A month ago I was at Janapada Jaatre in Bangalore, a cultural fair held fortnightly to showcase folk arts from various parts of Karnataka. It was a great event and every minute of the entire two-hour show was an awesome entertainment. Here are some images from the show.
Artists assemble on the stage with traditional attire before their performance begins.
Goravara Kunita is a form of dance where performers dress up and dance wildly with small drums called “thamate” in hand. It can be scary for children. In the yester years, the dance was meant to ward off evil, and was practiced in the some parts Southern Karnataka.
Yakshagana is the state’s official art form, and is popular in coastal Karnataka and parts of Malnad region. Yakshagana is a type of Opera, where performers dance to the songs depicting stories from Mahabharatha. Interestingly, it mixes dance and drama. After dancing with the drums for a verse, performers break into a conversation to elaborate the theme of the verse. As you can see from the picture, lot of work goes into the dress and makeup of the artists.
A traditional dance to the tunes of a folk song – “Moodal Kunigal Kere..”
Another character from a Yakshagana. He is a comedian, as is evident from the image. Jokers, or Haasyagaara as they are called, are part of nearly every episode of Yakshagana. The episode they were playing on the day I was there was “Sreekrishna Paarijaatha”, the story of stealing the divine flower from Indra’s gardens.
Bhootada Kola was the star-event of the day, performed at the end. Kola is another custom to ward off evil, performed in the southern coastal regions of Dakshina Kannada.
Janapada Jaatre Information
Janapada Jaatre is a festival held at 6pm every 2nd and 4th weekend(both Saturday and Sunday), at Lalbag Botanical Gardens, Bangalore. The location of the festival is as interesting as the festival itself – it happens in an open air arena, where audience sit on a hillock, making it a Cinema hall like arrangement under the stars. This is an event organized as part of celebration of 50th year of forming Karnataka – Suvarna Karnataka Varsha. The event started in November 2006 and is expected to go on till November 2007.
Also see: More images of Janapada Jaatre on my India Image Gallery
Last weekend, I was at Nandi hills, a short 50km drive from Bangalore, hoping to witness the magnificent foggy mornings that usually happen in the winters and rainy seasons. Not to disappoint me, it was indeed foggy, cool and beautiful. Cold breeze on my face is something I always long for and that’s just what I got when I went up. I was hoping to find a spectacle like this while I was there, and though it did not happen, I still got to see clouds above and below me, magically segregated by a line of blue sky!
Cloud formation on the hill
A typical foggy morning on Nandi hills. This is an old image made during the monsoons two years ago. It was cold, windy, foggy and very very beautiful
Also see: Weekend getways from Bangalore
I waited till 9am looking for cloud formations, and was ready to return when it did not happen. It is on my way back that I noticed a small strip of paper oscillating on a tree, and wondered if it is a pfc. I went to have a closer look, it indeed turned out to be a paradise flycatcher(pfc). I was lucky to watch it for nearly an hour. Sometimes I got as close as a couple of meters to it and watched its acrobatics – flying around with its tail taking some time to follow it! I had never had such close interaction with this beautiful bird.
The Paradise Flycatcher has an amusingly long tail. When it flies, it looks as if the tail is lagging behind and trying hard to catchup – a very funny sight!
This was my first ever sighting of a Blue Capped Rock Thrush, and he made sure I will remember this sighting, by posing nicely for a photograph!
As I went behind the flycatcher, I was also treated with some more sightings like the Grey Wagtail, Blue Capped Rock Thrush, Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher, Purple Rumped Sunbirds and a few more species. I managed to make decent images of the Blue Capped Rock Thrush and Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher, but the pfc which was hanging around me for a long time never gave me a chance to make a good picture of it.
A Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher
What if I did not get to see the magical cloud formation I was looking for, the day still rocked, thanks to the great weather and the pretty birds.
About Nandi Hills
Nandi Betta is a hill 1200m above sea level and is just a 50km drive from Bangalore. It is incredibly beautiful in winter mornings and all through the monsoon days as gets filled with fog and spreads a mystical magic on the hill. To reach Nandi Hills, take the 6 lane Bellary road towards the new Bangalore International Airport and drive on the highway till Devanahalli. Continue on the highway and after a 5 minute drive from Devanahalli, you will see a left turn which takes you to Nandi Hills. For those who want to stay through the night, government accommodation(typical PWD guesthouse) is available in limited numbers but no other options. Food is available on the hill top but is very basic and don’t have high expectations.
With the rains subsiding and the earth still wet, it is a good time for people who are looking for a weekend break and would like to get out of the city. This is a time when the rivers are still full of water, the forests and hills are green and everything looks beautiful. If you are wondering where to go, here is a list of places you can read about on India Travel Blog.
DAY-TRIP, LEISURE, PICNIC
1. Muthyala Maduvu or pearl valley
2. A morning in Nandi Hills
3. Muthathi
4. Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary
5. Sangama, Mekedatu and Chunchi falls
6. Shivanasamudra – Gaganachukki and Bharachukki waterfalls
7. Talkad
8. Balmuri Falls
9. Hogenakkal
10. KRS dam and Brindavan gardens
11. Melukote
12. Manchanabele
13. Devarayanadurga
14. Madhugiri Fort
TREKKING
1. Hiking in Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary
2. Trekking on the railway tracks to Yedakumari between Sakaleshapura and Subrahmanya
3. Bandipur National Park
NATURE, WILDLIFE
1. Driving to Coorg
2. Driving in rain: Jog falls, Karwar, Kali and Goa
3. Mullayyanagiri and Charmadi, Chickmagalur, in the monsoon
4. Bandipur National Park
5. Bhadra wildlife Sanctuary: Muthodi
6. A birding trip to Wayanad, Kerala
7. Dandeli: Wilderness and adventure
LEISURE, HISTORY, CULTURE AND MORE
1. Driving from Bangalore to Goa via Jog and Murdeshwara
2. Hampi
3. Belur and Halebeedu
4. Melukote
5. Gokarna
6. Badami and Banashankari
7. Aihole
8. Pattadakal
9. Mahakoota
10. Lepakshi