September 2021

this space is a celebration; a celebration of who and what we are, a celebration of the beauty and bliss of our collective legacy; of our wealth

a space for recollection of the timeless wisdom and knowledge of the music and morals weaved into our fabric, and of the art and architecture blessed upon us

a space for us, to reminisce about our culture understand its depth and breadth and regale in its universal joys

a space that traverses the cultural vibes of India; welcome to

Cover Design: Chakradhar

Potharlanka

From The

Editor's Desk

What's the point anyway?

We live in a material world, a world where commerce and capital define success more than character and culture. As a magazine that celebrates arts and culture, this is something that we have wrestled with, and perhaps you have pondered over it too.

Why do our artists dedicate their life to performing Indian Arts and promoting their idea of our heritage?

Why celebrate in a land where devotion rarely leads to material success or filled auditoriums?

As a culture that proclaims "do your duty and don't worry about the fruits," should artists not expect material success? Or is the new India too busy for them?

What do you think? Drop us your response here, and we will share select reactions in our next edition.

On a lighter note, we present to you this melodious edition filled with voices of inspiring Indians. Indians who continue to shape, reflect and express the human predicament through puppetry, games, music and dance. We are excited for you as you delve in and explore the tug between will and destiny.

Previous Editions

We are sure you will enjoy this edition and wish to read more.

Here are our earlier editions.

Jun'21

Feb'21

Oct'20

Discover your Indian'ness' through the silence that reading offers.

In this edition...

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MUSIC BEYOND MUSIC A Carnatic Music Guru shares why some swim in a pool and others go to the middle of the ocean.

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A TRYST WITH STORIES & EMOTIONS Musings of a World Class Odissi Dancer.

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THE ROLL OF A DICE Ancient Indian Games where chance plays an integral role.

Issue

21 36

ANUPAMA HOSKERE A master puppeteer who loves to innovate with her storytelling skills to teach and entertain people around the world.

ODYSSEY OF INDIAN MUSIC II Overview of 2,000+ years of Indian Music - second in a three part series.

41 44

THE STEEL GUITAR - FROM HAWAII TO HINDUSTAN From Blues to playing intricate Ragas, here is the story of the Hawaiian Guitar.

RAGHAVA-YADAVIYAM A collection of 30 Sanskrit slokas. Read forward for the story of Rama and backward for the story of Krishna.

Extras Don't forget to checkout Indiscope, showcasing the winning entries of Tarang's Photo Contest, and Centre-Stage, our tribute to an Indian icon.

Contributors Anurag Bhattacharyya Copywriter by day.

Drawer of stuff by night.

Arushi Mudgal World-class Odissi dancer, Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar Awardee.

https://www.instagram. com/moonchaii/

https://www.instagram.co m/arushimudgal/

Chakradhar Potharlanka Zoophilist, aesthete by nature and melomaniac towards Carnatic. IT Engineer and an amateur landscape painter.

Dr. DVK Vasudevan

chakradharpotharlanka@ gmail.com

facebook.com/violinvasu.devan

Dr. TLN Swamy

Pathanjali Tallapragada IT engineer by profession.

Enjoy sketching, learning violin and cycling.

Doctor by profession.

Flutist by passion with a zeal for penning and painting.

Carnatic Music Guru Vocalist, Violinist and Educator.

drtlnswamy@gmail.com

https://www.instagram.com/ Pathanjali_art/

Ramya Mudumba Ph.D Student in Cognitive Science.

Carnatic music student.

Trekker. Poet.

Vinita Sidhartha Founder of Kreeda - a passion project to research and revive traditional games of India.

http://cloudsofthedusk. wordpress.com

vinita@kreedagames.com

Itching to contribute? Check page 46 to see how you can.

MUSIC BEYOND MUSIC

By Dr. DVK Vasudevan

Is a deeper experience possible?

Yes, a deeper experience is possible. While I love music and will speak to it, I do want to share then when done right, then anything such as music, sports, dance can help elevate and deepen the human experience. For any pursuit which cannot be achieved by everyone has it’s own value and identification. Such achievements have the power to make us feel more positive, help cope better with bad things and make life more wonderful.

Over the past thirty years, having learnt, taught and performed Carnatic Music across the world, I share a few of my deliberations about what makes the field of music, particularly classical music so endearing, dynamic and definitive in highlighting the human experience.

Let me start with a question that I am asked most frequently: is music universal in nature and if so, then can one see music in everything? With a smile, I say yes! Music is universal in nature and one can see it in everything, but the catch is how well can one experience it and how far can one see it. This is where things become interesting and the extra gets added to the ordinary to make things extraordinary.

For you to explore the extraordinary in music, I present four points including a simple story to tickle your grey matter and the beating heart. Take a relaxing breath and let's start.

1. Silence and Sound We often undermine the role that silence plays in music and those who don't undermine it, sometimes go too far in their curiosity. Silence allows one to dig more into one's depths and one does this for their own pleasure. But such depth is not great when it takes one away from their balance. There is balance between sound and silence and music requires both.

For music created by humans, I should thank sound. But if you are to go inside and listen to the music within, then you have to thank silence for that sound. People may come with sticks to beat me when I say this. Because, I have no proof and these days experiential things are taken with a pinch of salt.

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Aahat

Aahat Naad is sound which is produced by hitting something – when you hit your tongue or your instrument or pluck a string.

Anahat

The music in silence, the harmony in silence or the music everywhere which is not produced but can be experienced is called Anahat Naad.

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2. Macro Influences Have you noticed that not just humans but geography, culture and seasons all have a direct bearing on music? For example, in cold countries many musicians have very big drums and drum kits.

These create higher decibel sounds. Such sounds are needed in cold countries, because humans need more encouragement to work. Whether it is loud music, a drink or an outdoor activity, it is needed to help individuals withstand the elements and step out to support life!

On the other hand, in South Indian music you will hear a lot of sounds dedicated to god and salvation. This is because in the South, effects of colonialism were less and since thousands of years we have been talking about Vedas and Moksha.

Whereas, in North India, with the Mughals came romanticism in Hindustani music and the philosophy moved from the invisible to the visible - praises for kings were sung and divinity in the beloved was celebrated.

Two different kinds of cool While no-one can stop intercultural influence, the question is that should one downplay their own culture for another?

I believe that in the long run it causes us dissonance.

Let's take the example of the Western Suit, a symbol of professionalism and a fashionable choice for the Gentleman. The suit became so inspiring for us, that if we were not wearing it, we would not feel 'cool'. But for Indian weather we evolved our clothing like Dhotis and Pyjamas with the goal to keep us 'really cool'. Each genre of music is also like this. It has unique things to offer and we have to choose what to take and what to leave.

Nativity has it's own receptivity!

I impress on the need to learn Indian Classical music because it is our native thing. It is more approachable. Through that, one can understand the dynamics, history, land philosophy and greatness of the land. I am not against one learning western music; they have excellent musicians! If you learn a song from the Beatles with your heart, you will learn about that culture and philosophy.

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Sculptures of Musicians from different parts of the world.

I admire Europe for this reason. French and German citizens preserve their culture because they find strength in it. If you hear their music and language, you know that they value it first and then value other cultures' influence. The point to ponder in all of this is that have you learnt about your backyard? The earth you sit on has produced its own music; are you listening?

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3. Benefits and Boundaries Music is physical too. By listening, learning and appreciating music, one can elevate their experience of being human. Musicianship develops with interest and motivation to cultivate it. You have to get exposure to it and keep understanding it. When one develops as a musician, a physical outcome in personality development becomes visible. One may not be able to experience the evolution, but the audience can experience the effects.

But physical has its boundaries, and here is where music gets fascinating: Each note has its own frequency, and to create music, we know we have to give specific gaps to build with those frequencies. We are habituated to a certain process which leads to different kinds of music – Carnatic, Jazz, Hindustani. We are talking about literal sounds.

However, there are often times when people say they cannot express something. Would that be music that cannot be expressed with sound?

I did not understand anything you said. How can I experience music if I was walking in a park with you?

Hmm, for you to experience music, you need to see the alignment, the frequency and the rhythm. For this you need to have an artistic mindset and if you don't have one yet, then I have to sing for you.

I don't want you to. How else can I experience music?

If this is what you desire, then you will have to wait for an opportunity to go to a concert to listen to music. Why don’t we leave the park and go for one?

I don't want to go. Can I not listen to the bird chirping to experience it?

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4.

Hehe, such thoughts belong to celebrities. These are fancy words. You can listen only when your reality can take the flight of imagination which requires an artistic mind filled with thoughts and ideas.

So what are my options?

The options have not changed.

As your musical mind needs to be cultivated, I can sing for you or we can go to a concert.

I understand. Let's explore more. I like this park and I am not leaving, so today can you sing for me?

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A Tryst with Stories & Emotions

Musings of an Odissi Dancer, Arushi Mudgal Photograph by Divakar Mani

Ⓒ

“Once upon a time, there was …”

Humans love stories; we look for a story in everything around us, even inanimate objects. If we do not find an inherent story in something, we create one around it. And we are not simply content with knowing or creating a tale; we also love telling it to others! We tell our stories through various mediums like books, films, theatre, paintings, sculpture, music, and of course, through dance.

Most classical Indian dance forms have the narrative/story-telling aspect as well as the non-narrative aspect. In my chosen dance form of Odissi (though I often wonder if I chose the form or it chose me), I truly relish both these aspects and in unique ways.

However, today, I’d like to dwell on the narrative aspect of dance.

Universality of human emotions I started performing at a very young age. As a child, finding theatres in Europe packed with non-Indian audiences would make me wonder why, say, an old French couple living in a remote town of France would like to come and watch Odissi! How would they know anything about the mythological stories that we portray in our dance? How would they understand our art? Over the years, I started finding answers to my questions. I began to realize that there was something deeper in our art forms, something beyond stories and characters…

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Ⓒ Divakar Mani "We look for a story in everything around us. If we don't, we create one."

The ‘abhinaya’ aspect in dance is where the dancer communicates stories (real or fictional) – comprising characters – expressed through the dancer’s facial expressions, hand, and bodily gestures, postures, and movements. Through these myriad tales, we essentially try to communicate the emotions of the characters, emotions that are universal. The love and protectiveness of a mother for her child, the excitement of attraction and new love brewing between two people, the pain of rejection, the hate and anger born out of betrayal, envy, compassion, amazement, joy… Human emotions are experienced by

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people across the world regardless of their race, culture, language, religion, gender, age, caste, class, and other man-made prejudices.

In classical Indian dance, characters and their stories from Indian mythology often express these layered emotions. These characters – their stories and feelings – become relatable to audiences across cultures because these emotions are experienced in their own lives, in some form or the other.

Characters and beyond

When I present an abhinaya that talks about the love and interaction between Krishna and Radha, it does not necessarily mean that I, being a 21stcentury dancer, will not be able to relate to these characters as they belong to an ancient era. I share the same core emotions or sthāyi bhāva with the characters I portray, as with every human being.

Characters (and people in general, too) may come from different backgrounds and time periods; our nature may be different from one another. We may process emotions and respond to situations uniquely, differ in body language and gestures. Yet everyone experiences emotional states universally.

While watching a piece based on the love of Krishna-Radha, one could think of them as RomeoJuliet, Heer-Ranjha, or even you and your beloved…

Relatability is with the emotion and the situation of the character. Ultimately, it does not matter what we name the characters; what matters is the depth with which the artist can feel and express these emotions acting as the medium. As artists, we always strive to experience the emotional state of the character; only then can we make the audiences experience it too.

It is a bond that the artiste tries to build with the character, hoping to eventually lose the duality and slide into oneness with them.

Ⓒ Inni Singh

Becoming vs Being

Ⓒ Divakar Mani

In dance, we often try to ‘become’ a character. And many a time, we get so caught up in the process of ‘becoming’ that we are unable to arrive at the point of ‘being’ the character. Understanding our characters’ mindsets, background, history, and nature are crucial for transforming into that character. It is important to internalize this information and translate it physically into our bodies, which involves technique and hours of practice. The technique should become like breathing, something we do naturally without having to remind ourselves.

After (or even while) getting comfortable with the ‘physicality’ of the character, one needs to immerse oneself completely into the mindset of the character. Here, what I find intriguing is how various artists have contrasting approaches to arrive at the same goal.

A sense of surrender, forgetting who we are, and losing ourselves to the character.

One life, many lives

It is the process of stepping out of oneself and getting into the character’s guise: ‘pātrapravesham’. And ‘guise’ here does not simply mean a transformation on the physical plane, but more on an internal/emotional one. A sense of surrender, forgetting who we are, and losing ourselves to the character: their story, their situation, and their emotion… The intention is always to be honest to the character by letting go of our own prejudices and seeing the world through their eyes with complete faith and conviction.

While some people question the relevance of classical Indian dance and the characters in today’s times, I feel immensely grateful and even fascinated that I have the privilege of transporting myself into any era I want through the characters I portray. It is like a time machine! I could be Krishna from the battlefield of Kurukshetra, and I could be the scheming Shakuni. I could also be Shakespeare’s yearning Romeo, and I could be Shikhandi. I can cross gender, age, just about any barriers, and become the character of my choice. The possibilities

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Photographs by Divakar Mani

Ⓒ

are boundless. Through these characters, I can live and experience so many different lives in one life; it is truly a blessing.

And through my art form and these characters, I can be a medium to take the audience with me on these journeys. Whether the audience travels with me or not lies a lot in my hands – in the honesty with which I can communicate the emotions & thoughts of these characters. But, if only in part, it also depends on how open the audience is to join me on this expedition. Both the artiste and the rasika/artappreciator have a role to play here. The journey, like all journeys in life, is not always a sure success. But when that union does happen and everything clicks, it is a remarkable one; the journey we

" It is like a time machine! I could be Krishna on the battlefield, I could be the scheming Shakuni, I could also be Shakespeare’s yearning Romeo, and I could be Shikhandi. " call ‘rasānubhuti’ – the experience of ‘rasa’, a truly blissful state.

Dance is as inclusive an art as we want it to be. Like all arts, it knows no boundaries; it is us humans who love to create lines. Novelty and change have been welcomed even in our most ancient art-forms, which is what prevents these age-old forms from becoming dated and stagnant. Before we pass verdicts on the relevance, relatability and even significance of any art-form, perhaps we should take a

moment to ponder upon the very reason why, since mankind, art has existed and continues to exist. It exists to liberate not just the body, but our minds and souls, to help us experience a sense of freedom and abandon that few other things in life can offer. Some call the experience of art divine and otherworldly, and for some it is an abstract, exhilarating, indescribable feeling of ānanda (bliss) and deep satisfaction. This is why our arts are entertaining, yes, but they are also so much beyond…

“... a girl who loved to dance”

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Art

History

Culture

Passionate, diverse and experienced Indians write about these subjects to bring a smile to your face.

Let's keep the smile growing.

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THE ROLL OF A DICE

By Vinita Sidhartha

Since time immemorial, people have played games, and dice or throw pieces were often an integral part of the game. Dice are small throwable objects that rest in different positions and help us generate random numbers that define the game’s flow. Dice have been used since before recorded history, and it is uncertain when they originated, but there are mentions of dice even in the Vedas.

Dice and the concept of probability have long been linked to gambling, borne out by the Gambler’s Lament in the Rig Veda. The poem comprises a monologue of a repentant gambler who laments the ruin brought on him because of addiction to the dice:

Play not with dice: no, cultivate thy corn-land.

Enjoy the gain and deem that wealth sufficient.

There are thy cattle there thy wife, O gambler.

Gambling with dice is a recurrent theme in Indian mythology. From the stories of the Mahabharata to those of Nala Damayanti, the loss due to gambling has been repeated over and over again. And yet, the Kshatriya tradition made it a matter of honour and etiquette not to refuse an invitation to a game of dice.

Dice games are also a part of our history. Legends describe Emperor Akbar playing the game of Chaupad on marble courts in Fatehpur Sikri when women from his harem moved on the board to represent game pieces. With such a vast treasure of stories, it is hardly surprising that dice and dice games are a vital part of our culture.

The original randomizing objects used as dice by ancient people dating from pre-history were sets of two-sided flat sticks, flat seashells, nut-shells, pebbles, etc. Technically any two-faced flat shape, like an ordinary coin, is a kind of dice. Perhaps the most popular of these were the cowrie shells. A cowrie is a marine mollusc that has a smooth, glossy, domed shell with a long narrow opening, typically brightly patterned and popular with collectors. In ancient times cowries were even used Nothing to see here, just some cool long dice!

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as currency.

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Indus Valley excavations have actually found square dice with markings numbered 1 – 6 and opposite sides adding up to 7 as is the convention even today.

To match the variety of dice and throw pieces in our country is an equally varied series of games played with dice. To many, a game of dice requires little or no skill. It is a game of mere chance. However, if one were to look at life, one would understand that chance is an essential part of it. There is much we cannot control, much that is outside our sphere of influence. The dice provides this element to our games. There are numerous dice games in our country, but I would like to analyse two games, both of which are deeply rooted in our culture.

Paramapadam more popularly known as Snakes and Ladders is what one calls a race game. It is a linear game where the player progresses from point A to point B on the board. The person to get to the end first is declared the winner. The traditional game of Paramapadam had snakes named for characters from our mythology, each representing a vice while the ladders represented virtues. The game is symbolic of a man’s journey through life, acquiring virtues and constantly bettering himself till he reaches Paramapadam or the Highest Place. The game is also known as Gyan Path, Moksha Pattam, Vaikunta Pali, to name a few.

Players playing Paramapadam designed by Kreeda.

Kreeda brings ancient India games to your living room.

Check the game boards here.

While some attribute the game to Gyanadev, a

However, the traditional version is more than

saint in the Bhakti movement, others ascribe it to

merely a children’s game. Closely associated

the Jains, who created it to teach the concepts of

with the Vaishnavite tradition, the game was

Jainism. No matter how the game originated, it

played on the night of Vaikunta Ekadasi when

appealed to the British, who took it back to their

people stayed up fasting. The rules of the game

country and substituted virtues and vices in

were necessarily lengthened to help pass the

keeping with their culture. Over time, the game lost

time. In the morning, a door at the temple would

its moral overtones and came back as Snakes and

be opened, symbolic of a door to heaven. The

Ladders, one of the most popular childhood games

belief was by playing this game, one could

in the world.In fact, modern versions even

metaphorically transform into a better human

substitute, chutes for snakes, thus completely

being and therefore be worthy of entering the

doing away with the snakes.

gates of heaven.

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The design of the board was colourful and peppered with the elements of life. Over time, even the Indian boards lost the moral overtones. One can still find boards of Paramapadam brightly coloured and illustrated, but the virtues and vices have gone missing. This race game played with dice is one of the most popular games in India and across the world. There is hardly a child who has not enjoyed the thrill of climbing a ladder or the despair of coming down a snake. But most children do not know the game’s origin and its roots in Indian culture and heritage.

Chaupad much like Paramapadam, has also come back to us in the very different form of Ludo. This dice game requires you to circle the board cutting your opponents before they cut you, and then reaching the safe space of home. Each

Bamboo Sticks as throw pieces. A dice is an object which is thrown to generate a random number.

player has 4 game pieces.

The game of Chaupad is played on a board shaped like a symmetric cross with four arms and each arm being the length of 8 spaces; three parallel lines in each arm allow the player to move around the board and enter the safe space of a home. Similar games have been played across the world, including Patolli an ancient Aztec game which closely resembles the game of Chaupad.

In India, the game is played with numerous variations and numerous names from Chaupad and Pachisi to Dayakattam, Chokkattan, Pagade to name a few. While boards may have variations and the rules may have variations, the essence of the Chaupad creating colour, competition and cheer.

game remains the same.

While this game is played on a symmetric cross, another game of the same genre is Ashta Chemma, which is played on a square board. This game also requires you to circle the board and cutting down opponents before entering the safe home. These games, which require the player to circle the board, are called cross and circle games. Interesting variations in the rules provide enough choice to the player, so games like this become an interesting interplay of choice and chance.

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Another type of dice game is a single-track game such as the game of Dadu popularly played in Gujarat. The single-track game literally means that the player begins at one point and ends at another, travelling along a single track.

This is similar to Paramapadam, however, unlike Paramapadam, which is a pure dice game with the players having no control over the moves, single-track games have multiple game pieces and multiple moves allowing the player some level of control juxtaposed with the throw of the dice. Dice games are deeply rooted in our culture and ethos. The legend of Hathi Ramji, a devotee of Lord Balaji at Tirupathi, and the story of how he played the game of dice with Lord Balaji is an interesting one.

A single-track race game on a temple floor

A fresco of the two in play can even be seen in the Tirupathi temple. With the story of the Mahabharatha deeply entrenched in our psyche, there are many who are superstitious that the game of dice would bring about a quarrel in the family.

Yet others, who are unable to resist the lure of these exciting games, counter superstition, by not moving their game pieces during the Hathiramji and his game of dice

#1: Enjoy Vinita's first article on games of alignment here.

first throw of the dice. Their theory is that the first throw of the dice is a prayer to the

#2: Loved the games? You can buy them here.

Gods that they will play

#3: Vsauce, a world famous Youtube channel traces the Secrets of snakes and ladder here.

together and not quarrel and

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simply enjoy the game.

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indiscope

The essence of India through their lens!

Tarang asked shutter bugs and culture bugs to send us their best photos that capture Indian Arts, Culture and Heritage.

Here are the winning entries.

01

A window to the past

Blending the soothing sun, an idyllic pond and an architecture heritage.

Photograph By

Sameer Gupta Tarang

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02

Indian Tapestry

When one follows their belief and supports you to celebrate yours.

Photograph By

Pavan Kommireddy

03

Ode to the beyond

The shades of black and white creating a gateway to the eternal.

Photograph By

Apoorva Gunturi

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Vivid and Vibrant A few other submissions that we loved.

Our last edition was read by thousands of curious Indians living in 21 countries across the World.

These photos and articles are carefully curated by a team of volunteers and each edition takes more than 250 hours before it reaches your eyes.

We consider these hours well spent, if in an ever changing world, Tarang brings you joy and happiness.

Top Left: Prasad Malharro Mane Right Column: Dipalika Mohanty Bottom Left: Dhrubajyoti Sarma

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Issue

Anupama Hoskere In conversation with Master Puppeteer and Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee on a mission to spread the stories of wisdom by pulling at the right strings.

How did you get interested in Puppetry?

I started off as a Bharatanatyam dancer and have been very interested in Arts & Epic stories right from my childhood. But my practical sense saw financial difficulties faced by artists. So, I decided that I would do my engineering and rather become a Patron of Arts. But being an artist, the madness of Art would not leave. And though I completed my B.E. and ME / MS as well, my true calling had always been Performing Arts.

I have also been an ardent student of our Epics trying to understand the intrigue of human life, questioning what my identity as an Indian is. I understood that we looked at human efficiency whether it was the relationship of a couple, space of an individual, progress in life eventually happiness. This knowledge was passed on through the medium of performing arts. Every other knowledge we can get in colleges, but this rooting - of being an Indian and its meaning we received it at home primarily through arts and epic stories.

And through this, one can become a keen observer of life rather than a mere player.

Understanding the layering of human nature, society, culture, and the nuances of this play which we call Lila - and its beauty is worth experiencing as a human. Besides this, through Art, we can get a glimpse of Ananda reflecting the Supreme Brahman. So when such a treasure is accessible, I feel very strongly that I have to pass this on to the next generation.

In 1997, I conducted a quiz for children that highlighted how important our story-telling culture and education were. Children couldn't even recognise the Hindu Icons and the

prizes we had for the winners got left behind.

I realized we need to give children a feel of our culture and inculcate the taste of it in them through stories. Whether they follow it or leave, it is a choice they have.

Besides, I have always had a special relationship with the Dolls of Navaratra and the traditions. So I thought all of these Arts that I knew - Sangeeta, Nritya, Sahitya, along with the Atma Anubhava coming into a Doll, which is inanimate, would be a great way to spread the stories and knowledge. That is really what Puppetry is.

"One can become a keen observer of life rather than a mere player."

How did you go about learning Puppetry?

I went looking for a teacher. I toured quite a bit.

Nobody wanted to teach me because I was a young person who had come from outside and I was looked at as I was wasting everybody’s time. And also I realized that traditional art was not practiced by women. Then I found a master, Shri M R Ranganatha Rao in Bangalore who taught me the art of puppetry.

I started teaching Ramayana, Mahabharata and Bhagavata for Children aged 6-13 during Summer. At this time for the Ramayana class, I thought as a sugar coating on the pill we would have stories explained through Puppets. And that is how the first puppet production of Ramayana, Shoorpanaka came about.

After so many years of performing, what has Puppetry meant or given to you?

Happiness. I conduct a workshop where I create and design puppets and conceptualize plays for wonderful stories. I investigate these stories and collaborate with like-minded people to bring these to life. It has brought me peace and happiness.

When I went to Europe, everybody kept saying India was the Motherland of Puppetry. We ourselves do not recognize this. We have a tradition, of over 500 hundred years, of the most sophisticated wooden puppets of India in Karnataka that nobody knows of. I kept wondering what I could do about it? We have set up a gallery at Dhaatu, but we wanted to do something visible to the public. So we conceptualized a Puppet Bus Stop. My husband, Shri Vidyashankar Hoskere, designed it, and my students created the puppets. It consists of a map of Karnataka highlighting the puppet types in different regions. It also has puppets of Krishna, Indrasuchi, Ganesha, Vidushaka, and Ravana. It was inaugurated during the Dhaatu International Puppet Festival 4 years ago.

Such things have to come into society. We should have a dedicated Puppet theatre where one can go with family, experience a show, and learn to make a puppet. Such a space is essential. I want Bangalore to be the icon of Puppetry.

Puppet Parade Near Dhaatu Bus Stop

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Navaratra Festival

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Could you tell us about the history of Puppetry in India?

During my Fellowship, I studied the Rajasuya Yaga of the Mahabharata and was interested in Rukmini as a character because she is the first Indian woman, historically, to have proposed to a man and also made a plan to elope with Krishna. Shishupala, who is engaged to Rukmini, hears about this. He falls on the curb, bangs his head, and says he will give up his life because his maiden has left him, and he cannot live anymore. His friend Jarasandha says, "Just like the wooden doll entertainer pulls a string and the doll plays, we are like these wooden dolls with the strings pulled by Ishwara". This was a joyous discovery for me because it refers to Puppetry. Mahabharata is currently dated to 5000 years back - tells us that Puppetry was prevalent at that time.

Next comes the Katha Sarith Sagara. In this story, Maya's daughter wants to make friends with everybody. She flies around with a suitcase filled with mechanical dolls. She meets the princess Swarnaprabha on the terrace, opens her box, and plays with puppets that can water a plant, garland something, and offer food. The period of this is about the 1st Century.

In Bala Ramayana of Rajashekara, there is a play inside this play where Ravana is a human character, and Sita is the puppet. And in Sita's mouth is a mechanical device that can speak.

And this puppet Sita professes love to Ravana.

Ravana goes and hugs the puppet, thinking it is

human. In this reference, we have interaction between humans and puppets in the 10th Century. Harsha Vardhana's work Nala Damayanti shows evidence of a puppet theatre in a Garden. It would be a perfect addition to the Garden city of Bangalore.

Historically if you take Natya Shastra, we have Vritthi's or Stylization in different parts of India.

Even Indian Puppetry follows these principles of stylization, and it had been so about 90% of the time. That is the history of puppets.

Just like the wooden doll entertainer pulls a string and the doll plays, we are like these wooden dolls with the strings pulled

by Ishwara Jarasandha in the Rajasuya Yaga, Mahabharata

How does puppetry differ across the world?

In the East, Puppetry looks at a birds-eye view of life and celebrates life while in the West it is

used for problem solving. So, in the West it becomes realistic but in the East it is surreal and stylized and removed from the person; away from the ego.

What were the challenges you faced in learning and practicing this art form?

I did recognize that people in this field were a bit insecure. There is limited income, and if they teach anyone, it means that it'll be distributed. In India, we do not have copyright protection, and we don't sue anybody. We have adopted this at a conscious level as a culture. During the Spanish Flu pandemic, many artists died, and whoever remained did not invest time into learning & mastering the art. So, there was mediocrity in learning, and therefore they were afraid to teach.

Sri Krishna Paarijata

Abhijnana Shakuntalam

And then the news spreads that this is a dying art. Art is not dying. In fact, we are very much up-to-date with the world.

Also, a few people have a grip on the national scene of puppetry who don't want to let it go. India has so many kinds of puppetry. Why only some puppeteers dictate terms in the country?

All these problems are slowly fading out because time and tide wait for none. In India, especially if you are good, you will be remembered even after you go. If not, it doesn't matter how powerful you are.

The weight of the puppets also impacted women practicing puppetry.

During my research, the old puppets that I saw were relatively lightweight about 1.8 kg to 2 kg. The latter ones, specifically in the past 80 years, weighed significantly more - almost 8 kgs to 12 kgs. People were wearing

Malavikagnimitram

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30

neckbands for Spondylosis. People would tell me that their puppet was 24 kgs. It seemed like an Olympics weightlifting competition.

This is where Shastra must come into play.

The learning process, knowledge of wood - all of this got lost because of the Spanish Flu pandemic. This is the bridge we have to build.

This has been my research - bridge to the past and how can I make it better. With this bridge, we were able to redesign lighter puppets.

Can you explain your core principles in designing the puppets and storytelling via puppetry?

Art retells stories; it does not recreate. Nobody knows what Rama or any other character actually looked like. However, they have features/stylization by which you can recognize. Like a Stop sign that is different in different places, yet it is a universally understood sign. Communication is simple through such stylization. The characters are also given a colour scheme used for Gunas that denotes the nature of the character. This gives the freedom to design the character.

You can craft a puppet, but how about its movement? That is actually difficult because now it has to listen and behave. There are simple rules of thumb for design to ensure ease of movement. Basic rods and strings and wooden holds enable this. Sometimes it may also require that one puppeteer manage two puppets in a scene; this requires a different control system.

And now we start from the other end. We have the character and its moment defined. We know if the puppet has to shoot an arrow or wrestle, split in two like Jarasanda or if its head has to float in the air like Sishupala's. We make sure these requirements are factored in. We

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also consider other factors like show duration etc. We keep it as simple as possible.

One other important factor is weight. We manage this by making the puppet hollow. I like to work with wood. Paper mache doesn't last, and I don't like to work with fiber. I carve on wood - the Shalmali vruksha (bombax cotton), a low-density wood but rough by nature. We have a unique finish from using tamarind seed paste like glue and teak wood powder. Body is usually done out of Neem wood or Honge Mara. Basic shape is done on the lathe, usually in Channapatna. The hands and the palms have to be carved. We get an Oval form for the face with a triangle piece of the nose on top.

The eyes, mouth, everything on it is carved, and then we hollow it from behind as required.

The joints are made to allow for the flexibility of movement.

Bhakta Prahallada

Initially, when I have to do a new character, I create a prototype that I preserve. So we can repeat the prototype. Design is something that is not static for me. So, I end up having 5 generations of bodies and about 3 generations of heads that are the output of continuous evolution. We have done eye, Moustache, or Mouth movements for Narasimha, even eyebrows for some.

Are there any stories that you can highlight that were challenging?

31

Bhāskarāchārya's Līlāvatī is an arithmetic treatise in the form of slokas. Prof. Rama Subramanian, IIT Bombay, requested that we do a puppet show about this at a conference that was to be held in 2 weeks. I was very hesitant - how does one blend mathematics and puppetry - there was no Rasa in it, and without that, it would just be super-imposing.

Under pressure, my usual response is to work at night in my studio when there is nobody to disturb. I realized that Bhaskaracharya was a genius poet, and here I was saying that it lacked Rasa. But he had the bird's eye view of life - in his mathematics, he had blended Dance, Music, Tala, Raga systems, and much more. That day I cracked the code of Līlāvatī, and we did the puppet show without any compromises on the Rasa. As an artist, I have been cracking a few codes here and there, but I have to crack the code of life to create timeless art.

Could you tell us about Dhaatu Foundation and what you aim to achieve?

Dhaatu was created to share with everyone what we thought was beautiful about India.

Dhaatu means Root, that is life, and that is Vishnu, the root of all the roots. Our objective is to go to the roots and express through the art forms. We host two major annual festivals.

Firstly, the Navaratra Mahotsava. Doll keeping is a tradition during Sharad Navaratra. This tradition traces back to post Rig Vedic era. In the South, we have the Doll display, Purusha and Prakriti, kept as symbolic of male and female energies for the sustenance of life.

In every household, the dolls and their interpretations are different. There is

Disciples of Bhaskaracharya

"As an Artist we have to crack the code... to create timeless art " no wrong or right. The festival preserves this spirit and presents a doll display unlike what people would have witnessed. To experience beyond the mundane is very important, and that is what makes us grow better. This festival is for people to understand, embrace life and celebrate where we come from through the Epic stories. During summer, we also conduct 2-day to week-long puppet fairs to teach the art form.

Secondly, the Dhaatu International Festival brings together rural and urban puppeteers of India alongside International puppeteers celebrating puppetry. We have about 13 to 15 shows packed in 3 days, for which we raise money from the public and get support from the Govt. of India & Govt. of Karnataka. The festival has helped spread puppetry, and people are very appreciative. We would like to take this to other cities besides Bengaluru as well.

Dhaatu is also working towards a cultural space - a dream space - with a theatre, a library, a classroom, and a museum - a dynamic museum.

This would be a space where shows are conducted throughout the year. In addition, we will have other activities like the Bhagavad Gita classes and the Puppet Paata Shaala for someone to learn and create puppets.

"To experience beyond the mundane is very important, and that is what makes us grow better".

Glimpse of Navaratra Mahotsav

What does the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award mean to you?

I am very humbled by it. I had never thought I would get it as I thought only great people received this honour. And I didn't think I was that. When the award was announced, I was on a 20 city tour of the U.S. with our production Malavikagnimitram. I heard the announcement at my friend's house at 4:30 AM and ate up all the pastries in joy.

Interested in Dhaatu's Navaratra Mahotsava?

It's a huge recognition for me. There was an angst in me. I thought I was not being accepted even though I told myself that I didn't need to get accepted because I did not belong anywhere. I was not completely a traditionalist or a contemporary.

This award told me that whatever I was doing is fine. And that way it is huge. It leads to the important question, what next? There is more to be done starting with a Puppet Museum!

Dhaatu Navaratra Mahotsava 2021 is online.

Oct 7th - 16th at 7pm

on

https://www.facebook.com/Dhaatu YouTube.com/DhaatuVideos

Wish to support?

Dhaatu is a not for profit organization that runs on public support and Government grants. Donations made to Dhaatu give tax benefits (80G). www.dhaatupuppets.org

Email: dhaatu@gmail.com

centre Pt Bhimsen Joshi 1922 - 2011

In 1933, the 11-year-old Joshi left Dharwad to find a master and learn music. With the help of money lent by his co-passengers in the train, he went to Pune and later to Gwalior and joined the Madhava Music School.

Kirana

Gharana

He traveled for three years in search of a guru and met Ustad Mushtaq Husain Khan of Rampur Gharana and stayed with him for one year. Eventually, his father succeeded in tracking him down in Jalandar and brought young Bhimsen back home.

Guru Sawai Gandharva In 1936, Sawai Gandharva, a native of Dharwad, agreed to be his guru. Joshi stayed at his house in the gurushishya tradition.

Mile Sur Mera

majestic expressive

stage

Timeline Sangeet Natak Academy Award

1972

Padma Shri 1976 1985

Padma Bhushan Padma Vibhushan Maharashtra Bhushan

1999

2002

Tumhara

divine timeless

Watch

Bharat Ratna

Karnataka Ratna 2008

2005

The Best of Bhimsen Joshi Sada Enna Hrudayadalli

Source: Wikipedia, Facebook

THE ODYSSEY OF INDIAN MUSIC-PART II

By Dr. TLN Swamy

You can Read the first of this three part article series here.

During the 16th century India, the Vijayanagara empire was at its prime in the South as was the Mughal empire in the North. Peace prevailed in the society, and the air was filled with the desire to seek entertainment and enthrall in artistic pleasures. Both King Krishnadevaraya and Emperor Akbar promoted all kinds of art forms like Poetry, Dance and Music. The time was ripe for new talents to surface and showcase their potential. That was when India had witnessed the birth of two of its musical giants in the form of Purandara Dasa of Carnatic and Miya Tansen of Hindustani musical genres. They pioneered the way music has been sung in India in their respective styles and have been revered since as the fathers of their respective traditions of Indian classical music.

THE NAVAKOTI NARAYANA “SRINIVASA NAYAKA” Purandara Dasa (1484-1565 AD) was born in the region of Karnataka and was named as Srinivasa Nayaka by his parents after their patron deity Lord Venkateshwara of Tirumala. At the age of sixteen, he got married and inherited his father’s business of gemstones and pawning soon to become rich enough to be called ‘Navakoti Narayana’ by the people. With all the riches in hand, he naturally indulged in the joys of his materialistic possessions.

THE REBORN VAGGEYAKARA

Purandara Dasa, Kannada Poet. Stamp by India Post, Government of India, Wikimedia Commons

The legend has it that in a bid to transform the young merchant into his ardent devotee, Lord Vishnu himself appeared to Srinivasa in the guise of a poor man with a pitiful plea for money. Srinivasa was then a misery person and turned him away. Having been rejected, the poor man surreptitiously approached Srinivasa’s wife for money. Being a pious and generous woman, she gave away her precious nose ring unbeknownst to her husband. Strategically the poor man went back to Srinivasa to monetize the ornament. Identifying it as his wife’s and enraged, Srinivasa rushed to his wife to ascertain the truth.

Realizing that her husband came to know of her secret donation, she tried to end her life with poison but was shocked to find the ring back in the poison cup. Bewildered, she recounted the entire episode to her husband.

They searched for the poor man with no success who had mysteriously vanished. Srinivasa realized that the whole act was played by the Lord himself. Lamenting his wasted life of indulgence, he sang out his feelings in a spontaneous composition, “Analekara,”and decided to surrender his soul in the service of the divine Lord. And the legendary Vaggeyakara was reborn thus.

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37

THE MENDICANT “PURANDARA DASA” At the age of thirty itself, he gave away all his wealth in charity and started living like a mendicant, surviving on alms and singing the glory of the Lord in Haridasa tradition. In his wanderings all over the Vijayanagara empire, he met the Raj Guru of Krishnadevaraya, “Vyasathirtha,” who initiated him into the Madhwa philosophy and bestowed the name of “Purandara Dasa.” He sang in the court of Krishnadevaraya as well and finally settled in Hampi. The Purandaradasa mandapa where he stayed can still be seen in the ruins of Hampi.

THE “KARNATAKA SANGEETHA PITHAMAHA” Purandara Dasa’s contributions to Carnatic music were manifold like, introducing the Raga Mayamalavagowla as the first scale of learning for beginners and formulating the basic music lessons in a graded manner of Svaravalis, Alankaras, and Gitas. He is a Vaggeyakara and a music scholar who had written many musical compositions known as Dasa Sahitya. His Lakshana Geeta and Shooladies are considered masterpieces and standards for Raga Lakshana. He introduced folk ragas into mainstream music thus popularizing them. He is regarded as the “Sangeeta Pitamaha” by the musicologists. He also influenced Hindustani music immensely by spicing it up with Carnatic ragas and flavors through his tutoring of Swami Haridasa of Hindustani musical genre who had in turn trained Miya Tansen.

MERE “RAMTANU” Miya Tansen, the legendary musician of India who shaped understanding music in the form it is being practiced in modern India, was born around the year 1500 in a Hindu family of the northwestern region of modern-day India Madhya Pradesh. He was actually named Ramtanu by his father Mukund Pandey, who

Sri Purandara Dasa’s Samadhi in Hampi, India

was an accomplished poet and musician himself.

MUSICAL “TANSEN” Ramtanu learned his music from Bhakti Saint Swami Haridas, the legendary composer from Vrindavan and pioneer of the Drupad style of singing, at the stellar Gwalior court of Raja Mansingh Tomar. Swami Haridas in turn had interaction with the great composer Purandara Dasa the father of Carnatic music. This Nexus seemed to have spilled a significant amount of influence of Carnatic music into Hindustani music. Ramtanu mastered the music surpassing his master. His talent was honoured by the Raja of Gwalior with the title of Tansen.

He began his career in the court of Raja Rama Chandra Singh of Rewa, where he spent most of his life excelling in the art of music. His reputation caught the attention of the Mughal emperor of the era Akbar who requested the Raja to send Ramtanu to join the Mughal court.

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38

Reluctantly though, Raja Rama Chandra Singh sent the 60-year-old Vaishnava musician to Akbar along with other gifts. Akbar treated him as one of the “Navaratnas” of his Darbar and honored him with the title Mian, meaning ‘learned man.’

Akbar watching as Tansen receives a lesson from Swami Haridas. Mughal miniature painting (Rajasthani style, c. 1750 AD). Original here.

MIAN KI RAGA Tansen is remembered for his epic Dhrupad compositions and revered for creating several new ragas. His ragas reflected the mood of the hour of the day and took the branding of his tag “Mian” before them, such as morning raga Miyan ki Todi, Midday raga Miyan ki Sarang, Night raga Darbari Kanhra and the seasonal raga Miyan ki Malhar. Many legends mention about his extraordinary singing abilities mesmerizing the people and even commanding the elements like lighting fire with Raag Deepak and showering rain with Raag Miyan ki Malhaar.

He is not only a great musician but also an instrumentalist and contested to have

Tansen Samaroh

invented the string instrument called

A national musical festival has been commemorated to his respect

‘Rabab’. He is credited with authoring two

in the form of 'Tansen Samaroh' which is held every year in

classic books on music Sri Ganesh Stotra

December, near the tomb of Tansen at Behat of Gwalior district in

and Sangita Sara. There was Sufi

Madhya Pradesh where the exponents in Hindustani Classical

influences in the music of Tansen as a

music perform over four days of musical extravaganza and

result of his interaction with the Sufi mystic

‘Tansen Samman’ will be awarded each year to the best of the

Muhammad Ghaus and it is believed to

best of them.

have brought a universal appeal to his music, regardless of religions despite his

Abul Fazl wrote in “Aini Akbari”: “Miyan Tansen, of Gwalior. A

compositions being predominantly based on

singer like him has not been in India for the last thousand years.”

traditional motifs of Hinduism.

In his memoirs, Jehangir says: “there has been no singer like him in any time or age.”

When Akbar sought to find out why Tansen himself could not sing as beautifully as Swami, Tansen’s reply was:

“Your Majesty, I sing in the court of a mighty ruler while my teacher sings in the court of God.”

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A mendicant Dasa on one side and a majestic Mian on the other side shaped the classical coin of the Indian music which is still in vogue, ever-growing in value akin to gold. Many more impressions of the succeeding breeds of musicians kept adding to both sides of the coin, enriching it era after era. Be all ears to hear about the further mellifluous influences made by the medieval musicians and massive impressions made by the modern maestros of music, but just an issue after. Till then bide your time contemplating…

40

The Steel Guitar From Hawaii to Hindustan

By Anurag Bhattacharyya

The City of Joy & Steel When one grows up in Calcutta, one grows up with Rabindranath Tagore. Whether it is reading his poems and stories in school, enacting his plays, dancing to his songs or simply listening to different artists fusing their style to the maestro’s work, a touch of Tagore never escapes you.

Similarly, as I grew up dancing to Tagore’s songs, another introduction was through my grandfather playing tunes on his Hawaiian guitar – also known as the ‘steel guitar’(referring to the solid steel slide bar used when playing) or ‘lap steel’ (a lap position is adopted when playing the instrument.)

Hawaiian Guitar with the metal slide on the finger.

Many variants of the slide guitar, such as the Mohana Veena and Chaturangui can trace their roots to the Hawaiian Guitar.

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The story goes that in Hawaii around 1887-89, a boy called Joseph Kekuku was walking down a road (some say an old railway track) playing his guitar when he picked up a metal bolt and started sliding it on the strings. Fascinated by the sound, he practiced and perfected the new technique and performed it in front of an audience. He received a great response from the people who heard him, and his popularity grew as he toured the U.S and Europe. In India, the Hawaiian guitar was introduced by a Samoan, Tau Moe, who travelled extensively in Asia and worldwide with his style of Hawaiian and Samoan music. In the early 1960s, this instrument gained more popularity and saw the Golden period of lap steel Hawaiian guitar in Calcutta. Though the lap steel was used in the popular version of Western music more than in any other form of music, an experiment to relate the instrument to India’s mainstream music introduced the use of slide guitar in the background music of many Bollywood films as well as Bengali movies of Calcutta. Late Sangeet Acharya Jnan Prakash Ghosh often used the steel guitar for his film music background score.

42

The Hindustani Touch Pandit Brij Bhushan Kabra, a disciple of Sarod Maestro Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, in his early 20s, introduced Guitar as an Indian Classical instrument and became the Pioneer of Indian Classical Guitar. In the year 1980, Pandit Brij Bhushan Kabra’s disciple, Pandit Debasish Bhattacharya, emerged with a concrete concept of the steel guitar to make it ready to accept the challenges thrown by Raga music. He evolved and pioneered the fingerstyle and technique to suit it to enable the guitar players to explore newer heights of articulation in the Indian classical Instrumental recitals. My grandfather, Shri Alokendra Nath Bose had started playing and practicing the steel guitar in 1920 under the tutelage of one of the fathers of Hawaiian guitar music in Kolkata, at that time, Sri Surjit Nath. He had the opportunity to play for the All India Radio (AIR) in 1965 and back then, it was a real achievement.

f

unny side up

A young artist from Assam playing his rendition of Tagore’s ‘Boro Asha Kore Eshechi’

While from the beginning of the last century to the present-day slide guitar continues to evolve and integrate into many forms of music and styles, my grandfather played beautiful songs celebrating Rabindranath Tagore on his slide guitar - bringing a new dimension to Bengali music.

Subbu says Math teacher: If I have three bottles in one hand and two in the other hand, what do I have?

Student: A drinking problem.

Source: Laughfactory.com

A: Oh! Where did you get your son trained in dance?

A turtle is crossing the road when he’s mugged by two snails. When the police show up, they ask him what happened.

The shaken turtle replies, “I don’t know.

It all happened so fast."

B: Dumb head, he is! He left his chappals here

Cartoon by: Pathanjali Tallapragada

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Source Unknown

43

RaghavaYadaviyam: A marvel in Sanskrit Literature

By Ramya Mudumba

Did you know that there is a collection of 30 slokas in Sanskritic literature, each of which, when read forward, describes the story of Rama and, when read backward, is a tale of Krishna's adventures? This genius composition is called 'Raghava-Yadaviyam,' written by Venkatadhvari (17th century). The name itself conveys this referring to the clans Rama (Raghu-kula) and Krishna (Yadu-kula) belonged to. This style of literary work is called 'anuloma-viloma kavya'.

For example, consider this sloka:

साके ताख्या ज्ययमसीत् या विप्रादीप्ता आर्याधारा| पू: आजीत अदेवाद्याविश्वासा अग्रया सावाशारावा||

When read forward (anuloma), the translation stands:

'There was a city called Ayodhya, on earth, which was shining with brahmins who were well-versed in Vedas, and with merchants and was the place of abode of Dasaratha, the son of Aja, and it was always attended by the devas who assembled there to partake the offerings of the sacrifices, and it was the first and foremost of all the cities on earth.' (reference: Dr. Saroja Ramanujan)

Which when read backward (viloma), it describes the city of Dwaraka.

वाराशावासाग्रया साश्वाविद्यावादेताजीरा पू:| राधार्याप्ता दीप्रा विद्यासीमा या ज्याख्याता के सा||

'The city of Dvaraka, which was famous on earth as the noteworthy of the cities, abundant in horses and elephants, the ground of scholars who contest in debates, the place of residence of Sri Krishna, the Lord of Radha and the seat of learning for spiritual knowledge was situated in the midst of ocean.'

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About Us Founded in 2005 by Guru Violin Vasu and friends, the mission of Sanskriti Foundation is to promote Indian art, culture, and values by conducting trainings, workshops and an annual Tyagaraja Aradhana music festival. Foundation members benefit from meeting like minded people, attending cultural seminars and attending bi-monthly concerts.

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