Banamali Maharana

Banamali Maharana
Born	(1941-05-16)16 May 1941 Raghurajpur, Puri, Odisha, India
Died	17 November 2018(2018-11-17) (aged 77) Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
Occupation	Percussionist - Odissi Mardala Guru
Notable work	Basanta Rasa
Style	Odissi music
Awards	Sangeet Natak Akademi Award

Banamali Maharana (Odia: ବନମାଳୀ ମହାରଣା, romanized: Banamāḷi Mahāraṇā, 16 May 1941 – 17 November 2018) was an Indian percussionist who played Mardala.

Career

Maharana began playing Khola (Mrudanga) and Dholak with Goswami.^{[citation needed]}

His formal training began after he joined the Annapurna Theatre, where he learned percussion from Singhari Shyamsundar Kar and Kshetramohan Kar.^[1] His brother, Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra accompanied him to most of his dance performances.^{[citation needed]}

Maharana started teaching Mardala at Kala Vikas Kendra in Cuttack and then at Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya.^[2] He introduced a seven-year course in Mardala music at the Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya before retiring as the Head of the Mardala department in 1999.^{[citation needed]}

Maharana was the most sought-after Mardal player for Odissi performances in his time. Besides Kelucharana, Banamali accompanied Sanjukta Panigrahi, Oopali Operajita, Priyambada Mohanty Hejmadi, Sonal Mansingh, Aruna Mohanty, Sujata Mohapatra, Parwati Dutta and others in dance performances, in India and abroad.^[3]

Awards

• Kabi Samrat Upendra Bhanja Sanman - 2016^[4]

References

Oṛiśī Sangīta
Odissi music
Mahāprabhu Jagannātha
Composers
Jayadeva Dinakrusna Bhanja Banamali Abhimanyu Kabisurjya Gopalakrusna
Shāstras
Sangita Sara Gita Prakasa Sangita Narayana Sangita Muktabali
Compositions
Gita Govinda Odissi Prabandha Chhanda Champu Chautisa Janana Bhajana Malasri Pallabi Charjyapada
Instruments
Mardala Benu Bina Khol
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