Vrindavan’s Krishna Leela comes alive at Gandhibagh

Nagpur: Gandhibagh Garden, usually quiet and serene, turned loud and intriguing on Tuesday evening. Several passers-by stopped and tried to peek while others spontaneously walked in to the source of excitement. The lawns of the park were graced by mythological characters Kansa and Devaki, revisiting the epic tale of Shri Krishna’s birth.
Krishna Leela has been organized by Nagpur Municipal Corporation.
Vrindavan-based Swami Krishnamurari and his group, known for classical rendition of nrutya-sangeet on Krishna’s life, will perform every day at the garden till December 22. In front of the scintillating backdrop of pink and blue, Swami Krishnamurari handled harmonium and his disciples played tabla. Together, they sang bhajans, to which visually pleasing ‘raas leela’ was staged. Covered from head to toe in glittering saris of yellow, orange and red, the little gopis danced around Krishna and Radha.
Soon after, a scary Kansa made an appearance from where began the story of Krishna’s birth. The rendition was comic at places, and entertaining. The set for the drama beautifully recreated the scene. “Now that we are here, this place is not Nagpur. It has virtually turned into Vrindavan,” said Krishnamurari, encouraging devotees to join him as he chanted ‘Govind jai jai, gopal jai jai.’
“We are a group of 25 Brahmin brijwasi and observe Brij parampara in its entirety. Our aim is to preserve ancient culture and our presentation goes only by what is given in shastra. We are averse to Hindi Bollywood songs as practised today,” he told TOI. The group toured Thailand for nine days during Janmashtami celebrations last year, he said, adding that they follow the sayings of Surdasi and Srimad Bhagvad for their performance.
“This is the eighth year that we are organizing this programme at Gandhibagh Garden. We feel that people are veering farther from the spirit of Shri Krishna and children are not much aware about his significance in our lives. To impart the sanskar and enable darshan, we alternatively organize Ram leela and Krishna leela every year,” said Rajendra Hirulakar, manager, Lotus Cultural and Sporting Association. The NGO is run under the aegis of ruling party leader Dayashankar Tiwari.
The event is part of the cultural programmes conducted by NMC each year at Gandhibagh Garden, Traffic Park and Lakadganj Park, said Tiwari.