Radha's Rapture (Radha Bhav) - Parvathy Baul's concert (IN)
Parvathy Baul - who embodies the Bengali tradition, a spiritual path rooted in Bengali folklore but going beyond it - will come to Hungary this spring as a guest teacher at the ISTA (International School of Theatre Anthropology) founded by Eugenio Barba. We will take this opportunity to present his authentic concert at the Fono, accompanied by a storytelling performance.
Schedule
The Rapture of Radha (Radha Bhav) was inspired by a performance of "Kaliya" by his master, Sri Sanatan Das Baul. Parvathy learnt the story from him and added a few additional elements. In this performance, his visual art background merges with music, dance and singing: the paintings during the concert are done by Parvathy Baul in acrylic on canvas.
Patua scroll paintings are a Bengali folk storytelling tradition that lives on today. Parvathy has studied this tradition with appreciation and reverence, and says of it in these words. These stories transcend all boundaries of mind and consciousness, and take the audience into the pure inner experience of bhakti (unconditional love)."
While singing, Parvathy points to different images on the screen, moving from one part of the story to another, depicting it with music, sound, dance and hand gestures, evoking the specific emotional state (bhava) of each part of the story.
The Bawal tradition is passed down through Guru-Sisja parampara (master-disciple chain) through initiation. The origin of the Baul is difficult to decipher because it has no written history, the Baul masters transmit their knowledge in songs, and the songs are the subject of everyone's meditation. The Ba'ul tradition has undergone many transformations over time, intersecting with the Tantric, Advaita Vedic schools, Fakir, Sufi, Buddhist paths and Vaishnava devotees.
Parvathy Baul is a practitioner of the Bawal tradition in Bengal, India, a performer, storyteller, painter and teacher.
He studied music and dance from childhood and visual arts at Santiniketan, the Kala Bhavan University founded by the well-known Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore. It was here that he first heard a concert by his master, Sanatan Das Bawal, which led him to decide to follow the millennia-old Bawal tradition rather than pursue an institutional degree. Since 1995, he has performed in his native Bengal and around the world, participating in numerous international festivals in over 40 countries.
In 2012, as part of the Magdalena Project, she created Tantidhari, India's first women's theatre festival. The festival was held in Auroville in 2012, Pondicherry in 2016 and Kolkata in 2019. Parvathy Baul participated in Odin Teatret's production of The Tree.
In February 2019, Parvathy Baul received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award from the Government of India for his work. This is the highest Indian award given to practicing artists.
Prior to Parvathy Baul's concert, the 222+3 thematic issue of Napút, featuring female mystics, will be presented (read here: issue 222+3 - My Heart, My Heart II | Napút Online (naputonline.hu). We welcome you all! Of course, the launch is free of charge, tickets for the concert must be purchased on the spot or online.
Tickets: 3000 HUF in advance, 4000 HUF on the day of the event.