It was a colourful gala on Saturday night at a city hotel as the silver jubilee celebrations of the Japanese Language School of Bangalore were held in a grand manner. The event, which also saw the formal launch of Lotus and Chrysanthemum Trust, was attended by many people from the City.
To mark this joyous occasion, the graceful Japanese dancer Masako Ono performed an Odissi recital for the audiences and the young students of Sophia High School presented a Japanese folk dance.
Gracing the occasion with his presence as the chief guest was M N Venkatachaliah, former Chief Justice of India. The others who were present at the event were former Indian ambassador Alan Nazareth, Aya Yoshida, Masayuki Tsuchikawa and Mr and Mrs Vikram Kirloskar. Shyamala Ganesh, the founder-president of the Japanese Language School, was spotted interacting warmly with the guests as she welcomed one and all.
Said Alan Nazareth as he addressed the audience, “There is so much you can learn from Japan. I began my life in Japan.” He added, “I have seen so many countries. Yet no country has been able to displace my affection for Japan.”
Praising the ‘land of the rising sun’, Venkatachaliah said that despite all the devastations caused in the country in the past, Japan has made a fantastic progress.
“In the last 30 to 40 years, we have seen an amazing change in Japan.” While Aya Yoshida was full of praises for Bangalore. “It is an IT hub and the silicon valley of India,” she said.
Post all the speeches, a commercial souvenir was launched to mark the occasion. Following this, the students of Sophia High School presented a Japanese folk dance.
Looking pretty in their colourful costumes and umbrellas, these young girls even infused the dance with a bit of martial arts.
The best was saved for the last as the beautiful Masako Ono gave an impeccable
Odissi recital.
Her graceful moves made one forget that she was a Japanese as she flawlessly performed for the dance-lovers present.
Extremely excited to be performing in Bangalore, Masako told Metrolife, “I stayed in Bangalore from 1996 to 2001 before I shifted to Orissa. I stayed in Nrityagram.” She added, “From Japan and Europe to the US, I have performed everywhere. But I am so excited to be performing in Bangalore.”
Masako also said she was performing in the City after a long time. “Before, I was a
student of Odissi but now, I have so many students learning from me,” she smiled.