Odisha: Child artiste slated to play Lord Balaram’s role in Bargarh Dhanu Yatra dies

Priya Ranjan Swain Published On : Dec 9, 2022 at 6:26 PM

Bargarh: In a tragic incident, a child artiste, who had been selected to essay the role of Lord Balaram in the upcoming Bargarh Dhanu Yatra, died in the western Odisha town today.

Shreyas Pujari (12), the only son of Mahendra Pujari and Jayanti Pujari, fell unconscious while playing with his friends in the afternoon. Family members rushed him to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared him dead-on-arrival, sources said.

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The incident took place soon after Shreyas returned home from his school (Saraswati Sishu Mandir) and had his lunch, sources added.

Shreyas had been selected to play the role of Lord Balaram, the elder brother of Lord Krishna, in the world famous Bargarh Dhanu Yatra, scheduled to commence on December 27 this year.

“Shreyas had started doing rehearsal for the Dhanu Yatra some days ago. He was very much happy for his debut in the mega festival. His sudden demise has saddened the people of Bargarh town,” said a local.

Notably, Bargarh Dhanu Yatra, considered as the largest open-air theatre in the world, could not be held for last two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The people of Bargarh have been organizing the annual festival since 1947-48, sources said.