Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (PS)
Mangalore, Feb 18: A felicitation programme to honour Padmashree Chittani Ramachandra Hegde was organized by Kalkura Prathistana at Don Bosco Hall here on Saturday February 18.
Giving the congratulatory speech, renowned Yakshagana critic Dr Prabhakar Joshi said that the achievement of Chittani is awe-inspiring as he did it without any family background in Yakshagana.
“Though Chittani did not have a school education, he could achieve this by inculcating the self-study approach. Also, two PhD theses were done on Chittani Ramachandra Hegde which is another landmark in the field of Yakshagana,” he noted. Dr Joshi pointed out that though there are many knowledgeable books published on Yakshagana art, there is a lack of network when it comes to circulating them.
Accepting the honor, Hegde said that the Padmashree Award given to him was an award given to Yakshagana art. He added that Yakshagana in future should bag awards like Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan, and Bharatha Rathna for which artistes should keep up the art with it original qualities intact. Hegde said that the real flavor of Kannada language could be savoured from Yakshagana art.
Shree Chidakamananda Swamiji of Shree Ramakrishna Mutt delivered the blessing speech. S Pradeep Kumar Kalkura presided. Vageeshacharya Hosabettu and G R Rai were also present.
Later, Yakshagana show 'Choodamani' was presented to the jam-packed auditorium. The role of 'Raavan' was performed by 77-year-old Hegde himself.