Berhampur: A group of inmates of Berhampur Circle Jail in Odisha’s Ganjam district have qualified for the final round of a national online dance competition, an official said.
These inmates in Berhampur Circle Jail for different crimes, all of a sudden have become internet sensation and are winning hearts online for their dance performance at a national-level dance competition.
With their continuous efforts and practice, they gave exceptional performance on stage and have reached the final and are hopeful that they will win the competition, the official said.
These 13 prisoners aspired to show their talent in dance by participating in a competition. When the Kalantar Art Trust in Uttar Pradesh announced the online dance competition under the supervision of the state government, these inmates started working for it.
The talented inmates are receiving accolades from different quarters for representing Odisha.
“We received intimation from the Prison department of Odisha, that Noida-based Kalantar Art trust is organising a dance and art competition,” said Dhirendranath Barik, Superintendent of Berhampur Circle Jail.
After receiving the letter, we had only 4 days remaining to respond to the letter after getting the permission from the Director General, Prisons.
“While organising functions inside the jail, we were aware, there are lots of hidden talents in the inmates, so we started practising with those inmates for 4-5 days and uploaded the video in the Kalantar art and dance site,” the official said.
“The dance video was uploaded in the channel subsequently and it was a joyous moment for all the staff and inmates of the jail as we came to know that our group has entered the final round,” said Barik
After the Kalantar jury selected, they uploaded the video in their youtube channel March 9. The competition is not only limited to jail inmates, but old age homes, orphanages, and different NGOs are participating in this All India level competition.
“Their perfect balance of rhythmic movement, choreography and timing are outstanding. It is a great achievement as this success could bring in great changes in the future of these inmates,” he added.
It was choreographed and performed by the inmates themselves. Dressed in white shirts and red neckties, they danced to the tune of the famous Hindi song “Kashmir Mei Tu Kanyakumari” from the blockbuster movie ‘Chennai Express’ starring Shah Rukh Khan.
They have been practising since last one year and there is no doubt they are super talented and hardworking, said Satyanarayan Das, Jailor of Berhampur Circle jail.
PTI