Banteay Srei is unique among Cambodia’s renowned sacred buildings. Unlike other ancient Angkorian temples, it stands out for its petite size, the pink hue of the hard, red sandstone from which it is made, and the intricacy of its exquisitely sculpted wall relief—depicting motifs, figures and scenes from the Hindu epics Mahabharata and Ramayana.

Built by Khmer courtiers in the 10th century, Banteay Srei was originally named Tribhuvanamaheshwara, and its surrounding town Isvarapura, both dedicated to Lord Shiva. Although the temple venerates both the gods Shiva and Vishnu, it was later dubbed Banteay Srei or “Citadel of Women” in Khmer—possibly in tribute to the plethora of enchanting female devatas (deities) adorning its walls, as well as the life-sized sculptures of yogini (sacred women) found within its compound. In this exhilarating dance production, witness these ancient figures and epic scenes come to life, as the yoginis unravel mystical stories of the sacred temple.

AMARA was initially created as a digital CGI dance film in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, AMARA was reimagined as live performance and has been presented in Paris (France), Chennai and Mumbai (India), Colombo and Jaffna (Sri Lanka). It will premiere in Singapore at IPAC 2025.

Concept and Artistic Direction: Aravinth Kumarasamy
Choreography: Mohanapriyan Thavarajah
Music Composition: Dr Rajkumar Bharathi
Music Direction and Produced by: Sai Shravanam
Costume Design: Mohanapriyan Thavarajah
Dancers: Nikita Menon, Periyachi Roshini, Nagalakshmi, Nivedha Harish, Vaishnavi Srinivasan, Gopikka Narasa Lakshmi Narayanan & Mohanapriyan Thavarajah