Shrimati Kumkum Mohanty is a world famous Odissi dancer. She has received training under Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra at Kala Vikash Kendra. Her contribution to the field of Odissi dance has been vast and praiseworthy. Kumkum Mohanty has been honoured with the Sangeet Natak Academy Award in 1994. As a child, Kumkum Mohanty was an exceptional dancer. A serious student of Kelucharan Mohapatra, Kumkum Mohanty grew up as an outstanding dancer, dedicated to the dance form [...]
The doyen of Odissi, Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra was born on January 8, 1926 in Raghurajpur, Orissa. Kelucharan was a precocious child, he learnt to paint, sculpt and play the Khol drum at a very early age. He joined Gotipua troupes and folk theater groups when he was just nine. He was totally immersed in Odissi. He resurrected odissi when it was at the verge of extinction. In 1994 he set up an organisation, ‘Srjan’ to [...]
Kathakali belongs to the genre of Indian classical dance-drama. It emerged in south Indian state of Kerala during the 17th century. The literal meaning of the word Kathakali is “story-play”. The term Kathakali is a combination of two Malayalam words “katha” (meaning story) and “kali”(meaning play). Hand gestures occupy a very important place in Kathakali, like all other forms of Indian classical dance. Kathakali is a blend of the five distinct aspects of dance: Natyam [...]
Dr.K.J.Yesudas a.k.a Kattassery Joseph Yesudas or alternatively Jesudas is a Malayali Indian classical musician and a noted playback singer of Indian films. K.J.Yesudas was born in Fort Kochi, Kerala on January 10,1940. His father Augustine Joseph was a noted Malayalam classical musician and stage actor of that era.His father was also his first guru (teacher). His talent for singing become apparent when he joined the music academy at Thrippinithura and won the gold medal for [...]
Jamini Roy was born in 1887 in Bankura in West Bengal. In 1903, Jamini Roy came to Kolkata and took admission in the Government School of Art. He was a student of Abanindranath Tagore. Roy painted a couple of beautiful portraits and landscapes that shows his unquestionable artistic qualities. In his early days Jamini Roy went through extreme poverty and was forced to take odd jobs. His Kalighat paintings was sold outside the Kalighat Temple. [...]
Shyam Benegal, a director who has carved a niche for himself in Indian cinema, was born on 14 December 1934 in Alwal, Hyderabad. Initially, he started off in the advertising industry before moving on to movies. He made his directorial debut with Gher Betha Ganga in 1962, though he became famous for his film Ankur in 1973. He is known for his quartet of movies Ankur (1973), Nishant (1975), Manthan (1976) and Bhumika (1977), which [...]
‘Dance for the Lord’ is Odissi’s tradition. Sanjukta Panigrahi, the legendary Odissi dancer maintained this custom all through her life. The dedicated dancer played a pivotal role in reviving the Odissi dance form in India and popularizing it in abroad. She was given the title Padmashri by the Government of India in recognition of her priceless contribution to Indian dance. She was also awarded the Sangeet Kala Academy Award. Sanjukta Panigrahi was born on 24.08.44 [...]
Raja and Radha Reddy, the world famous dancing couple, excel in the art of Kuchipudi, They have taken this dance to a new height by adhering to the traditional style and technique of Kuchipudi dance. They are named among the major dancers of India for their excellence and perfection in this dance form. Both of them were born the state of Andhra Pradesh, Raja Reddy was born in 1944 in Narsapur and Radha Reddy in [...]
Pandit Ravi Shankar India’s most famous sitar maestro was born on April 7, 1920 into a Bengali Brahmin family of West Bengal. Son of an eminent barrister, he moved to Paris at the age of 10. His elder brother Uday Shankar was a renowned dancer of that time. Ravi Shankar started playing the sitar for his brother’s troupe. In 1938 he started his formal training in sitar under his guru Allauddin Khan. After his training [...]
Pt. Birju Maharaj Probably the greatest exponent of Kathak, Pt Birju Maharaj was born on 4th February 1938. He belongs to the Kalka-Bindadin Lucknow Gharana of Kathak. Named Brij Mohan, he is the son of legendary Achchan Maharaj of Maharaj family of Kathak dancers. Brij Mohan was into dancing from the initial years of life. Trained by his uncles Shambhu Maharaj and Lachchu Maharaj he gave his first performance at the age of seven. After [...]
