Banayudham Explained

Banayudham (Bana's Battle) is an Aattakatha (Kathakali play) written by Balakavi Rama Shasthri. It used to be a popular play in the southern (thekkan) style of Kathakali.^[1] The Asura king Bana, son of Mahabali, has a thousand arms. His daughter Usha falls in love with Aniruddha, the grandson of Krishna. Bana discovers them together and imprisons Aniruddha. Krishna challenges Bana to a battle, in which he defeats Bana by chopping off all but four of his arms.^[2] An excerpt from the play, depicting scenes involving Usha and her friend Chitralekha, is often presented independently.^{[3] [4] [5]}

References

1. https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/dance/tale-of-love-and-war/article6502983.ece "Tale of love and war" from "The Hindu", 16 October 2014
2. https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/staging-of-banayudham/article8498772.ece "Battle of the mighty Bana" from "The Hindu", 21 April 2016
3. https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/dance/a-performance-of-usha-chitralekha-kathakali/article24994406.ece "Shades of romance" from "The Hindu", 20 September 2018
4. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/events/kochi/a-kathakali-performance-based-on-usha-and-chitralekhas-tale/articleshow/70889661.cms "A kathakali performance, based on Usha and Chitralekha's tale" from "The Times of India", 29 August 2019
5. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/events/kochi/kathakali-performance-titled-usha-chitralekha-enthrals-the-audience/articleshow/65769844.cms "Kathakali performance titled Usha-Chitralekha enthrals the audience" from "The Times of India", 16 September 2018