Dance production on food shortage and overcrowding

The Vishwakiran Nambi Dance Company (VNDC) will present their modern Indian dance theatre production, ‘Exordium’ at Bangalore International Centre (BIC). The performance will consist of two pieces, ‘Yele oota’ (grand meal in Kannada) and ‘Jaaga illa’ (no space). 

The former deals with Bengaluru’s food crisis during Covid, while the latter is a take on the lack of space in cities like Bengaluru. 

Vishwakiran Nambi, choreographer and director at VNDC, says, “For this production, I’ve developed a movement language with a lot of South Indian folk influence. Even the music heavily features folk equipment and instruments. Of course, it is also balanced with contemporary and modern music.” 

In ‘Yele oota’, six dancers take the stage to highlight the lack of access to food during the pandemic. “The inspiration comes from my own experience distributing food to 400 families during the pandemic,” he adds. 

‘Jaaga illa’ seeks to explore the impact of disappearing horizontal spaces in metropolitan cities. The piece is performed on a 3-foot wide, 1.5-foot tall wooden box to demonstrate the lack of space in cities. 

‘Exordium’, May 15, 7 pm. At Bangalore International Centre, Domlur. For details, visit bangaloreinternationalcentre.org