The lesser known facts about Yakshagana performances in Karnataka
Yakshagana is the dance-drama theatre play of south India, especially endemic to Karnataka. Its art style is influenced by the bhakti movement during which music was incorporated into stories drawn from the Ramayana, Mahabharata, and the Bhagavad Geeta.
These performances are held in a season called the Pattanaje, which lasts from November till May end (Read this article).
There are several Yakshagana teams from different mandalis (teams) that are carried out in this festive season. These performances take place every single day during the season at different places in the state.
Some Yakshagana mandali such as the Kateelu Durgaparmeshwari Yakshagana Mandali are so famous that they have 6 teams and all 6 teams are booked out for the entire season for 25 years straight!
So how is the life of these artists who work for 6 months straight, day in and day out before they deserve their rest?
During my all-India cycle tour, I got the opportunity to stay over with a Yakshagana mandali called Shri Durgaparmeshwari ammanavara krupaposhita yakshagana kala-mandali. Here, I got to learn a great deal about the life of these artists.
Yakshagana requires a large team to run the show
Close to as many as 25 to 30 members travel together in one single bus every single day to locations where the shows are booked. Each member of the team has a separate role. There are artists and supporting staff who work with one another in an intricately woven way where they don’t even need to speak with one another until the play starts.
The team comprises artists, a cook, a manager who takes care of the money affairs, and also lighting, sound, and stage setup staff. All of these people eat, sleep, travel, and perform together for 6 months straight.
The artists earn 1500 rupees a day while the supporting staff earns 800 a day. When the festive season is over, the artists go back home and look for other invited plays elsewhere, while the supporting staff find other jobs to do.
What is the standard of life of people in the yakshagana mandali?
Artists carry with them a box from which they live out of. The box has all their clothes and their makeup kit. As all the performances start late in the night and go up until morning, they stay awake until they reach the next place where the performance is booked. Usually, community halls, schools, or government office spaces are offered to them for their stay. They prepare breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the place offered and even take a shower and wash their clothes to get ready there.
They sleep over in the afternoon until sunset and get ready for their next play. This sleeping habit must definitely be having a toll on their physical and mental health. Most of these people seemed cranky and hardly spoke to one another with kind compassionate words. The manager seemed to be upset about everything and a fight as well broke out once before the play started.
8 of the 10 people in the team chewed on areca nut or tobacco constantly. They would in fact brush their teeth before the performance due to this reason.
How are Yakshagana plays booked in the Pattanaje season?
For the yakshagana play to be booked out for 6 months straight, there must be a system in place. Multiple yakshagana mandalis operate simultaneously. So how do they all have plays booked throughout the season?
The manager of the mandali who handles the financial affairs takes over this responsibility. He on behalf of the team approaches all the villages, towns, and cities requesting the panchayat member there to help them organize the play on specific dates. Based on the availability, the dates are booked and the money for the event is raised by the residing members of the village/towns/cities who intend to promote the art. The fact that the art is respected is the only reason that it continues to be promoted and kids at schools learn the same.
How much do they practice for the plays?
There are a large number of plays that can be hosted considering the large number of stories in the Ramayana, Mahabharata, and the Bhagavad Geeta. When the play is booked, the villagers request the kala-mandali to host a particular play they are interested in. Based on that the team will be ready for the play.
Most plays are impromptu and improvized along the go with the theme of the play fixed. The artists know the flow of the play and the respective music and dance moves that are supposed to fall in place. Everything in between is mostly improvised along the move. These artists know the play well because of decades of experience.
At the backstage when the play was going on, I happened to be speaking with one of the artists who was curious about my cycling journey. In just one moment he pleaded apology saying he will be back and rushed onto the stage. He performed there for 4 minutes time, returned back and restarted discussing casually. This strongly depicted how well trained and confident the artists are with the play.
Shown below are some of the pictures from the event.
I am a 31 year young PhD graduate who has decided to travel the length and breadth of India on my cycle, to document the journey of meeting a vast array of people. In my journey, I intend to understand the characteristic features of the people of this nation and categorize them based on their demographics, age, profession, gender, traditions, and cultural differences.
Very interesting insight in to the life of these artists. Have never seen one live. Would love to see it
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