orissa Sangeet Natak Akademi
An ‘A’ grade artiste in DoorDarshan
Recipient of Govt. of India Scholarship (Junior and Senior), Department of Culture
Govt. of India Junior Fellowship in Classical Dance, 1993-1995

Major Performances

India
Apna Utsav, New Delhi, 1986
Yuvs Utsav, Jaipur, 1988
Nritya Pratibha, New Delhi, 1988
Yuva Nritya Samaroha, Jodhpur, 1989
Ghungroo Dance Festival, Bhopal, 1993
Konark Dance Festival, Orissa, 1995
Barabati Nrityotsav, Orissa, 2005
Mukteswar Dance Festival, 2006
Dhauli Mahotsav, 2006
International Odissi Festival, Bhubaneswar, 2006

Abroad
Ethnic Center and Australasia House, Perth, Australia, 1987
China, 1989
North Korea, 1989
Tashkent, Uzbekistan, 1990
Oxford, U.K., 1995
Sofia and Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 1998 and 1999
International Folklore Festival, Bulgaria, 1999
Budapest Farewell Festival, Hungary, 1999
Performance in Germany, 1999
International Odissi Festival, USA, 2003
Lecture Demonstration and Performance, Indiana State University, USA, 2002
Performances and Choreography of Dance Drama for Oriya Convention in Maryland and New Jersey, USA, 2002 and 2003


Press Comments
The Times of India (New Delhi)
“…Confident and with a powerful presence. Rajashree was almost a natural in portraying the Rudra Roop of Shiva. For her, the effort was greater in depicting the peaceful Shankar. She used to advantage her flexible body for greater dramatic impact, especially in the end when the chanting of ‘OM NAMAH SHIVAYA’ was casting a hypnotic spell on the audience…”
The National Courier 5 (Sofia, Bulgaria)

“…Mrs. Rajashree Behera who is one of the famous, youngest and gorgeous performer of Odissi and who had carved out a place for herself in the world of classical dance in India…”

Rajashree resides in Moscow, Russia with her husband, Dr. Subhakanta Behera (I.F.S.) and two children, Ananya and Amruta, and serves as a cultural ambassador of our country, trying to spread the Odissi Dance among the Russian dance lovers. She may be contacted at buini@yahoo.co.uk