Yakshagana

My fascination for the various dance forms of India grows as I get a chance to witness some splendid performance of the "Yakshagana" by Shivanand Hegde and his troupe. I even personally met the performers and got to see for myself the preparations behind the stage.

The event was organized by SPIC MACAY- Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture Amongst Youth.

Yakshagana is a musical dance-drama performed traditionally in Karnataka. It is believed to have evolved from pre-classical music and theatre during Bhakti movement.

Yaksha-gana literally means the song (gana) of a Yaksha. Yakshas were an exotic tribe mentioned in the Sanskrit literature of ancient India.

A Yakshagana performance usually depicts a story from the Hindu epics and puranas. It consists of a narrator (Baghawatha) who either narrates the story by singing or sings pre-composed dialogs of characters, backed by musicians playing on traditional musical instruments as the actors dance to the music, with actions that portray the story as it is being narrated.

(Info Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakshagana)

The story here as it can be guessed by seeing the above pictures is taken from the epic "Ramayan". It is the story of the abduction of Sita by Ravana, the meeting of Rama and Hanuman and the battle between the two brothers Bali & Sugriva. Though the story was in kannada, the dialogues could be easily translated through the gestures of the actors who performed the musical drama. This is the beauty of Yakshagana.

Behind the Scenes with Yaksh's..

I salute the efforts of the people who keep the tradition and culture of India alive. This blog is a small token of appreciation for my friends THE YAKSH's.