Yamuna Gatha

The Song of the River — A Sacred Journey with Krishna

“The Yamuna does not merely flow. She remembers — the lotus feet that once touched her waters, the flute that once rang across her banks.”

Of all India’s sacred rivers, it is the Yamuna who carries the most love in her waters. She was there when Krishna played on her banks at Vrindavan. She witnessed the Raas Leela — the divine dance under the full moon. She felt the weight of his footsteps and the echo of his flute. YAMUNA GATHA is a solo Bharatanatyam narration of her memories: a river as storyteller, a river as devoted witness to the divine.

Choreographed and performed by Apeksha Niranjan, this production draws from the rich tradition of Krishna bhakti poetry — padams, kritis, and ashtapadis that celebrate his divine play on the Yamuna’s banks. Through lyrical abhinaya and flowing nritta, Apeksha conjures Vrindavan at its most magical: the gopas and gopis dancing, the butter-thief laughing, the divine lover stealing the hearts of all who encounter him.

YAMUNA GATHA premiered at the ancient, spiritually charged setting of Khajuraho, India — a venue whose temple sculptures of divine love and classical dance iconography made the perfect visual backdrop for this intimate, devotional production. Since then, it has travelled to Italy, where the warmth of Vrindavan found an unexpected resonance in the Mediterranean light.