Padmapur: Amarnath Nayak, a resident of Padmapur in Basudevpur block of Bhadrak district, became visually challenged six months after birth. But his disability could not kill his ambition to become a Pala singer. To his credit, he has scripted over 30 Palas and performed in 120 shows.
The 84-year-old Amarnath bemoans the fact that he could not see the beautiful world and his parents. He has no choice but to feel the world around him.
However, he strongly believed that if one door is shut another door will be certainly opened. Being visually challenged he could not read and write. But he had a capacious memory and could easily remember all that he heard from others.
From childhood, Amarnath had been worshipping Goddess Kanak Durga, the presiding deity of the village. He felt that it was due to the blessings of the Goddess he got his strong memory.
The result was that he learnt the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, other scriptures, Chhanda, and Chupadis by rote.
“My brother, the late Bichitrananda, used to read scriptures to me. I could remember them. Palas usually centred on stories of the Ramayana, Puranas and Mahabharata,” he added.
A turning point in his life came when he along with his five colleagues staged Pala for the first time on the premises of the Kanak Durga temple in 1956.
“Since then, I have composed around 30 Pala scripts and performed in 120 shows. I have also performed 99 Palas broadcast by the AIR,” Amarnath said.
For his Palas, he has been honoured by various cultural organisations and at a state-level event. Amarnath has been in public service too. He was elected ward member six times and has been part of various development projects in the village.
At 84, still hale and hearty, Amarnath feeds his family comprising wife Pratima and only son Jiban. “I still strive to protect Odia literature and tradition through Pala and do social service,” he said.