All things new

Catch this festival which promises to give the traditional a contemporary edge

Catch this festival which promises to give the traditional a contemporary edge

The members of Yodhakaa

FROM stand-up comedians to dancers and even artists, everyone seems to be heading in a new direction at this upcoming fest. The Park's New Festival will give traditional art forms a contemporary twist. So on offer will be a stand up comedy act, a contemporary dance performance, experimental music and paintings by a 14-year-old artist Sudarshan.

"The festival signifies what is new by Indian artists and also by artists of the Indian diaspora," says Ranvir Shah, founder of Prakriti Foundation which is putting the festival together and artistic director of the festival.

DANCE DANCE
The first day sees the staging of Sweet Sorrows, a contemporary dance performance by Preethi Athreya. It is an amalgamation of dance, text, film and music. It deals with the intersection of universal icons and well-known clich ufffds about loss and longing with the more obscure personal narratives. Athreya takes traditional dance forms like Bharatnatyam and gives them a contemporary take.

LAUGHING OUT LOUD
Day II promises to tickle your funny bones. Stand up to comedian Vidur Kapur, who will be cracking potshots one after the other to keep you rolling on the floors all evening. For those who are not aware about Kapur's reputation as a stand-up comedian, read on. Kapur has been the subject of a short film called Laughing Out Loudu00a0-- A Comic Journey which was shown on Steven Spielberg's On The Lot. He is a regular on NBC, Fox, MTV and VH1 and has worked with the likes of Russell Peters.

BEATING THE DRUM
The festival wraps up with Yodhakaau00a0-- an experimental music setup. There is 'Darbuka' Siva on drums and percussion, Pradeep, a trained Carnatic singer on vocals and slide guitar, Donan Murray on the guitar, Subhiksha on vocals and percussion and Arvind Murali on bass guitar. They feature percussion from around the world. The sounds they produce is mixed with Sanskrit slokas and chants from the Vedas.

Sweet Sorrows
When: September 3
At: Stein Auditorium, India Habitat Centre
Timings: 7pm onwards
Stand up comedy
When: September 4
At: Agni, The Park
Timings: 7.30 pm onwards
Yodhakaa
When: September 5
At: Aqua, The Park
Timings: 7 pm onwards