Four Muaythai Kickboxers of Team India won four bronze medals for the country at the Professional and Pro-Amateur Muaythai World Championships held in the city of Korat, Nakhon Ratchasima province of Thailand, recently.
The Championship was organised by Muaythai and Muayboran Sports Association of the world (MTBSA) in which more than 26 countries participated.
This is the first time that city fighters have won these many medals at the World Championships. Out of the four fighters who won medals, three are from Academy of Martial Science, Mysuru, affiliated to Mysore District Muaythai Trust and Mysore Combat Sports Association and one from Tamil Nadu, Chennai.
Bronze Winning Team — Pranav Kaushik – Junior Mini Light FlyWeight; M.R. Darshan – Feather Weight; Surya Sagar – Super Light Weight and C. Vethandh – Heavy Weight.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Sports / March 2019
Jothi Viknesh, Anusha Viresh and Manohar Marappa | Photo Credit: By arrangement
Jothi Viknesh, Anusha Viresh and Manohar Marappa are travelling across the country to preserve a rich history and also eyeing a Guinness World Record
From documenting the Siddi Dhamal dance form practised by the Siddis of Gujarat to capturing the energetic Padayani folk dance and ritual art of Kerala — Jothi Viknesh, Anusha Veeresh and Manohar Marappa are on an unusual road journey to soak in the varied folk traditions of India. They are calling it the Indian Dance Trail that began in Bengaluru in January this year. Their aim is to cover 60, 000 kilometres by the end of the year and also see if it becomes a Guinness World Record for the longest drive in the same country by car. They have so far completed 18,000 kilometres covering Gujarat, Rajasthan, Kerala, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. They hope to witness major festivals across the country and document the rich traditions of Indian dance forms.
Aiming for a record
The idea to go on an all-India journey came about when a video made by Jothi and Anusha on the Veeragase dance form of Karnataka received 2.5 million views on YouTube without much promotion. Based on Hindu mythology, this dance form involves very intense energy-sapping dance movements and is one of the dances demonstrated in the Dasara procession held in Mysuru. “We realised that there are many who are interested to know the history and traditions behind such ancient Indian dance forms. Documenting these would be an interesting way to preserve a rich history,” says Anusha.
Most of their travel routes are planned beforehand. “We do a research about the place and region’s dance forms before we reach. This is because a majority of these folk dance forms are specific to a particular time of the year. But there are chance discoveries too when we stumble upon something unique,” says Anusha, who has been training in traditional and contemporary dance forms from her childhood.
Jothi Viknesh, Anusha Viresh and Manohar Marappa | Photo Credit: By arrangement
On many occasions, they stayed with the dancers in their village, learning about their traditions and beliefs. Their journey also took them to places where they could document lesser known dance forms like the Jogati Nritya in the Bellari district of Karnataka. It is a ritual dance performed by a group of transgenders called Jogappas to appease Goddess Yellamma.
Not all of their experiences were pleasant. At the Chettikulangara Devi Temple in Alappuzha district of Kerala, they met some hostile resistance. “We saw a group of children surrounded by adults. They wouldn’t allow us to film anything and insisted we delete the few videos we had already filmed there,” says Anusha.“It was only later that we came to know that they were performing the banned ritual of ‘Chooral Muriyal’ a part of Kuthiyottam. As part of the ritual young boys are offered as sacrifice to the goddess Bhadrakali. While they are not actually sacrificed, their midriffs are pierced with a gold or silver string, that is later pulled out and offered up. “It is a symbolic representation of human sacrifice. Once the ritual is over, these boys are abandoned,” she adds.
Inspiring tales
On the more memorable side, they had some inspiring encounters. They met Sanjeeva Suvarna, principal of Guru Bannanje Yakshagana Kendra in Udipi, who is among the few surviving Yakshagana trainers left. “Our idea is to make a short documentary on each of these dance forms and release it in our YouTube channel Expertnomads by the end of the journey,” says Anusha.
Funding is a challenging part of their journey. “We make pit-stops at cities to conduct Afroworks fitness dance workshops at schools, colleges, dance studios and wellness centres. This is fun-filled dance fitness regime based on African dance and music. This way we get to also reach out to people and talk about Indian dance forms and our journey,” says Jothi, who held workshops at Starlite Wellness Centre and Pollocks School on their halt at Visakhapatnam. While they haven’t had the opportunity to document the folk dance forms of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, they are hoping to be back in the Telugu States again in the next leg of their journey. The Indian Dance Trail is now heading to the North East where they plan to document Nagaland’s Mopin festival, before moving on to Assam.
To follow them, read their updates on the Facebook page Indian Dance Trail.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Entertainment> Dance / by Nivedita Ganguly / March 27th, 2019
L.V. Sharada, 78, veteran actor of parallel cinema in Kannada, passed away on Thursday. She was suffering from cancer and breathed her last at Shankara Hospital in the city at 7.30 a.m., according to family sources.
Ms. Sharada is survived by her sister and brother. The final rites were held at the Banashankari crematorium in the evening.
She was best known for her titular role in the 1983 Phaniyamma, directed by Prema Karanth. The film, a sensitive portrayal of a young widow, was based on an eponymous novel by M.K. Indira published in 1977, which went on to win many awards.
Ms. Sharada’s debut film was Vamsha Vriksha, whichwon the national award. She shared screen space in the film with Girish Karnad, Vishnuvardhan, and Chandrashekar. The film, released in 1972, was directed by B.V. Karanth and Girish Karnad.
Through her characters in Bhootayyana Maga Ayyu, Vatsakta Patha, Kankana, Maithri, Hemavathi, Madhvacharya,Adi Shankaracharya, and Nakkala Rajakumari, she etched an indelible impression on the minds of the audience. She acted with Rajinikanth in Ondu Premada Kathe. Ms. Sharada had also directed a few documentary films.
Her passion for acting did not wane even when she was ailing.
Paying tributes, film-maker P. Sheshadri recounted how he had thought of Ms. Sharada for his Mookajjiya Kanasugalu. He spoke and took her photo and asked whether she could become his “Mookajji”. Citing her illness, Ms. Sharada told him that had he shot the film in Bengaluru, she would have accepted the offer.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Bengaluru – March 22nd, 2019
