Busking the art of krump

CHENNAI: Sweeping the lanes of Chennai, Yadhava, the Prince Asura of Indian fam system, krumps to his own explosive beats. A counselling therapist and a fitness guide, the 29-year-old krumper performs the faith-based artform, exuding intense rawness and controlled power.

“I discovered Krump, a quick, aggressive, and expressive dance form, back in school, but lacked the time to put the effort into it. When I had started to pursue my Master’s In Psychology, I wanted to study more about movement therapy. In 2021, after an extensive wait, I was able to experience and practice the art form. With the guidance of Ravishankar, a preacher of Krump, he represents the International Krump Family from Spain and goes by the name Berserk X,” explains Yadhava.

The expansion of Kingdom Radically Uplifted Mighty Praise (KRUMP) movement in India, dates back to 2014, where Arun Nadarasa, known as Asura, and his student had launched the Indian Krump Festival (IKF) which led to various other big scale Krump events like the Krumpact and Straight Buck. It witnessed international krumpers from across the world, who were invited to conduct workshops and judge battles, thereby disseminating knowledge about the prance in the country.

Fostering the world of Krump, which was seen as a means to escape gang life, by the dancers who started krumping back in the streets of the United States, Yadhava, directed and penned India’s first ever raw Krump theatre act.

“Staged last year on January 29 in Chennai, Fable of the Heart, was an audience interactive play, where the people involved were taken on a step by step journey leading to an evolution of perspectives towards art, through the voice and movements of Krump X Animal Flow,” he highlights.

The krumper gets his title of Prince Asura, through the concept of fam system, which has a head mentor, followed by family members, which are the students. There exist numerous Fam Systems across the world, with Tight Eyez Fam being the family that introduced Krump to the world.

“Each fam system gives a title to their students depending on their level or connection with the art, or the mindset of the fam head, the Big Homie. The fam system and the Big Homie to propagate the Krump Movement in India to its fullest potential was the Asura Fam, with Arun being the Big Homie. To this Fam System, I am Prince Asura,” he states.

Busking on the streets of the city, the krumper has always had a strong calling towards performance arts, and has started expressing himself with movements at public places.

“The art of busking has become more prevalent on the streets of Chennai over the past couple of years, where there are many willing performers coming together at public places as one, united by art,” he states.

He has attempted to incorporate movement therapy into Krump, to explore emotions, enhance self-awareness, and promote emotional release.

With an inquisitiveness towards the evolution of the human mind, and the vigour to evolve this art form in his own perspective, is what pushed Yadhava to create this amalgamation, explaining, “The dynamic and aggressive nature of Krump allows individuals to channel and express their emotions physically in the right direction, aiding in stress relief and self-expression. Combining it with movement therapy can help express emotions, enhance body awareness, and improve mental well-being,”

“Krump, with its energetic and emotive movements, serves as a powerful outlet for emotions, while movement therapy fosters self-discovery and emotional release through intentional body movements. Together, they create a holistic approach to emotional expression and self-awareness,” he adds.