WEEK LONG Many colourful, rich ballets will be presented at the festival

The annual ISKCON dance festival — Sri Krishna Shringar — will be flagged off this year on August 17 by the legendary guru Vempati Chinna Satyam's dance dramas “Gopika Krishna” and “Rukmini Kalyanam”.

It will be presented by the Kuchipudi Art Academy in all its splendour and opulence, transporting audiences to another era. To the era of Krishna in Mathura and Dwaraka. An era when an azure cowherd flaunting peacock feathers could make gopis swoon and cows stand transfixed by his enchanted flute. When he could kill a demon, or dance on a serpent, or, even lift a mountain with the same ease as he sported with cowherds and maidens on the banks of the river Yamuna. It is a timeless story which can be told a million times. Guru Vempati makes it come alive with his own special magic.

Based on Bhakta Kavi Pothana's “Bhagavatham”, it describes various facets of the child god. Whether it is stealing the clothes of the pleading gopis, or lifting the Govardhana mountain on his little finger, or killing the evil Kamsa. “Gopika Krishna” is not all about Krishna's frolicking with village belles.

We see here the eighth avatara of Vishnu justifying his reincarnation as he destroys evil forces. When he dances triumphantly on the hood of the deadly serpent Kalinga, or when he vanquishes a wild demon elephant set to trample him, or when he finally annihilates Kamsa himself in a final act of vindication.

Guru Vempati's choreographic skills are abundantly displayed in this vibrant dance drama. Similarly, he reveals the beauty of Rukmini's undiluted love for Krishna in all its poignancy in “Rukmini Kalyanam”, which is one of the maestro's best creations. This brilliant dance drama, based on the Mahapurana Srimad Bhagavatham, is set against the backdrop of the ancient Vidarbha kingdom with its stories of intrigue, valour and romance. The story unfolds effortlessly to a dazzling finale when Krishna, the great lover “abducts” his loved one even as she proceeds to the temple to prepare for her arranged marriage to Sishupala. Their union, symbolising the merging of the jeevatma with the Paramatma is treated with superb artistry in this dance drama where Vempati Chinna Satyam excelled himself.

Krishna explored

“Sri Krishna Shringar” explores the Krishna mystique through different dance forms, starting with a bharatanatya recital by Priyadarshini Govind who will portray the vatsalya bhaava of Krishna. From the Krishna Karnamrut ha shlokam “Raamo Naama Bhabhoova” where mother Yashodha tells her child about his earlier incarnation as Rama, to Purandara Dasa's timeless favourite “Jagadodhaarana”, this elegant dancer takes us through a gamut of emotions. Similarly, the dance troupe from Pandit Birju Maharaj's eminent Kathak school Kalashram, will unravel the mysteries of Krishna avatar with its rendering of “Krishna Katha” depicting the various leelas like Poothana Vadha, Govardhana Dharan and Radha Gharia, among others.

The Odissi dance repertoire by Madhavi Mudgal and her troupe from the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya provide a feast of Krishna themes again. From Chandanacharitha dedicated to Sri Jagannatha, the presiding deity of Puri, it takes the audience on a musical journey starting with Jayadeva's “Geetha Govinda”, the compositions of Bhaktha Surdas and other saint poets to culminate in the spectacular “Dashavatara”. , showing the ten awe-inspiring manifestations of Maha Vishnu.

The ISKCON festival brings the curtains down on the festival with the ever-charming dance speciality from Kerala, Mohiniyattam, by the artists of Bharati Shivaji's Centre for Mohiniyattam, the country's only institution for this graceful art form. They will present a dance drama “Deva Gita”, set against the backdrop of the Guruvayur temple, where the kottipadiseva, as rendered in the sanctum sanctorum, and highlighted by the rich dance and musical traditions of this temple, are beautifully displayed. Since the Gita Govindam is an integral part of the temple rituals of Kerala, the sopana sangitham, sung as recited in those places of worship, fill the background to make it a memorable theatre experience. This last piece leads the audience to the deity.

The festival begins on August 17.