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| December 2005 |
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Dec
1:
On the inaugural day of its 31st year art festival at Narada Gana Sabha, Chennai, Kartik Fine Arts awarded the NADANAMAMANI title to Bharatanatyam dancer Ramya Ramnarayan. |
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Dec
3:
Brahma Gana Sabha conducted the December Art Festival from December 3 – 31, 2005 in Chennai. Balamuralikrishna was awarded the title GAANA PADHMAM and Kalanidhi Narayanan NATYA PADHMAM. |
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Dec
7:
Sri Krishna Gana Sabha conferred NRITYA CHOODAMANI on Bharatanatyam dancer Rajeswari Sainath and ACHARYA CHOODAMANI on Bharatanatyam guru Anita Guha. The awards (Rs.25, 000 cash and a gold medal) were presented by Dr. M A M Ramaswamy. Padma Subrahmanyam and Leela Sekhar felicitated the awardees. |
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Dec
9:
On the inaugural day of the 19th Margazhi Mahotsav, Bharat Kalachar conferred the following awards: GNANA KALA BHARATHI to Kathak guru Birju Maharaj, VISWA KALA BHARATHI to Padma Subrahmanyam (for service in the field of fine arts abroad), NATYA KALADHAR to R Ganesh, KALA SEVA BHARATHI to Soorya N Krishnamoorthy (Soorya Festival), YUVA KALA BHARATHI to Divya Kasturi, Prabha S Dixit and Shanmughasundaram (Bharatanatyam), and Uma Nambudripad (all rounder in Bharatanatyam, nattuvangam and vocal) in recognition of their talent in the field of classical dance. |
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Dec
9:
At the inauguration of Sri Thyaga Brahma Gana Sabha's 26th Isai Iyal Nataka Vizha at Vani Mahal, Chennai, Bharatanatyam dancer Revathi Ramachandran received VANI KALASUDHAKARA award from Cleveland V V Sundaram. |
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Dec
10:
Anita Ratnam was awarded the NATYA KIREETA RATNAM by Sree Vanamamali Jeeyar Swamigal at Nanguneri Temple, Tamilnadu. The Award is in recognition for her services to the field of dance and ritual performances and for the patronage and propagation of classical and changing dimensions of dance. |
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Dec
17:
The Music Academy held its fortnightly concerts from December 17, 2005. The TTK AWARD went to Pandanallur Gopalakrishnan (Bharatanatyam) and N Ravikiran (Chitra Veena). |
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 Dec
17:
'NIRMALAM: THE GENIUS OF S SARADA' published by Arangham Trust in celebration of her 90th birthday, was released during the 25th Natya Kala Conference at Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai. Compiled and edited by Anita Ratnam in consultation with Theosophist G Sundari, the book is the first complete compilation of the respected Sanskrit scholar and arts 'savant' Peria Sarada of Kalakshetra. The book contains a foreword by Anita Ratnam as well as tributes paid to 'Peria Sarada teacher' by scholars, dance teachers, dancers, dance students, musicians, friends and well wishers - those who have interacted with her over the years. Also in this publication is a long first person account by S Sarada of her early years in the Theosophical Society. The first copy was received by R Yagnaraman, Secretary, Krishna Gana Sabha. |
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Dec
18:
Srutilaya Kendra of mridangam maestro Karaikudi Mani honored Bharata Nrityam exponent Padma Subrahmanyam with the GOWRI MANOHARI AWARD at a function held at Asthika Samajam, Chennai. |
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Dec
20:
Scholar V A K Ranga Rao selects the best lec-dem of the Natya Kala Conference at the Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai, every year. On the concluding day of the conference, he announced that the lec-dem by V R Devika was the best "for her exemplary presentation on how much folk has influenced our classical dance." |
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Dec
24:
At the 11th Valayapatti Naadhalaya Festival, Bharatanatyam guru Sudharani Raghupathy received the NAADALAYA SIROMANI AWARD at Hemamalini Kalyana Mandapam, Chennai. |
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Kalamandalam Sathyabama has been selected for the first KERALA NRITYA NATYA PURASKAR instituted by the Kerala Govt., for her outstanding contribution to Mohiniattam. The award honors veteran gurus for their contributions to the dance forms of Kerala. |
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| November 2005 |
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Nov
5:
Padma Subrahmanyam was honored with the COSMO AWARD by the Cosmopolitan Club in Chennai, for excellence in choreography and music composition besides Bharatanrityam. |
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Nov
6:
Elections were held to elect a president, four vice-presidents, two trustees, four joint secretaries, a treasurer and 12 other members for Music Academy, one of the foremost art organizations in Chennai. N Murali, Joint Managing Director of The Hindu, was elected President; Lakshmi Viswanathan, Maithreyi Ramadurai, Mano Bhaktavatsalam and M S Pattabhiraman as vice-presidents; C V Karthik Narayanan and P Obul Reddy as trustees and R Ramakrishnan as treasurer. |
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Nov
23:
Baba Allaudin Khan Music Foundation honored stalwarts Rahim Fahimuddin Dagar-Dhrupad, Guru Jitendra Maharaj - Kathak, Pt. Jotin Bhattacharya - Sarod. Awards were given by B L Joshi, Lt. Governor, Delhi, at Poorva Sanskritik Kendra. |
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Nov
23:
Violinist M S Kannan received the SATHYA SUNADA SUNDARAM award from Anita Guha's Bharathanjali Trust on the occasion of Sri Sathya Sai 80th birthday, at Rama Rao Kalyana Mandapam, Chennai. |
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| October 2005 |
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Oct
15:
Pune based Bharatanatyam dancer Sashikala Ravi received the prestigious AKHILA BHARATIYA MARATHI NATYA PARISHAD AWARD at its 9th annual celebrations. |
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| September 2005 |
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Sept
3:
'RAMLI! THE HEART OF SUTRA' is a pictorial biography of contemporary Malaysian dance icon Ramli Ibrahim and chronicles his milestones and achievements from his early years up to present times. The foreword is an analysis of Ibrahim's career provided by James Murdoch, a distinguished writer of contemporary dance and music. The book has been designed by William Harald-Wong, who collaborates closely with Sutra Dance Theatre, founded by Ramli in 1983 at Kuala Lumpur. Photographs are by Eric Peris, Chu Li, Syed Zainal Rashid and Sivarajah Natrajan. It was released in Chennai under the aegis of Forum Art Gallery. |
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Sept
5:
Natyarangam celebrated its 10th anniversary by presenting their 9th Bharatanatyam festival RAMAYANA BHARATHAM from Sept 5 - 11, 2005.
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Sept
16:
The 11th annual GURU KELUCHARAN MOHAPATRA AWARD was given at Rabindra Mandap, Bhubaneswar, to guru Raghunath Dutta (dance), Rakhal Mohanty (music), Kashinath Sahu (theatre) and Surendra Sahu (cinema). The award includes a citation and Rs.25, 000 cash. |
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Sept
25:
Cindy Montanez, Assembly Member, 39th District of the California State Assembly presented Malathi Iyengar & Rangoli Dance Company a CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION in honor of their participation in the Madrid Theatre's 'A festival within a Festival', one of the featured events of the 2005 World Festival of Sacred Music - Los Angeles. |
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| August 2005 |
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Aug
17:
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and Asia Pacific Performing Arts Network (APPAN) presented the launch of 'BEYOND DESTINY- THE LIFE AND TIMES OF SUBBUDU' (The Biography of India's eminent performing arts critic PV Subramaniam), published under Bhavan's Book University and authored by Lada Guruden Singh. Neena Ranjan (Secretary to GOI, Culture) received the first copy from C R Gharekhan (Vice Chairperson, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Delhi Kendra) at India International Centre Annexe, New Delhi. |
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Aug
19:
'SO MANY JOURNEYS' authored by Geeta Chandran was released in Chennai during the 3 day Attam festival organized by Arangham Trust at Krishna Gana Sabha. Vyjayanthimala Bali received the copy. |
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Aug
22:
Sanjukta Panigrahi Memorial Trust celebrated the 61st birth anniversary of Sanjuka Panigrahi at Rabindra Mandap, Bhubaneswar from August 22 to 24, 2005. Mardala player Guru Banamali Moharana and Odissi dancer Jhelum Paranjpe were awarded the SANJUKTA PANIGRAHI NATIONAL AWARD for 2004 and 2005 respectively. The SANJUKTA PANIGRAHI SAMMAN was awarded to Odissi exponents Dona Ganguly and Meera Das for 2004 and Ratikant Mohapatra and Rina Jana for 2005. |
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Aug
27:
Odissi dancer Dona Ganguly was given the SONAR MAYE (golden girl) AWARD at Kolkata. |
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Aug
31:
At the 10th Anniversary celebrations of Lalitakala Vedika, H H Poojyasri Mathaji Vithamma presented the LALITAKALA VEDIKA GOLD MEDAL to M Vasanthalakshmi and M V Narasimhachari, at Music Academy Mini Hall, Chennai. |
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| July 2005 |
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Work began on a new Encyclopedia of World Dance, to be published by Routledge ca. 2010. The encyclopedia, in five volumes, will be organized by continents (Asia, Pacific Islands, Australia and New Zealand; Eastern and Western Europe; Africa and the Middle East; North and South America and the Caribbean), and will have articles on the 'state of the art' in dance studies in the fifth volume, along with a comprehensive index, bibliography and videography. Each of the first four volumes will include introductory essays, articles on issues and perspectives in the area, and articles about dance in each region of the areas covered. The general editor for the project is Dr. Joan Erdman, Columbia College Chicago and The University of Chicago, who is in the process of assembling an international editorial board and panel of experts. |
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Vyjayanthimala Bali was honored with the title SANSKRITI KALASHREE for 2005, by the organization Sanskriti (affiliated to the Rajasthani Organisation of Tamilnadu) at Chennai, for her outstanding contribution to dance and cinema. The function takes place every year on Kadradaan day. |
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The BHUWALKA AWARD was presented to Kathak dancer Roshan Kumari by Saurabh at a gala function held at Uttam Manch, Kolkata. |
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July
14:
Mallika Sarabhai and Alarmel Valli received the CHEVALIER DE L'ORDRE DES ARTS & LETTRES (Knight of Order of Arts & Letters) from Dominique Girard (French ambassador to India) at New Delhi. |
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July
19 - 21:
Kalamandalam Calcutta presented a Photograph Exhibition: On Life & Works of Guru Govindan Kutty, celebrating GURU GOVINDAN KUTTY'S 50 YEARS IN KOLKATA at the Rabindra Sadan Complex. |
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July
21:
Sri Thyaga Brahma Gana Sabha conferred the title of VANI KALA SUDHAKARA on dancer Padma Subrahmanyam at Chennai. She was given a citation, a memento and a cash prize of Rs.5000. |
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Bharatanatyam dancers/gurus Kamala Laxman, Vyjayanthimala Bali and the Dhananjayans from Chennai were honored by The Indian Cultural Heritage Foundation (ICHF) & Arti School of Dance Texas during the NATIONAL ASIAN INDIAN DANCE CONVENTION 2005 held in Dallas, from 22nd to 24th July 2005. Several other Indian artistes who have contributed to the promotion, propagation and preservation of Indian art & culture in North America were also recognized, which included the pioneer immigrant dancer Ratna Kumar. |
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Sarada Ramanathan completed her directorial debut 'SRINGARAM-DANCE OF LOVE'. The film depicts the story of a young rebellious Devadasi of the 19th century, played by dancer/actress Aditi Rao. Most of the film has been shot in Thanjavur. Madhu Ambat wielded the camera. Lalgudi Jayaraman made his debut as music director in films. Sowmya, Bombay Jayasri, O S Arun and Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi have sung the songs. Hamsa Moily and Manju Bhargavi also feature in the film. Indra Soundarajan made his debut as a scriptwriter. Costumes are by Rukmini Krishnan and art direction by Thota Tharani. Actress Jyotika presented a memento to guru K J Sarasa, the first lady nattuvanar. The dances in 'Sringaram' have been choreographed by Saroj Khan. |
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Jayalakshmi Alva, director of Sri Devi Nritya Kendra, was nominated for the prestigious SHANTALA AWARD 2004 by the Karnataka state government's Department of Kannada and Culture for her achievements and contribution in the field of dance. The award carries a citation, memento and Rs.1 lakh cash. |
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July
23:
Hindu Temple Society of Southern California bestowed the title of ASTHANA VIDUSHI on Malathi Iyengar, artistic director of Rangoli Foundation, Los Angeles, in recognition of her artistic contributions to the community. |
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| June 2005 |
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June
7:
Sonal Mansingh was removed from her post by the government and former union minister Ram Niwas Mirdha took over as new chairperson of the Sangeet Natak Akademi. Mirdha has served previously as Chairman of the Lalit Kala Akademi. |
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June
8:
The Lights On series at Sathyam Cinemas, Chennai, presented the world premiere of Adoor Gopalakrishnan's film KALAMANDALAM RAMANKUTTY NAIR-A MAESTRO'S MEMOIR. The screening was followed by an interface with the director. |
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June
11:
Bhaaskara, Art & Education Trust founded by The Dhananjayans conferred this year's Bhaaskara Puraskaar on the occasion of the inauguration of 'Thiruk-Kural Bharatam' at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Chennai - SANGEETA BHAASKARA to Prof. D Pasupathy (Former Principal, Sri Venkateswara College of Music, Tirupati and former Vice Principal, Kalakshetra), and ILAKIYA BHAASKARA to Prof. (Dr) S Raghuraman (Tamizh Professor, Jain College, Chennai). The awards carry a purse of Rs.10, 000, citation/ plaque and silk shawl. |
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Karen Kaeja was honored with the 2005 PAUL D FLECK AWARD FOR ARTISTIC EXCELLENCE AND INNOVATION from the Banff Centre for the Arts. She is Co-Artistic director of Kaeja d'Dance, Toronto, with life partner Allen Kaeja. |
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June
16:
Meenakshi Devi Bhavanani, director of Yoganjali Natyalayam (Pondicherry) received the MARUDHA RAMALINGANAR OUTSTANDING SENIOR CITIZEN AWARD in recognition of her service in the field of art and culture. This Annual Award instituted by the Youth Peace Centre, Pondicherry, was presented by the Honorable Deputy Speaker, A V Subramaniyam and S P Sivakumar (former Education Minister) in the Conference Hall of Hotel Ram International, Pondicherry. |
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Kathak dancer Marami Medhi from Guwahati was selected for the SINGAR MANI title in recognition of her performance in the 44th Kal Ke Kalaakar Sangeet Sammelan conducted by Mumbai based Sur Singar Samsad. |
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June
25:
In honor of the 20th Anniversary Celebrations at the Madrid Theatre, Canoga Park, CA, Los Angeles City third district councilman Dennis Zine presented Rangoli Foundation for Art & Culture a Certificate of Recognition for sharing and serving the Valley and greater Los Angeles with rich cultural traditions. |
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June
30:
Both Mrinalini and Mallika Sarabhai were amongst the list of 1000 women worldwide to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 2005.The 1000 Women for the Nobel Peace Prize 2005 was first mooted by Gabi Vermot from the Government of Switzerland and backed by the UN and UNIFEM. The main objective of the initiative is to make the peace work of women visible and to popularize the broad and inclusive definition of peace. The coordination committee worked in 150 countries for 2 years and presented 2000 names to the Nobel Committee, which made the final selection of 1000 women while accepting the nomination. |
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| May 2005 |
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May
17:
Kathak guru Kumudini Lakhia celebrated her 75th birthday. |
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May
20:
Bharatanatyam/Kuchipudi dancer Rathna Kumar was honored by APAPHA (Asian/Pacific American Heritage Association) at their 13th gala, for OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD IN THE FIELD OF PERFORMING ARTS at Hilton Post Oak Hotel, Houston. |
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May
22 - 30:
The 65th BHAGAVATA MELA NATAKA MAHOTSAV took place at Melattur in front of the Sri Varadaraja temple as part of the Sri Nrusimha Jayanthi. The ritualistic Bhagavata Mela tradition, a Telugu heritage nurtured in Tamil country, came into being as a result of the Bhakti movement about 400 years ago. "A temple art with no commercial interests, this great theater art considered as the only surviving link in Tamilnadu today that connects us to the ancient Sanskrit theater, struggles for survival against all odds," says S Natarajan, President and Chairman of the Bhagavata Mela Natya Nataka Sangam. |
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May
28:
Alaknanda Pravaha of Alaknanada Inst. for Performing Arts, Noida, won the First Prize in All India Dance Competition, for their performance for Akhil Bharatiya Sanskrutik Sangh, Pune. Under the guidance and choreography of guru Alaknanda, dancers Garima Srivastava, Minoti Sikdar, Saumya Shukla, Garima Nijhawan, Ritika Bhasin and Nidhi Sharma presented KATHAK YATRA, depicting the Kathak of Temple time, Mughal time and present time, with music by Gautam Dasgupta. The festival was an amalgamation of 2000 artists from all over India. |
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Peter Brook, Director of Theatre des Bouffes du Nord in Paris, won a $1 million DAN DAVID PRIZE 'for the revolutionary impact of his work on the art of theater and opera.' From the prize money that he received in May 2005, he had to give $100,000 in grants to young researchers. |
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Odissi dancer Nityananda Das who lost his entire right leg in an accident in June 2000 was bedridden for 1 ½ years after that. With encouragement from his brother and guru Bimbadhar Das (his disciple since 1991), Das started dancing again on one leg. After a gap of 5 years, he gave his first comeback performance end of May 2005. It was a 20 minute piece and people could not believe he had only one leg. He has been inspired by Sudha Chandran who started dancing again after being fitted with an artificial leg. |
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| April 2005 |
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April
8:
Kathak duo Nalini-Kamalini received the ZEE TV AWARD for their services in promoting and popularising Kathak around the globe at National Stadium, New Delhi. |
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Kalamandalam Radhika was selected for the KERALA SANGEET NATAKA ACADEMY AWARD for Mohiniattam for the year 2005. This prestigious award for Mohiniattam has gone for the first time to a non-resident Keralite. |
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| March 2005 |
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March
3:
Delhi University's leading college for women, Lady Shri Ram College (LSR), conferred upon dancer Geeta Chandran the DISTINGUISHED ALUMNA AWARD for the year 2004-2005. |
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March
6:
The Rotary Club of Chennai (Kilpauk) presented THE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD to Bharatanatyam dancer Vyjayanthimala Bali. |
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March
8:
Brahma Gana Sabha celebrated International Women's Day by presenting WOMEN OF EXCELLANCE AWARDS to Krishnakumari Narendran (dance), Sudha Raghunathan (music) and Bombay Gnanam (theatre) at Rani Seethai Hall, Chennai. |
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March
12:
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Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani was honored with the prestigious FELLOWSHIP OF THE INDIAN ACADEMY OF YOGA at its Annual Meet held at Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India from 12th to 14th March 2005. |
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March
15:
The Sruti Foundation presented E KRISHNA IYER MEDAL to Bharatanatyam Guru K J Sarasa, VELLORE GOPALACHARIAR AWARD to Vidwan P S Narayanaswamy M VENKATAKRISHNAN MEMORIAL AWARD to Mrs. Y G Parthasarathy at the Dakshinamurthi Auditorium, Chennai. |
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March
18:
Odissi exponent Jhelum Paranjpe received the MAHARI AWARD at Bhubaneswar for her contribution to the dance form. The Mahari award was instituted by Guru Pankaj Charan Das. |
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March
26:
Houston based Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi dancer Rathna Kumar was honored with the title of NRITYA SEVA RATNA (for 30 years of service to Indian classical dance in the US) during the 27th Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana. |
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Narthaki Nataraj, disciple of guru K P Kittappa Pillai, was presented the award of THIRUMURAI NATTIYA SUDAR by the Perur Adhinam hosted by Davathiru Santhalinga Adigalar Thirumadam, near Coimbatore. |
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March
30:
The world premiere of PRAVAHI -The Dance of Alarmel Valli, a film by Arun Khopkar, took place at Chennai at Sathyam Cinemas as part of the Lights On series. The screening was followed by an interaction with Valli and Khopkar. |
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| February 2005 |
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Feb
5:
On the inaugural day of the 55th Shivali Dance Festival organized by Shivali Cultural Society of India in Mumbai, chief guest Ramprasad Ruia (Industrialist & Philanthoropist) conferred the title SHIVALI NRITYA SHIROMANI on gurus Manjiri Deo, Deepak Mazumdar and Jayashree Rajagopalan for their outstanding contribution in the field of classical dance. |
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Feb
25:
Sree Shanmukhananda Sangeetha Sabha, New Delhi, held its annual THYAGARAJA MUSIC AND DANCE FESTIVAL for eleven days from 25th February to 7th March 2005. For attainment of excellence in the field of dance, Gurus Kalyanasundaram (Bharatanatyam), Jayarama Rao (Kuchipudi ), Jamuna Krishnan (Bharatanatyam ) were honored with NATYA RATNA; Deepa Raghavan (Bharatanatyam) and Deepika Reddi (Kuchipudi) were honored with NATYA ILAVARASI. The awards were presented on 25th February by Jaipal Reddy, the Hon. Minister for Information & Broadcasting & Culture. |
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Feb
26:
The Asana Andiappan Yoga Research Centre, Chennai, awarded the YOGACHARYA BANGALORE SUNDARAM AWARD 2005 on Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani, Chairman of ICYER and Yoganjali Natyalayam, Pondicherry for his dedicated efforts in spreading the science of Yoga. |
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Ramaa Bharadvaj received the L A TREASURES AWARD for February 2005 from The California Traditional Music Society (CTMS) and the City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department. This program supports folk and traditional performing and visual artists with $1,000 in funds for two public performances, workshops or exhibits. |
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Feb
28:
Bharatanatyam dancer Leela Samson was appointed director of Kalakshetra Foundation, Chennai with effect from February 28, 2005. |
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Bharatanatyam guru Nirmala Ramachandran was nominated for the Sangeet Natak Akademi award for her service to Bharatanatyam. |
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At the 17th Annual Spirit of Youth Festival of Music and Dance conducted by the Music Academy, Chennai, between 21st Feb and 3rd March 2005, the winner in the Bharatanatyam category was Shilpa Uthappa. |
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| January 2005 |
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Jan
2 - 13:
Ammannur Chachu Chakyar Smaraka Gurukulam proudly presented its 18TH KUTIYATTAM MAHOTSAVAM at Natanakairali, Irinjalakuda. |
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Jan
4:
The Indian Fine Arts Society conferred the title NATYA KALASIKHAMANI on Bharatanatyam dancer Lakshmi Viswanathan on the concluding day of the 72nd South Indian Music Conference and Festival at Balamandir German Hall, Chennai. |
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Jan
4:
 Bharatanatyam
guru V P Dhananjayan was honored by the Madras Music Academy at their 78th
annual conference and concerts, with the title of SANGEETA KALA ACHAARYA. |
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Jan
5:
'Contraposition', a new work choreographed by Astad Deboo featuring Astad and students of the Clarke School for the Deaf (Chennai), was invited to the 20TH DEAF OLYMPICS in Melbourne, Australia. Astad's work was chosen to be a part of the opening ceremony on 5th Jan 2005, followed by 8 performances during the cultural festival. |
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Jan
6 - 8:
A 3 day NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON REDEFINING FOLKLORE was organised by Centre for Folklore Studies and Folklore Project in collaboration with South Zone Cultural Centre, Thanjavur, at Calicut University Campus. |
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Jan
16:
Bharatanatyam dancer Chitra Visweswaran was conferred the NATYA KALASARATHY title by Nalli Chinnasami Chetty, president of the Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha on the occasion of the 105th year dance festival in Chennai. The award comprises a citation, a gold medal and Rs.5000 in cash. |
