Mysuru :
Expressing concern over the lack of recognition and exclusion of Yakshagana Poets in the history of Kannada Literature, Yakshagana Scholar and artiste Dr. Kabbinale Vasantha Bharadwaj said that the yakshagana-poets in Karnataka have not got the required space in Kannada literary history and added that while Himmela, Mummela, Chenda and others belonging to the Yakshagana troupe are being recognised, the poets have been neglected.
Dr. Bharadwaj was speaking, after being conferred with the Chittani Award, at the closing ceremony of the three-day Badagu Yaksha Vaibhava held at Jaganmohan Palace in city yesterday evening. Dr. Bharadwaj said that there are around 1,500 yakshagana-poets in the State who have composed around 5,000 literary works while unfortunately, a person who writes four lines for a film song gets more recognition and this has been the same even with the Kannada literary circles.
He further said that the poetry is the basis of Yakshagana and the poems become an inspiration to the actor while the actor’s enactment justifies the poetic elements in the composition. Dr. Bharadwaj dedicated the award to all the Yakshagana-poets in the State who still remain unrecognised even in the literary field.
Bellipadi Yaksha Samskrutika Vedike President Dr. Bellipadi Satish Rai, who was the chief guest on the occasion, said that Yakshagana is one of the most attractive forms of stage-based art forms and it would not be an exaggeration if he says that the people of coastal Karnataka have learnt Kannada language through Yakshagana. He further urged the people of Karnataka to protect the art form and added that the State Government should do its best to protect and propagate Yakshagana like how it is done in Kerala for Kathakali.
Former Vice-Chancellor of University of Mysore, Dr. J. Shashidhara Prasad, presented the Chittani Award to Bharadwaj.
LabLand Chairman Dr. Sudhir Shetty, Yakshagana exponent G.S. Bhat, Dakshin Kannada Zilla Sangha President V. Sreenivasa Rao, Yuvaraja College Registrar (Evaluation) Dr. S.N. Hegde and others were present.
The award ceremony was followed by the staging of the Yakshagana ‘Sri Krishna Sandhana.’ The three-day workshop was organised by Innovative, Mysuru and Department of Kannada and Culture, Mysuru.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Monday – July 06th, 2015