{
  "id": 4334631,
  "title": "‘Bhakti Is An Invitation To Zoom Out Of Our Individual Identities’: Choreographer Mayuri Upadhya On Exploring Faith, Love & Surrender",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/30/bhakti-is-an-invitation-to-zoom-out-of-our-individual-identities",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-30T03:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Press Journal",
    "slug": "free-press-journal",
    "url": "https://www.freepressjournal.in/lifestyle/bhakti-is-an-invitation-to-zoom-out-of-our-individual-identities-choreographer-mayuri-upadhya-on-exploring-faith-love-surrender"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Mayuri Upadhya, a renowned choreographer, emphasizes the importance of surrender when it comes to practicing any art form. Her current work, Bhakti - A Shared Longing, showcases various forms of poetic devotion and explores themes of faith, love, and surrender. In an interview, Upadhya discusses how she finds power in surrender and explores the concept of Bhakti, which comes from a deeply personal space.\n\nUpadhya notes that in today's world, people are often encouraged to think in terms of binaries, such as right vs. wrong or us vs. them. However, she believes that it is possible to stand for one's beliefs while remaining open to different ideas. This question led her to explore the works of various Bhakti poets from different regions, religions, languages, and traditions, all of whom pointed towards a deeper, universal truth.\n\nTo her, dance serves as a coping mechanism and a way to make sense of the world around her. Through Bhakti, she aims to invite people to zoom out of their individual identities and become part of something larger than themselves. The title of the work, \"Bhakti - A Shared Longing,\" reflects this shared longing for love and truth that transcends differences.\n\nUpadhya draws inspiration from the works of Meerabai, Khusrow, and other Bhakti poets. For her, the common thread among these poets is the inspiration they provide, showing that their art is deeply intertwined with their spiritual journeys. Each poet's life and poetry contributed to creating a unique perspective in her choreography, with the struggles, journeys, and moments of awakening woven into the compositions.\n\nOne of the popular lines from Bullesha's song, which equates love with Bhakti and love with fire, resonates with Upadhya. She agrees that both love and Bhakti involve trust, surrender, and vulnerability, leading to a process of transformation and evolution. This agrees with the poet's message of dissolving the self and becoming a better version of oneself.\n\nThe most challenging aspect of choreographing \"Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya\" for the stage was maintaining the classic appeal of the song while introducing fresh elements. To address this, Upadhya extended the song's timeline, adding more depth to the performance. She emphasized Anarkali's strong conviction and contrasted it with her pride and arrogance, ensuring that the dance piece reflected the song's emotional range.",
  "summary": "Mayuri Upadhya, choreographer with quite a few hits in her pocket, admits that power of surrender is very important while practicing any art form. Her current work is quite different from her earlier choreography assignments. In Bhakti - A Shared Longing, that showcases at NCPA this week, she explores varied forms of poetic devotion. Excerpts from the interview: What does Bhakti mean to you?…",
  "key_points": [
    "Mayuri Upadhya emphasizes surrender in art practice",
    "Bhakti explores faith, love, and surrender themes",
    "Dance serves as coping mechanism and identity expansion"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}