Bengaluru International Art festival kicks off

With three diverse yet almost equally commendable dance performances, the sixth edition of Bengaluru International Arts Festival (BIAF) kicked off at the National Gallery of Modern Art on Friday evening.

The inaugural piece, Three Lines, a contemporary dance recital by Bangalore-based dancer Preeti Sunderajan, weaved three stories set in old-time Bangalore with everyday lives of today’s typical Bangalorean.

Deftly performed with emphasis on ‘abhinaya’, the tales were engaging and lucid enough unlike most contemporary dance pieces.

Next, Pandit Gopal Prasad Dubey and troupe presented a tumultuous love story in a Seraikella Chhau dance. Sri Lankan folk dance by Tilak Fernando and troupe, perhaps the most interesting performance of the day as one could spot the similarities as well as differences with South Indian dance forms, was the concluding one.

BIAF has lined up a repeat performance by the Sri Lankan group at the Freedom Park on Sunday evening.Over the next nine days, a wide range of music, dance and theatre performances will be staged at nine venues across Bangalore.

A Kathak and Fleminco fusion by Sambhalpuri dance troupe from Odisha, contemporary dancers Ronnie and Mithul and artists from the UK is another festival highlight coming up next Friday at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.

Next week, a group of dancers from Mauritius will be performing a blend of their local dance forms on October 5 at Chowdaiah memorial hall. This will be followed by a play, The Importance of Being Draupadi, directed by Prakash Belawadi.

BIAF is one of the annual events organised by Artists’ Introspective Movement (AIM), an initiative started by Veena exponent Suma Sudhindra and Kuchipudi dancer Veena Murthy Vijay, supported by the vibrant art community of the city, leading corporate houses as well as government agencies, including department of culture, tourism and the BBMP.