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RELIGION
Bangalore is a cosmopolitan metro. People from all religions have made it their home. Though natives of the state are largely Hindus, there is a sizeable Christian and Muslim population too. There is a very small population of marwaris, gujaratis, jainis, konkanis and parsis that have made Bangalore their home.
LANGUAGE
The native language of Karnataka is Kannada. The population of Karnataka is predominantly Kannada speaking as Kannada also is the state's official language. English is also very widely spoken here. So are Hindi, Konkani, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam.
ARTS AND CRAFTS
Karnataka is rich in art and crafts and most of it is freely available in the various shopping malls of Bangalore city.The famous crafts of the state include bidri work, sandalwood artefacts and Lambani jewellery. Karnataka is also famous for its fragrant incense sticks or agarbattis.
Festivals and Events
Bangalore is a city where all the major festivals are celebrated with pomp and splendour. Diwali, Christmas, Dassara, Ramadan, Id are all celebrated with gaiety by people of all faiths. One of the regional festivals celebrated is the Karaga festival. This festival falls in the months of March / April. Karaga is an earthen pot embodying Shakti and is taken out in a night procession for more than 12 miles before being immersed in the Sampangi tank. In November Kadalekaye Parishe is celebrated; in this the local farmers worship at the Bull temple and is also known as the Peanut festival.
MUSIC
The traditional classical form of music from the South of India is the famous Carnatic music. It is one of the world's oldest & richest musical traditions.
The basic form is a monophonic song with improvised variations. There are 72 basic scales on the octave, and a rich variety of melodic motions. Both melodic and rhythmic structures are varied and compelling.
Carnatic Music is performed both as vocal as well as instrumental, with emphasis on melody, raga (scale) and rhythm. Vocal rendition is the primary means of musical expression, and in fact most compositions performed by instrumentalists are identical to the vocal works.
However, rendition of this traditional form of music is confined to music schools and stage shows.
The youth in the city largely listen to and appreciate western music as is evident from the mushrooming discotheques in the city. Locals also patronize songs from films of the four southern languages and Hindi cinema.
DANCES
Yakshagana: one of the oldest - traditional and popular vernacular dance forms of Karnataka. Yakshagana is a combination of dance, music, spoken word, costume, and makeup and stage technique. Research by experts places the origin of Yakshagana to the period between the11th and 16th Century.
The dance-drama is similar to Kathakali of Kerala. The themes of all the dramas of Yakshagana are fights, warfare, and stories of 'veera' and 'raudra' rasas from legends.
The makeup of Yakshagana is rich and closely related to the ornamentation found in the sculptures. The male characters, such as the hero, the king, the ministers and the prince have a fine 'Makuta' (crown); all royal characters have a bow and an arrow in their hands.
The headdress of the wild characters like 'Dhiroddhatas' is an arch-like headdress. The female dress for 'Chandi', 'Kali' goddesses and so on is, lion's teeth, blood red artificial tongue drawn out and long, flowing hair at the back.
All the actors wear trousers to enable them to dance and over it they wear a 'saree' that is tied in the form of 'Kaccha' with ornaments. The faces of kings and princes are painted rosy pink, 'Yama', the god of death’s face is black, and Lord Krishna and Vishnu are blue. The face make-up used is made of vegetable dye.
Dance schools and teachers
Nartan Keerthana Centre for Performing Arts: the artiste couple Soundarya Srivathsa and D. S. Srivathsa runs this dance and music school. Soundarya is a Bharatnatyam dancer who has mastered her art under the guidance of guru Smt. Narmada, Kum B. Bhanumati. D.S. Srivathsa is one of the leading singers for Bharatnatyam dance in the state of Karnataka. He is a disciple of Vidhwan Sri D.V. Nagaraja from Vijaya College of Music and a graded artist of All India Radio and doordarshan.
Address: # 8, Model House Street, Basavanagudi,
Bangalore - 560004
E-mail:dsrivathsa@hotmail.com or nartanakeertana@hotmail.com
Abhinava Arts Centre: This school of dance is a creative unit of Prabath Kalavidharu. T. D. Rajendra and Nirupama Rajendra are the directors of this centre. They have travelled extensively and have given excellent programmes in India and abroad. They are the disciples of the renowned Guru Maya Rao, the founder of Natya Institute of Kathak and Choreography. To keep alive the rich tradition of dance, this institute imparts the essence of Kathak and Bharatnatyam to young and enthusiastic dancers.
Address: #66, JainTemple Street, Visveswarapuram,
Bangalore-560004
Shakuntala Nrityalaya: This well known dance school was founded by Guru Natyavisharade Narmada, the student of renowned Guru Natya Shiromani Kittappa Pillai. An outstanding dance teacher by profession, Narmada possesses the qualities of dedication and perfection. As a cultural ambassador, she has toured extensively in India and abroad and has been honoured with many awards. Her dance school has made a mark as an institution of high calibre in performing arts.
Address: Masti Hall, Near Shankar Mutt, Shankar Mutt Road,
Basavanagudi, Bangalore - 560 004.
Kalakshithi: Nestling sedately in Bangalore's busy Basavanagudi is Kalakshithi, an institution devoted to imbibing and nurturing the artistic spirit. M.R. Krishnamurthy founded the institution in 1991.Guru Krishnamurthy was initiated into Bharatnatyam by the legendary danseuse Rukmini Devi Arundale. He has travelled widely as a member of the Kalakshetra Dance Troupe. The ambience of Kalakshithi is unique. An open-air stage set amidst whispering greenery has endowed it with its own natural charm.
Address: #36, Subbarama Chetty Road, Basavanagudi,
Bangalore-560004.
NAMES OF DANCE SCHOOLS
Keshava Nrityashala
Natya Priya
Natyatharanga
Odissi Dance Centre
Sai Arts International
Sri Ranga Kalakshetra
Adarsha Film Institute
Shristi Centre of Performing Arts
Narthan Dance Company
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