Sudhakar Acharya, a lover of art and organizer of 'Talamaddale' has a deep respect for the freedom struggle of India.

Acharya has organized 'Talamaddale' with the plots revolving around the freedom struggle, independence, and restoration of Hyderabad in 1948 and even contemporary development like the revocation of Article 370 that inferred special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

'Talamaddale' is a form of art where impromptu debates take place between characters and where oratory skills help to carry forward the process of narration. Generally, the plots spiral around mythology with plots ranging to a number more than 100.

The journey of Acharya was different though. His love for talamaddale began a few decades ago when he organized it for the first time on 15th August 1990. It was the year of his marriage with Amitha Acharya. The 'Magadha Vadhe' plot was narrated by eminent artists. Since 1990, talamaddale was being organized every year and was even continued in the years of the pandemic.

Acharya who was into the real estate business in Udupi was by chance drawn to a plot that revolved around India's Independence. He has felicitated many senior Yakshgana artists and family members of freedom fighters.

How he incorporated historical events into talamaddale is an interesting tale.

The owner of an Ayurvedic medicine shop- Sudheendra Theertha Oushadha Bhandara in Car Street, Udupi- brought to Acharya's notice that a talamaddale was organized on August 14th, 1947 in front of the historic Sri Anantheshwara Temple in Car Street, Udupi. The plot narrated then was 'Swarajya Vijaya' for which the script was written by M V Hegde, a newspaper editor.

With this information, Acharya contacted U Vinith Rao, coordinator at Gandhian Study Centre (GSC), Medical College, Udupi, and for more details from the archives. When he got all the material, he decided to organize a 'Talamaddale' on 14th August 2016, the 70th year of Independence and the silver jubilee of Talamaddale's journey. Acharya also got 'Prasanga Pusthaka', a reference book containing the script of 'Swarajya Vijaya' plot, for which he had approached Prof M L Samaga, former President of the Karnataka Yakshagana Bayalata Academy.

He also approached the senior seer, Pejavar Mutt to know how the historic event of 'Swarajya Vijaya' can be recreated. The priest was present during the Swarajya Vijaya Talamaddale in front of Sri Anantheshwara Temple on the night of 14th August 1947, and the recreated version on August 14th, 2016. Many people participated in the event and understood the significance of the freedom struggle of India. In this very event, the accession of the Hyderabad plot was also portrayed. Acharya followed the seer's instruction and organized 'Hyderabad Vijaya' in Udupi in 2017. Later after the abrogation of Article 370, Acharya decided to organize 'Kashmir Vijaya'.

Acharya is happy to organize this event. He was supported by his family members throughout. This all helped to reinvigorate patriotism among the people. Historical events were presented along with the background details for better understanding. Several historical leaders were also portrayed in the Act. Such events are going to be organized more in the near future.

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Reference:

• newsindianexpress