Yakshagana,Folk Theatre Forms of India

Folk Theatre of India: Nautanki Nautanki is one of South Asia’s most famous folk theatre performances, especially in northern India. Nautanki was the most significant source of entertainment in most of the cities and villages in north India.1 Nautanki’s rich musical compositions and humorous storylines hold a strong influence over rural people’s imagination. Nautanki, also known as svang, originated in the late 19th century in Uttar Pradesh and steadily gained popularity.2 Nautanki’s origins lie in the Saangit, Bhagat, and Swang musical theatre traditions of Northern India. One Saangit called Saangit Rani Nautanki Ka became so popular that the whole genre’s name became Nautanki. 1 Nautanki performances can be performed anywhere where some space is available that can accommodate a few hundreds or thousands of people. Sometimes this place is made available by village Chaupal or the village community centre.3 Other times the school playgrounds can also be used as a performance site. A Nautanki stage is usually elevated and is made up of wooden cots that the local villagers generally provide. A few decades ago, since there was no electricity in Indian villages, the light was provided either by giant lanterns or Petromax, a device run by kerosene oil. Traditional Nautanki performances usually start late at night and go until dawn the next day without any intermission.4 Traditionally storylines of nautanki performances were inspired from folklore or are sometimes based on mythological themes, stories of contemporary heroes etc.3 For example, nautanki plays such as Bhakt Moradhwaj and BSatya- Harishchandra are based on mythological themes, whereas Indal Haran and Puranmal originated from folklore. 2Pandit Ram Dayal Sharma, a renowned Nautanki maestro and Dr Devendra Sharma have co-authored many new Nautankis.2 These recent Nautanki performances focus primarily on social messages such as health, women’s empowerment, dowry etc. These issues generate awareness among the poorer sections of society and create a sense of togetherness. It brings locals together to stand against the atrocities of the community and fight for their rights. Nautanki was introduced in America by Dr Devendra Sharma, a Nautanki artist, singer, writer and director. The participants in his nautanki performances are usually engineers, doctors, and other Indians living in America, who are given a rare opportunity to connect with their cultural roots.2 At the same time, these performances have exposed other communities in America to Indian culture. Nautanki has undoubtedly been a valuable part of our hearts and will survive in the future and flourish in multiple contexts to secure a special place in our culture. _________________________________ Independent Project by Sezal Chug Guide: Prof. Manohar Khushalani __________________________________ 1. 1. devnautanki H. devnautanki. A Brief History of the Nautanki Performance Tradition. http://www.devnautanki.com/about_history.html 2. 2. the free encyclopedia W. Nautanki. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nautanki 3. 3. iwmbuzz T. nautanki-north-indian-folk-theatre. iwmbuzz. https://www.iwmbuzz.com/theater/snippets-theater/nautank i-north-indian-folk-theatre/2019/11/30 4. 4. sahapedia S. shades-nautanki-north-indias-operatic- theatre. sahapedia. https://www.sahapedia.org/shades-nautanki-north-indias-o peratic-theatre Folk Theatre of India: Yakshagana Yakshagana is a traditional folk art developed in the western parts of Chikmagalur districts in Karnataka and Kasaragod district in Kerala. Yakshagana comprises music, dance, theatre, costumes, and makeup with a blend of unique style and forms.1 It is said to have evolved from pre-classical music forms and theatrical arts during the Bhakti movement. Yakshgana is referred to as ‘Thenku thittu’ towards the south from Dakshina Kannada to Kasaragod in Tamil Nadu, whereas it is referred to as ‘Badaga Thittu’ north of Udupi.1 Both of these forms are equally played all over the region. Yakshagana is inspired by ancient Hindu literature like Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagavata and other Hindu and Jain epics. Yaksha- gana means the song (gana) of a Yaksha. Yakshas were an exotic tribe mentioned in Sanskrit literature.1 Yakshagana is a product of the Vaishnava bhakti movement, which originated in southern India from the fifth to the seventh centuries. It emphasizes the love and devotion for Lord Vishnu as the chief means for spiritual perfection.2 Existing folk music and dances were adopted to create new performing arts to spread and propagate the message of love and devotion among the common folk. Yakshagana is also a result of this blend of existing dance and drama. A Yakshagana performance usually consists of background music played by a group of musicians and percussionists, also known as the himmela and a dance and dialogue group known as the mummela, who together enact poetic epics on stage.1 In the early 19th century, Yakshagana began to see a significant change from its traditional strict forms. Practitioners of the day produced several new compositions. The early 20th century saw the birth of ‘tent’ troupes, giving performances to audiences admitted by ticket only. Gas lights were replaced with electrical lights, seating arrangements improved, folk epics and fictional stories formed the modern thematic base of the discipline.3 The Yakshagana form that we witness today results from a prolonged evolution that drew its essence from ritual theatre, temple and secular arts, and the artists’ imaginations—all interwoven over several hundred years.3 _________________________________ Independent Project by Sezal Chug Guide: Prof. Manohar Khushalani __________________________________ 1. 1. wikipedia Y. Yakshagana. wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakshagana 2. 2. karnatakatourism yakshagana. yakshagana. karnatakatourism. https://www.karnatakatourism.org/destinations/yakshagana / 3. 3. thehindu yakshagana. yakshagana. thehindu. https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/dance/how-yakshag ana-is-adapting-to-modern-times/article34273628.ece Folk Theatre Forms of India: Tamasha Tamasha is considered a major traditional dance form of the Marathi theatre, which includes celebration filled with dancing and singing and is performed mainly by nomadic theatre groups throughout the Maharashtra region. The word “Tamasha” is loaned from Persian, which in turn loaned it from Arabic, meaning a show or theatrical entertainment.1 In the Armenian language, “To do a Tamasha” means to follow an exciting and fun process or entertainment. Unofficially, this word has come to represent commotion or display full of excitement.1 The traditional form of Tamasha was inspired by a lot of other art forms like Kathakali, Kaveli, ghazals etc. The region of Maharashtra had a long theatrical tradition, with early references to the cave inscriptions at Nashik by Gautami Balashri, the mother of the 1st-century Satavahana ruler, Gautamiputras Satakarni. The inscription mentions him organizing Utsava’s a form of theatrical entertainment for his subjects.1 Tamasha acquired a distinct form in the late Peshwa period of the Maratha Empire and incorporated elements from older traditional forms like Dasavatar, Gondhal, Kirtan etc. Traditional Tamasha format consisted of dancing boys known as Nachya, who also played women’s roles, a poet-composer known as Shahir, who played the traditional role of Sutradhar, who compered the show. However, with time, women started taking part in Tamasha.2 Marathi theatre marked its journey at the beginning of 1843.3 In the following years, Tamasha primarily consisted of singing and dancing, expanded its range and added small dramatic skits known as Vag Natya.3 These included long narrative poems performed by the Shahir and his chorus, with actors improvising their lines. There are two types of Tamasha dance forms: dholki bhaari and the older form known as sangeet baari, which contains more music and dance than drama.4 The government of Maharashtra has instituted annual awards in the memory of the late Vithabai Narayangavkar Lifetime Achievement Award for those who had extensively contributed to the preservation of the Tamasha Art form throughout the world. 1 _________________________________ Independent Project by Sezal Chug Guide: Prof. Manohar Khushalani __________________________________ 1. 1. encyclopedia wikipedia. wikipedia. Tamasha. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamasha 2. 2. encyclopedia britannica. tamasha. tamasha. https://www.britannica.com/art/tamasha 3. 3. tourism maharashtra. tamasha. maharashtratourism. https://www.maharashtratourism.net/culture-lifestyle/dan ces/tamasha.html 4. 4. folkdances indian. tamasha. indianfolkdances. http://www.indianfolkdances.com/tamasha-folk-dances-of-m aharashtara.html Schedule: 21st Bharat Rang Mahotsav Feb 2020 If you are at wits end on which play to see, just check out the preview in this E-Mag itself (www.stagebuzz.in), under the Category: Theatre Godava and Shruti’s Play: A Case of Clairvoyance or Executing Miss K Dramaturge: Godavar & Shruti Director: Shruti Group: NSD Student Diploma Production, New Delhi Lang: Hindi Duration: 1 hr The Play K, a gender queer writer living a reclusive life with his brother, is visited one evening by two police officers. In the Kafkaesque interrogation that follows, K finds that the police has resorted to Orwellian measures – it has hacked K’s Wog to discover their whereabouts. The subsequent interrogation is an attempt to determine the connection between

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