Reason: The behavior of the Mysore audience. Any Mozart can survive in any part of the world if he manages to please the audience of Mysore. The people here are A LOT choosy. For some reason, they arrive late, talk loudly, and then, leave abruptly. The constant opening of the door will of course irritate the performer or the artist, but you cannot question the Mysorean. "AATU, AATU" is the pat reply. More so irritating is the habit of munching snacks inside the hall. It is acceptable in DRC, but Kalamandir has a charm and a class of its own; it is a live performance going on. And the most irritating habit of clicking pictures with flash. Imagine the artist's eyes.....in a dark room....it's like memories of Ghajini.
And those comments! By God! Its like the average Mysorean is an avataar of Einstein, Beethoven, Tagore and Gandhi, all in one. He, and even some shes' are the pandits & gurus of every art there is. Their comment is more important to be heard in the audience, than the performer's dialogue. What makes it worse is the fact that these pundits bring their toddlers along, and their loud and music drowning wailing is a 5.1 dolby from hell in itself.
If you were a performer, the best in your field, and you train hard, to give the performance of a lifetime in a city supposed to be the cultural capital, you would be happy, right? But, not so in Mysore. It's best you start your performance with closed eyes and open them only after the performance is over. This way, you will not be discouraged by the mobile phone screens stuck to the ears, people walking off because you didn't impress them in the first 10 minutes and kids slapping their heads and cursing their parents for making them miss the latest episode of Big Boss.
Here's my advice to the audience of Mysore...Either be patient for the entire show, applaud, appreciate, and give a standing ovation at the end or even better, STAY AT HOME. It's better to perform to empty silent chairs than a hall full of noisy intellectuals.
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