Mahiṣāsura Mardinī, Kuchipudi Dance Ballet
With "Pratinayaka Siromani" Dr. Pasumarthy V.S Garu
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Prashanthi Chitre Institute of Performing Arts (PCIPA) is thrilled, excited and humbled to be presenting the traditional Kuchipudi dance drama, "Mahiṣāsura Mardinī" along with and under the guidance of "Pratinayaka Siromani" Dr. Pasumarthy V.S garu (Our Guruvu Garu) who is a direct disciple of Legendary Guru Padma Bhushan Dr.Vempati Chinna Satyam garu (Our Parama Guru).
Mahiṣāsura Mardinī Story: According to the Devī Māhātmya, the mighty asura (demon) Mahiṣa received the boon from Lord Brahma that he would not die in the hands of any powerful man or a god except in the hands of a woman. In his arrogance and ignorance he became a menace (thinking no woman can ever harm him so that makes him powerful and undefeatable eternally) and defeated a massive army of the devatās led by Indra. At the end of a war that lasted for over hundred years, Mahiṣāsura usurped Indra’s powers and became Indra himself. The vanquished devatās led by Indra prayed to Brahma, Viṣṇu and Śivā (Trimūrtis) and seeked for their help. The solution emerged from the radiant energy or tejas emanated from the faces and the bodies of Trimūrtis and the other devatās. And that mountain of radiant energy transformed into the form of an incomparable Devī – the Ādiśakti (the primordial being and/or energy). She was endowed with all divine weapons like Triśūla ( trident), Saṅkā (Conch), Cakra (wheel), Vajrāyudha (thunderbolt), the lotus, the bow and arrow, the mace and many others. The bejewelled, unparalleled Śakti roared so loudly that the worlds trembled. She was Goddess Durgā. Mahiṣa’s demon army attacked her. She destroyed the demon army, wreaking havoc with her weapons and with the aid of her vāhana (vehicle), the majestic lion. The three-eyed, enchanting Devī and Mahiṣa engaged in a fierce combat both on land and in the skies. The fearless Mahiṣa assumed the form of a buffalo and attacked the valiant warrior Durgā. Finally, the infuriated Devī leapt upon him, pressed him with her foot, and struck his throat with her trident. As the demon Mahiṣāsura came halfway out of his own buffalo mouth, still fighting, Śakti beheaded him and became the indomitable Mahiṣāsura Mardinī, she who killed Mahiṣa! This powerful story of the birthing of Goddess Durgā or Mahiṣāsura Mardinī is directed and choreographed by Pasumarthy Master garu as a Kuchipudi Dance Drama with original Carnatic composition. Very well known for his powerful portrayal of Pratinayaka (villainous) roles, Master garu himself will be playing the role of Mahiṣā (the asura), and trained his long time śiṣya/student Prashanthi Chitre (also a Kuchipudi teacher at PCIPA) to play the role of Goddess Durgā, Kuchipudi teacher Nagalakshmi Bhagavatula to play as Lord Śivā, and PCIPA senior and intermediate students to play different character roles in this Kuchipudi dance production. We can't wait to share our journey and hard work with you all! Date/Time: Sunday August 28th, 2022 at 4:00pm! Venue: Meydenbauer Center, Bellevue, WA Please email admin@pcipaseattle.com if you have any questions. |
Production Team: Sudarshan Chitre (Production Lead / Lighting / Props), Haritha Kamakoti (Props Lead), Esha Bangur, Akshita Mishra, Sakshi Sangani
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Meet Our Cast and Crew:
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