As we head towards spring with a spirit of hope and rejuvenation, it is the time of year again for the Chennai connoisseurs of music and dance to gather together to celebrate our annual spring gala, Basant Utsav. A significant annual fundraiser for the Banyan, which is taking place for the seventh time, Basant Utsav 2006 is an exclusive evening featuring performances from some of the most distinguished artists from the Indian cultural repertoire. This year's Basant Utsav will create an entirely novel ambience, bringing the world of rhythm to the forefront with several percussion recitals from the world-renowned artists Sivamani, Vikku Vinayakram, and Bikram Ghosh. In addition to percussion, this year's Basant Utsav will also feature the incomparable talent of veena virtuoso Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and flautist Sri Rakesh Chaurasia. Also performing is the famous kathakali exponent, Kalamandalam Gopalakrishnan, who will give a fascinating dance performance along with his troupe. All these artists will come together for a classic evening that is seen as one of the major events of the year in Chennai's social calendar. Each performance will introduce something unique - however, it is not only the music and dance but the atmospheric venue of Dakshina Chitra's open-air amphitheatre that will make the evening truly magical.