LAHORE: An evening of dance at Alhamra Art Centre on Saturday paid tribute to renowned classical performer Indu Mitha on the occasion of her 90th birthday.

The tribute was paid by Indu’s daughter, Tehreema Mitha, along with dancers Amna Mawaz and Iftikhar Masih. The tribute comprised six Bharatanatyam and three contemporary performances. Before the performances, Nasreen Shah from a private school chain shed light on Indu Mitha’s dance journey.

The spell-binding performances drew huge applause from the audience that had packed into the hall.

Tehreema told Dawn that she had choreographed two of the dances and the remaining were choreographed jointly by her and her mother. She said classical dance was a difficult proposition and just five minutes of it took a lot of energy.

Tehreema’s first performance was a long dance piece on the poetry ‘Jab se teri kokh se nikli hoon’ and the second on ‘Aye ree maa’. Similarly, the contemporary dance performances had their own charm.

The show will also be staged in Karachi on March 7 and in Islamabad on the 14th.

Exhibition: The Lahore Arts Council (LAC), in collaboration with the Khana-i-Farhang, The Cultural Centre of Iran, is holding an exhibition of Iran’s culture and tourism, titled ‘Iran Highlights’.

One hundred photos of 16 Pakistani motorcyclist visiting Iran, Iranian handicrafts and books on tourism and culture are on display.

The exhibition was inaugurated on Friday by Iranian Consul General Muhammad Raza Nazri along with LAC Executive Director Ather Ali Khan and National College of Arts Principal Murtaza Jafri. Calligraphy and miniature workshop were a part of the activity.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Nazri said the culture of Iran, also known as the culture of Persia, was one of the most influential cultures in the world and considered a cradle of civilisation. He lauded the LAC as an active and vibrant centre of promotion of literature and heritage.

Mr Ather Ali Khan said the exhibition reflected the colours of culture of the people of Iran.

The exhibition features more than 100 photographs of Pakistani bikers during their trip to Iran. Iranian handicrafts and cultural books also remained the center of public attention.

Published in Dawn, March 1st, 2020