The journey of a confirmed Yatri

Krishna Shah Yatri had a fix on reading Balakrishna Sama's plays in his schooldays in Udayapur. And having grown up seeing lavish productions of mythological plays by the Newar community of Udayapur, Krishna started his own theater troupe, the JyotiPunja theater, and performed to crowds of thousands.

When in Kathmandu, he joined the Sanskritik Sansthan and learned the art of theater in depth. After graduating from there, Krishna again established the JyotiPunja troupe and performed a play each month where he directed plays written by Sarubhakta, Govinda Gothale and Sama, among others.

“The biggest challenge of my life came to me when I had to produce a play where all the actors were deaf,” remembers Krishna.This challenge turned out to be fruitful for Krishna because his play bagged both the best drama and best direction in the National Theater Festival of 2000.

Along with doing theater Krishna is also a prolific writer who has six books in his credit. All this in his bag, Krishna has recently hopped into a new boat, that of film direction. Although shy to announce which project he is working on, he is joyous to be exploring this new territory. Not that he is not prepared for it already, for he is a graduate of the now defunct National Studio of Film College but his entry into this new visual world is recent. Having already directed two music videos, one for Anand Karki and another for Uditnarayan Jha's upcoming album, Upahar part two, Krishna seems geared to his new role as a film director.

A person with a warm heart, Krishna says he feels most happy working with kids. Currently also a teacher of theater at Little Angels School, Krishna is awed by the tremendous interest and talent his students have for theater.

As a writer, Krishna likes to keep his themes in the realistic realm. “There is so much around us. All we need to do is just pick elements from there and put them together with integrity,” says Krishna about his writing style.

Whatever he does he does it with a heart that sees the varied aspects of being human. We only wish Krishna a fulfilling journey as he has come to a new bend and film directing has opened up to him. At a time when the film industry is starving for new talent, the entry of Krishna, with all his experience and depth will be welcoming. Bon voyage, Krishna!

(From: The Kathmandu Post)