Dharma, a concept spanning its roots in Eastern culture, has many alternate interpretations and cannot be directly translated through one word. It can mean ‘cosmic law and order’, the path to righteousness, or simply the order that makes life possible, a force inherent in the very nature of things. This difficulty with regards to a vivid portrayal perhaps grants heightened impact to an understanding via experiencing, rather than defining, and this is exactly what Anton van der Linden does in his music video of Dharma by Headhunterz and KSHMR.
Anton van der Linden’s music video is centred around a forest untainted by mankind’s presence, and this becomes the stage of abstract manifestations revolving around the concept of dharma. The flora, fauna, as well as weather all converge in a ‘dance’ of eternity, interrelatedness and atemporality. The various intensifications or variations of the music’s rhythm are astutely punctuated and translated dynamically within the on-screen events. The only drawback that we found is that, at times, we questioned the thematical rather than functional fit between the chosen environment and visual language, and the musical style.
Other than that, the beautiful visual style, alongside the vivid translation and interpretation of a complex term into something almost tangible is laudable, and the final result is most definitely one to admire and enjoy.