Ratikant Mohapatra has carved a space for himself as a dancer, percussionist, teacher, choreographer and archivist of Odissi. Born into the illustrious family of Guru Kelu Charan Mohapatra & Laxmipriya Mohapatra was indeed an advantage for Ratikant. Tutored by the Maestro in the art of Odissi & mardala (Odissi Pakhawaj) Ratikant did not spare any efforts to emerge as a leading male dancer by the time he was in his early twenties.

Having mastered the mardala (Odissi Pakhawaj) and its nuances he was steadily stepping into the shoes of his father as a class percussionist and the singular brand of the Kelu Charan gharana was evident in the
hypnotic percussion skills. He emerged as a teacher of the second generation to join the league well ahead of his time.

As the Director of Srjan (guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Odissi Nrityabasa)
he has established it as a premium Odissi dance institute. He organizes regular workshops and summer camps for seniors as well as beginners to continue the tradition inherited from his father. The organizing of the Guru Kelu Charan Mohapatra Award every year at Bhubaneswar (Orissa) has brought celebrities and performers of Indian classical music and dance under one umbrella.

Endowed with ample qualities of a complete dancer, Ratikant enjoys the advantage of exploring further avenues in creating new compositions in the classical framework of Odissi encompassing the three aspects of a dancer, percussionist and choreographer. Many unique compositions based on the Odisi classical framework has been visualized by Raikant recently which has received rave reviews and focal attention of dance critics from leading press columns.

His dedication has been acknowledged by a number of awards including “Pride of India 2004” by Chinta-O-Chetna, “Sanjukta Panigrahi Samman 2005” by Sanjukta Panigrahi Memorial Trust, and “Nrutya Bhushan” by International Dance & Theatre Festival 2005.

“Daughter Preetisha following in the footsteps of her grandparents and parents…”