Saw Kannada play "Madhugalalli Madhumagalu"(translates to "The bride in the hills") based on Kuvempu's novel by the same name. The story is set in Malenadu region of Karnataka. It was about 8 hours long. Started at 8.30pm in the evening and completed at 5.30 am the next day. It was an amazingly beautiful experience.
(Stage #2)
More details of the play: Directed by C.Basavalingaiah, the play is performed on 4 different stages at as many locations within the Jnanabharathi campus. Am told there were about 70 artists in the entire performance.
There was a small break of about 15 mins during which the audience moves with the performers to the next stage. There were also refreshments available. The tickets were priced only at Rs. 100 and the bookings could be done online.
There was also a sale of Kannada books with a 20% discount at a mobile bookstore at the venue. I wanted to check them out at the end of the play, but did not. Turned out I was too tired for anything after the play. So would recommend to go early and take a look at the books.
(Stage #3)
The Music : The music needs a special mention as is an essential component of the play. It is done by the famous Kannada music director Hamsalekha. The songs are very apt, some of them are quite catchy and are used to set the stage for the next part of the play. As there are several characters in the play and moving back and forth between them may confuse the audience.So the a song would be used to either set or switch a context. Some songs are intelligently used for a (set of) character(s).
(This was almost dawn as you can see, this was stage #4)
Backdrop of the play: The story is set in Malenad of the late 19th Century(got this info from Wiki, have not read the book though). There are the landlords and their slaves. The play revolves around the social aspects at the time, the communal harmonies and tensions, the love life of the lead characters - Mukundayya and Chinnakka, Aitha and Pichlu, Naayi Gutthi and Thimmi. There is an interesting take on religious aspects, how there were attempts to convert and how some of the locals resisted it. The play also depicts of exploitation of the women and how some of them fought back in spite of it - there is a scene where a wife is being beaten by the husband for supporting the daughter to run away with the man she loved - the wife suddenly acts like she is possessed by a Goddess and the man suddenly stops beating and prostrates before her. The wife seems to say what she intended to say through the Goddess, in a way that seems like empowerment of some kind in those times!
Some trivia:
The play is performed on four different stages - Kereangala ranga (which has a small pond as part of the stage!), Bidirumale ranga, Bayaluranga and Hongeranga. The audience would move with the artists every couple of hours to the next stage location. This is the first of its kind play that I have watched and am so thrilled!
(Stage #1 - with the small pond)
The rainy season is beautifully depicted. There were larger than life depictions of leech and dung beetles used to capture the sense of Malenad. There are several instances in the play where the characters experience leech bites and this aspect had to be brought out. In a play it is difficult to show these finer aspects, but these huge reproductions of the small creatures of the rain drenched areas was beautifully done.
The play introduces the bicycle as "Bisokal"(which in Kannada means a grinding stone) - as that is how the locals pronounce. It is funny how a man is taught to ride the bicycle and to see the reaction of the people on seeing it for the very first time. They seem so fascinated by it.
The play has a bunch of narrators who keep coming now and then and introduce the audience to all the characters and steer the direction of narration. They would often sing songs to narrate.
(The narrators)
My fav artists:
Liked the artists of Gutthi's dog - Gutthi naayi as it is called. It was actually done by an artist who played a near perfect dog! The artist who played Aitha did a brilliant job with emoting and body language. Most of the artists did a very good job. I did feel sleepy around 3am, but for no fault of the artists! It is better if you could nap before going to watch the play. I did fall asleep for a few minutes now and then during the third and final parts of the play. But I could still get the entire story line :)
It was a one of its kind play and am so glad I watched it. Quite a challenge to adapt the novel to the stage and how brilliantly was it done! Kudos!
