An Evening with Ochin Pakhi and Friends

Join us for a special evening at Elastic Arts with the amazing Ochin Pakhi, a group of local Chicago musicians playing Bengali music, along with some brilliant musicians and dancers.

The evening will also feature the flute and drum duo Lehra Lehra, playing tunes from the Sindh province of Pakistan. We will also have a thrilling trio of South Asian dancers: Shalaka Kulkarni, Devika Dhir, and Azeema the Bollywood Bellydancer!

And of course, we will have a fascinating array of vendors, live art, and a drum jam!

Doors open at 6:30!

7:00 - drum jam

8:00 - Dance showcase featuring Shalaka Kulkarni, Devika Dhir, and Azeema!

8:30 - Lehra Lehra featuring Azeema

9:00 - Ochin Pakhi featuring Shalaka and Devika

PERFORMERS

OCHIN PAKHI
Ochin Pakhi ("Unknown Bird" in Bengali) is a Chicago-based Bengali folk band that performs ecstatic songs and dances from India and Bangladesh. They create original arrangements of traditional Bengali songs, drawing from a repertoire of Baul, Fakiri, Bhatiyali, Jhumur, Murshidi, Bangla Qawwali, Nazrulgeeti, and Rabindrasangeet genres. Through music, they strive to spread joy, dispel differences, and connect with the ultimate truth. As a band, Ochin Pakhi began their journey in 2017.
Ochin Pakhi is made up of American, Indian, and Bangladeshi performers, of diverse religious and cultural backgrounds. Each of the nine incredible performers is dedicated to making the performances dynamic, beautiful, and meaningful. Through weekly practice and meal-sharing, the performers have become a family. Audiences are often invited into that experience through song and dance, and the philosophy of the lyrics helps to build a rapport of community between musicians and the audience. FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM

‍LEHRA LEHRA
Over 4,000 years ago the Alghoza double flute emerged from the Indus Valley in South Asia. This bronze age instrument has thrived in many cultures, especially that of Sindh Pakistan. Lehra Lehra is Nathan Torrence on the Alghoza and Mehtab Kirtan on the polyphonic drum known as tabla. Together they perform traditional songs from Sindh — enchanting, hypnotic and delightful melodies fused with strong and funky rhythms.

SHALAKA KULKARNI
Shalaka Kulkarni is an interdisciplinary dance artist trained in Indian Classical dance who creates experiences that bridge the ancient and contemporary while uplifting marginalized voices. As an actor, filmmaker, dancer and choreographer, she has toured her work in India, US and Europe. In Chicago, she has presented her work at various events, venues and festivals, such as Athenaeum Theatre, Harper College, Chicago Cultural Center, Depaul University, Chopin Theater, Museum of Contemporary Art, Dance Chicago Festivals, High Concept Labs, Loyola University, The Mccormick Center, Lions Club 100th Anniversary, Links Hall, Elastic Arts, Ruth Page Performing Arts, Columbia College Chicago, Newport Theater, Dominican University as well as has created work for numerous independent performers and artists. She is a recipient of various awards for her choreography and dance work.
Kulkarni began training in the Tanjore style of Bharatnatyam as a child in India. After immigrating to the U.S., she continued her training under the international artist Sandhya Desai in Kathak and Mandala Founder and Executive Artistic Director Pranita Nayar. She holds an MFA in interdisciplinary arts and media from Columbia College Chicago, where she worked closely with the dance master Nana Shineflug, one of the pivotal voices from Chicago in American Modern and Contemporary dance style. She is interested in creating and presenting a hybrid movement form that fuses techniques of Bharatnatyam and Kathak with other movement influences, text and technology.

DEVIKA DHIR
Devika Dhir is an exponent of the patiala gharana of kathak as a disciple of Ustad Dilshad Khan. She has also trained in bharatanatyam, completing her arangetram in 2017 under her guru, Priya Narayan. Devika has studied various South Asian folk-dance styles, from Malaysia, Tamilnadu, and Kerala. Today, she also studies ballet with Phil Martini of pmdance, and raqs sharqi, with Phaedra Darwish.

AZEEMA THE BOLLYWOOD BELLYDANCER
Azeema is Chicago’s Bollywood Bellydancer! She performs a variety of modern, folkloric, and classical dance styles from the Middle East and South Asia. Azeema grew up in Kansas City, Missouri, where her love of the arts started early when she became a musician, playing percussion in jazz, marching, and symphonic bands. She can be seen performing throughout Chicagoland and beyond with various troupes and dance companies, such as Karama, World Art Dancers, Kalapriya, and Mandala Arts. Azeema served as the Board Secretary for Red Clay Dance Company, where she has also taught inclusive dance classes.

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