A Scene from Anahuta Sandhya

Many years ago, I heard a strange story. I was told, that there was this Bengali man (in New York or New Jersey)  who had a weird hobby. Although I don’t know if one can call this a hobby. This man, whenever he went on a trip to Kolkata, would put an advertisement in the matrimonial section of the local Bengali daily looking for a bride for himself. He would then go to a selected number of respondents house to interview the potential bride, enjoy their hospitality and a sumptuous meal.  But his intention was not to marry the girls he saw, for he had a wife and family back here in USA. I struggled hard to comprehend his motive. It was difficult to imagine that this man, who lived in USA, would do this only to enjoy a free meal each evening.  Was this some kind of a perverted adventure?  What was he looking for? What drove him to do such a terrible thing?  Although I am not sure if this story was true at all, but it intrigued me nevertheless. I thought, there must be more to this story than what meets the eyes (or ears). And this thought was the seed for my latest play, “Anahuta Sandhya”. Continue reading →

10. Theater is the most ancient performing art form.  Support it for its sustenance.

An Uninvited Evening

Although theater has survived over the ages, survived the onslaught of technology and competition from other media, it still needs support from the audience. So watch a live theater show and help this art form survive.

9.   Theater art is ephemeral. If you miss it, you may not get another chance. 

       A theater performance is born each day on the stage, and it dies on the stage. The next day, a new show is born. To catch this spontaneity, you must watch live theater. Video recordings of plays can only serve archival purpose, but it cannot replace live viewing. Continue reading →

The Pandavas going into exile

Duryodhana was not happy when Dhritarashtra returned the Pandavas their kingdom and all the wealth they had lost in the game of dice to Shakuni. So he and Shakuni came up with another plan. They invited Yudhistira back to Hastinapura and challenged him to play one last game of dice. But this time, the wager was different. It was proposed, whoever loses the game will have to go into exile in the forests for a period of twelve long years. After the twelve years of exile, they will have to stay in hiding for one more year. And in the thirteenth year, if anyone found them, they would have to go into exile for twelve more years.
But will Yudhistira accept this challenge knowing well that it was impossible to beat Shakuni in the game of dice? Or would he walk out to save himself and his brothers from this impending doom?

Listen to this exciting episode by clicking the link below.
You can also subscribe to the podcast on your smartphone or computer  from http://bhawmik.com/mahabharata.

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The future of our culture and our rich heritage lies in the hands of our next generation. Within our community, we have many talented artists, musicians, dancers and other performers. They all need encouragement and a platform to showcase their talent. Raag-Rang, a premiere organization of Indian Classical Music, arranges for such a concert every year where they scout for talented young artists and present them in a professional manner to the audience of New Jersey. The concert is aptly titled, “Kal Ke Kalakar” or the “Artist of Tomorrow.” This year, Raag-Rang announces “Kal Ke Kalakar” to be its first concert of 2015. The concert will be on 22ndMarch.

This year’s featured young musicians are Vibhas Vatve ( student of Shree Kedar Naphde) on harmonium solo,
Aditya Phatak ( student of Pt.Samir Chatterjee) on tabla solo.
Debolina Mukherjee ( student of Shree
Parthasarathi Mukhopadhyay) on Hindustani vocal and
Bharat Natyam presentation Dashavataram Presentation by Priyanka Chowdhury, Sonali Desai, Chandni Patel, Anagha Shrikumar, Raagini Kandaswamy, Shreya Krishnan, Shruti Prasanth
students of Guru Shrimathi Selvi Chandranathan.

Date: Sunday, March 22nd, 2015
Time: 4:30-6:30 PM
Venue:
Balaji Temple Auditorium (HTCS)
1075 Route 202/206, Bridgewater, NJ 08807
For Directions Visit: www.venkateswara.org
Admission: Non-Members: $15
RaagRang Members: $10
RSVP will be appreciated.
Email: raagrang07@gmail.com
Phone: 732-570-3332, 908-429-1120

Draupadi’s Insult

Yudhistira bets his wife Draupadi in the game of dice and loses her to the Kauravas. Dussasana drags Draupadi to the assembly hall in front of everybody. And there, the Panchal princess is subject to the cruelest humiliation while her husbands sit still with their eyes shut and heads hung low. The Kuru elders, Bhishma, Drona, Kripa and Dhritarashtra also sit and watch the inhuman behavior of their descendants without raising a single voice of protest.  Listen to this exciting episode to know what happens next.

You can also subscribe to the podcast in  iTunes at http://www.bhawmik.com/mahabharata

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The Game of Dice

The greatest mistake Yudhistira made in his life was to agree to play the game of dice with Duryodhana. He knew, the game wouldn’t be fair, but still he couldn’t refuse. His excuses were, that he couldn’t say no to his uncle Dhritarashtra, and also he would never retreat when challenged. But was that the real reason? Listen to this episode and be the judge.

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Shakuni

Duryodhana’s envy of the Pandavas keeps consuming him. Moreover, he is humiliated by falling for the illusions of the grand palace Maya had built for them. But scheming Shakuni has a plan to rob Yudhishthira of his kingdom. Even the righteous emperor has a blind spot. Duryodhana and Shakuni work out their game plan to shred Yudhistira to pieces.

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The Slaying of Sishupala

Sishupala, the King of Chedi, was an invited guest to King Yudhistira’s Rajasuya sacrifice ceremony. He had accepted Yudhistira as his emperor. But when Yudhistira decided to offer Krishna his first worship as the most revered man present in the audience, Sishupala lost his cool. He had an old animosity with Krishna, and he lashed out at him with outrageous insults. Krishna tried to stay calm, but finally he couldn’t take it anymore. He summoned his Sudarshana Chakra and severed Sishupala’s head from his body in front of the assembled Kings and royalties.

Listen to this exciting and dramatic episode by clicking the play button below.

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Bhima Slays Jarasandha

Jarasandha, the mighty King of Magadha, was feared by everybody, including the almighty Lord Krishna. Jarasandha planned to offer one hundred Kings as human sacrifice to his Lord. He had captured eighty-six of them and was in the process of capturing fourteen more to complete his mission. Krishna takes Bheema and Arjuna with him to Magadha to kill Jarasandha and release the captive kings.

After killing Jarasandha, the Pandava brothers begin their conquest of the land of Bharata to win the allegiance of the Kings.  Soon all the Pandavas eliminate all obstacles for the Rajasuya sacrifice and begin to prepare for the great ceremony.

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The Blazing Khandava Forest

Agni requests Arjuna and Krishna to help him burn down the Khandava forest for the flesh and fat of the animals in the forest would cure him of his loss of appetite. Arjuna and Krishna helps him, and a great fire rages through the forest killing all creatures who lived there. Krishna and Arjuna spared Maya Asura’s life, and to express his gratitude Maya builds a magnificent assembly hall for the Pandavas. Narada visits Indraprastha and advises Yudhistira to perform the Rajasuya Fire ceremony. But Krishna warns Yudishtira that he must kill the vicious king Jarasandha if he would like to succeed in his bid to become the emperor.

The image is a sculpture from Banteay Srei temple, in Cambodia. Arjuna and Krishna are seen on chariots on either side; Indra is atop his elephant Airavata in the sky; Numerous arrows in mid-air counter the downpour of rain; Different birds and animals are seen scattering; Takshaka’s wife and Aswasena are seen rising in the sky. Image and description taken from the jayarama.wordpress.com blog.
Listen to this exciting episode by clicking the player below.

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