Yakshagana - The tale of drums, demigods, & divinity
“Within infinite myths lies the Eternal Truth. Who sees it all? Varuna has but a thousand eyes, Indra, a hundred, and I, only two.”
A Resonating with the Divine Duels and Dancer-Warriors
“It’s a parallel universe,” my high school teacher would say, eyes
gleaming. “Where mythology doesn’t just speak- it sings, it dances, it roars.”
The moment you hear the first beat of the Chande, you know the portal
has opened. You’re no longer in your world; you're stepping into Yakshagana,
a night where gods descend, spirits rise, and stories swirl through rhythm,
colour, and chaos under the open sky.
Reference: https://karnatakatourism.org/destinations/yakshagana/
A Crossover between Gods, Drums, and Dialogue…
Yakshagana, the
beating heart of Karnataka’s cultural and spiritual legacy, is more than just theatre.
It’s a living temple art, where the stage becomes sacred ground and every
performance a divine ritual.
A vibrant fusion of Navarasa—hejje
(footwork), gejje (anklets), tala (beat), laya (rhythm), vesha
(costume), bhoosha (ornamentation), abhinaya (expression), bhagavatha
(narrator), and matugarike (dialogue)—this is where dance meets
drama, expression meets emotion, and music becomes myth.
Yakshagana isn’t just an entertainment-
it’s a spiritual offering, a thank-you to the divine forces for the joy
and challenges of life. Retelling epics like the Ramayana and Mahabharata,
this powerful art form has been the custodian of our ancient wisdom, holding
our past, present, and future together through performance.
With larger-than-life heroes, moral
dilemmas, fierce battles, and divine interventions, it’s a celestial
open-air cinema, complete with thunderous drums, dazzling costumes, and
soul-stirring storytelling.
Reference: Unsplash
As the sun sets below the horizon, the
stage is set. The Chande beats thunder through the stillness of night,
declaring the beginning of the Yakshagana performance.
“Chande barsidre namge alla, akka-pakka
iro aidu-aaru ooralli kuda kelsuthe,”
“When the Chande plays, it’s not just us—five or six villages around can
hear it too,” my friend’s grandmother would say, her eyes lighting up as
she flipped through old photographs of her relatives in costume, performers of
this grand tradition.
The Rangastala (stage) becomes a
portal, taking the audience from reality into epic realms. Behind the curtain
lies a chowki, a small sanctum where artists offer prayers and sing
devotional songs before and after they perform. The journey begins with padya—poetic
couplets that set the tone before unleashing the full-blown drama.
Drenched in oil-infused reds and
yellows, adorned in elaborate makeup and dazzling ornaments, the artists
transcend their identities. They become Rama, Ravana, Draupadi, or Duryodhana.
They do not act—they become.
And so, begins an all-night odyssey of
gods, demons, heroes, and morals—an experience that’s not just seen or heard.
It Needs to be Preserved & Passed on….
Preservation doesn’t just mean protecting the past—it
means making it relevant, accessible, and alive for the future.
Yakshagana is a living, breathing
embodiment of India’s cultural soul—and letting it fade into obscurity is not
an option. It carries within it a treasure trove of generational wisdom, local
lore, and epic storytelling passed down through centuries.
Today, amidst growing efforts to revive
and celebrate its legacy, Yakshagana is finding new life. With the rise of
social media and digital platforms, this once-rural ritual theatre is crossing
borders, reaching newer, younger audiences who are discovering its magic for
the first time.
FAQs
Ans: Karnataka
2. What stories are being told using this art form?
Ans: Epics like Mahabharata and Ramayana
3. In which parts of Karnataka is this dance form most famous?
Ans: Udupi district, Dakshina Kannada district and Kasargod
References:
1.
An Introduction to
Yakshagana https://www.stringsofheritage.com/an-introduction-to-yakshagana/
2.
Yakshagana | The Song of
The Celestial Beings https://www.theindiacraftproject.com/blogs/blogs/yakshagana-the-song-of-the-celestial-beings?srsltid=AfmBOorw0J9y4YCPEoVMYoO-mjY6h2iM1CFcqdtwELBN2w8yfHUQ-R9x
3.
Yakshagana: Karnataka’s
Cultural Pride https://orunewculture.com/culture/yakshagana-karnatakas-cultural-pride/
4.
An encounter with
Yakshagana – dance, demons and mosquitos https://insideindianmusic.wordpress.com/2018/12/09/an-encounter-with-yakshagana-dance-demons-and-mosquitos/
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