It was a cosmic culmination to the three-day Yaksha Art festival as Padma Shri Madhavi Mudgal & her troupe carried the audience to a divine realm with their Odissi performance.
Shri. Girish Krishnamurthy – Managing Director of Tata Medical & Diagnostics Limited, Shri Sadashiv Rao – Independent Director of YES Bank, and Shri SV Balasubramaniam – Founder & Chairman of Bannari Amman Group, inaugurated the final day of Yaksha by lighting the Kuthuvilakku, a traditional oil lamp.
A performance that lasted for over an hour, was a package of intense expressions, supple moves, and a beautiful story weaved around Shiva-Parvati against the backdrop of the beautiful Suryakund Mandapam lit with hundreds of oil lamps. Madhavi Mudgal and her troupe with their Odissi performance made sure that the pre-lude to Mahashivratri was nothing less than the enchanting ‘Night of Shiva’ on February 18th. The score for the Odissi choreography was composed by Padma Shri Madhup Mudgal who is also the brother of Madhavi Mudgal. The performance was live-streamed online.
Madhavi Mudgal is the daughter of Padma Shri Vinay Chandra Maudgalya, an Indian classical musician and the founder of Gandharva Mahavidyalaya – an institution that promotes Hindustani music and classical dance forms. The Odissi exponent has been dancing since the age of 4 and has also bagged several awards including the fourth highest civilian honour Padma Shri, the Sangeet Natak Academy Award, and Grande Medaille de la Ville by Govt. of France.
Named after celestial beings in Indian mythology, Yaksha provides a platform for great artists to perform and connoisseurs to appreciate these ancient arts performed by masters. India’s various art forms are not only a reflection of diverse cultures but also a source of spiritual inspiration for thousands of years. Yaksha thus is an endeavor to preserve and promote the uniqueness, purity, and diversity of the country’s performing arts.
Hundreds of people from across Tamil Nadu and across the globe witnessed the enthralling performance as the traditional festival of art and culture came to a close, the audience is now all set to experience the Mahashivratri spectacle on February 18th. The nightlong festival includes Satsang and Guided Meditation by Sadhguru combined with breathtaking performances from artists across India.
(This is an official press release from Isha Foundation. The Commune was not involved in creating this content.)
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