Information - Highlights 2021

December 2021

Bharatanatyam dancer Viji Rao received Best Actress Award from MALAIKANDAN International Film Festival and GONA film awards for her work in the short film “Colors of Truth” directed and produced by Rabinder Parasher.

The Unblemished One - a dance film by Anjana Ghonasgi for Narthaki.com’s Devi Diaries 2021 has won 2 awards at White Unicorn International Film Festival (WUIFF) in the categories of ‘Experimental Film’ & ‘Film on Women.’

Nupur Arts’ Artistic Director, SMITA VADNERKAR is this year’s recipient of the One Dance UK Lifetime Achivement Award in South Asian Dance.

Srekala Bharath received the NAATYA PADHMAM award from Brahma Gana Sabha on December 24, 2021 at RR Sabha hall in Chennai.

Shijith Nambiar and Parvathy Menon have been conferred the 5th BHARAT KALA RATNA award for 2020 on Dec 11, 2021 by Kerala based Navaneetham Trust for their service to Bharatanatyam. It carries a plaque and purse of Rs.25,000.

PUTHUMANA GOVINDAN NAMBOOTHIRI, chief revivalist and exponent of Thidambu Nritham (a temple dance prevalent in Kerala) received the KERALA STATE AWARD by Kerala Folklore Academy on December 7, 2021. The award is presented for his commitment and dedication for preserving the 700 year old dying ancient temple dance and its revival, reformulation of thidambu nritham as a popular temple dance, and popularization of the dance up to international level over five and a half decades.

The recipients of the 2021 DANCE MAGAZINE AWARDS includes AKRAM KHAN. A ceremony to recognize this year’s honorees was held in New York City at the Guggenheim and simultaneously livestreamed on December 6, with performances and presentations for each recipient.

The KALASAGAR AWARDS for exemplary contribution in the field of traditional performing arts is usually presented when Gurusmaranadinam, the death anniversary of Kalamandalam Krishnankutty Poduval, legendary Kathakali mastero and founder of Kalasagar, is observed in May. As in the past, awardees are selected through nominations received from rasikas.
- KALASAGAR AWARDEES FOR 2020
Kathakali: Vesham - Kalamandalam Chambakara Vijayakumar, Music - Kalanilayam Rajeevan, Chenda - Kalamandalam Balasundaran, Maddalam - Sadanam Devadas and Chutty- Kalanilayam Padmanabhan.
Bharatanatyam - Kalamandalam Sarojini, Mohiniattam - Vinitha Nedungadi, Ottenthullal - Kalamandalam Parameswaran, Chakyarkoothu - Kalamandalam Jishnu Prathap, Koodiyattam - Margi Ramachakyar, Thayambaka - Porur Haridas
Panchavadyam: Thimila - Vaikkom Chandran Marar, Maddalam - Kalamandalam Nataraja Warrior, Edakka - Dr.Balusseri Krishnadas, Ilathalam - Mattanur Ajith Marar and Kombu - Peramangalam Vijayan.
- KALASAGAR AWARDEES FOR 2021
Kathakali: Vesham - Kalamandalam Manoj, Sangeetham - Kalamandalam Balachandran, Chenda - Dr. Mankulam Krishnan Namboodiri, Maddalam - Kalamandalam Venukuttan, Chutty - Neelamperur Jayan, Ottenthullal - Punnasseri Prabhakaran, Koodiyattam - Sooraj Nambiar, Mohiniattam - Sandhya Rajan, Bharatanatyam - Saritha Ramanathan, Thayambaka - Dr. Sukhapuram Dileep
Panchavadhyam: Thimila - Peruvaram Mohanan Marar, Maddalam - Kavil Peethambara Marar, Edakka - Kalanilayam Unnikrishnan, Ilathalam - Peruvaram Soman (posthumous), Kombu - Cherai Sunil
This year, the awards for 2020 and 2021 were presented on 5th December 2021, in association with Kunnamkulam Kathakali Club and Ministry of Culture, Govt of India, at Badhani School, Kunnamkulam, Thrissur.
Awardees

The recipients of this year's KALA PRADARSHINI GHANTASALA PURASKAR on Dec 4, 2021 are: K. Viswanath (director), Dr. L. Subramaniam (violin maestro) and Dr. Vedantam Radheshyam (Kuchipudi exponent).

Kartik Fine Arts conferred the following awards at the inauguration of its 47th Year Art Festival 2021 on digital platform on Dec 1, 2021 - NRITYA PEROLI for Sudharani Raghupathy, NADANAMAMANI for Jagyaseni Chatterjee and NATYA CHUDAR for Akshaya Arunkumar.
KARTIK RAJAGOPAL ENDOWMENT AWARD for best cultural organiser goes to R. Nagarajan, secretary of R.R. Sabha.

November 2021

SANTHA BHASKAR, Artistic Director of Bhaskar’s Art Academy was conferred the PINGAT JASA GEMILANG (Meritorious Service Medal) on November 28, 2021 in Singapore. She received the award from President Halimah Yacob. Founder KP Bhaskar was bestowed the same award in the late 60s from then President Yusof Ishak. The Medal is awarded to any person who has performed service of conspicuous merit characterised by resource and devotion to duty, including long service marked by exceptional ability, merit and exemplary conduct.

The university ITM in Gwalior has conferred the degree of Doctor of Letters (D Lit) on KUMUDINI LAKHIA for her contribution to the field of dance on Nov 20, 2021.

Dr. I Wayan Dibia, from Denpasar, Bali, was awarded the Padma Shri on November 9, 2021. Bali's most influential Kecak dancer and scholar in the traditional Indonesian art form depicting chapters of the Ramayana, he heads his own dance company, GEOKS, acclaimed for its inventive dance creations. He has created more than 150 new works on dance and dance dramas, mostly exploring Ramayana and Mahabharata.

The Padma awards for 2020 have been conferred on November 8, 2021 by the President of India. The PADMA SHRI for dance goes to Shashadhar Acharya (Chhau), Indira PP Bora (Sattriya), Vajira Chitrasena (Kandyan dance, Srilanka), Purushottam Dadheech (Kathak), and 70 year old Moozhikkal Pankajakshi, the only practitioner of Nokkuvidhya Pavakalli, a traditional puppetry art of Kerala.

KATHERINE KUNHIRAMAN along with her late husband Natyacharya K.P.Kunhiraman, pioneers in establishing the best traditions of Kalakshetra Bharatanatyam in the US since 1975, has been made a FELLOW OF VEDIC WELLNESS UNIVERSITY in Indian Classical Dance by the Wellness University of Florida, an institution dedicated to sharing the ancient healing arts of India across the world. All forms of Natya must be considered part of both mental and physical wellness, and Kalanjali based in Berkeley, California, has been sharing in this mission. “Art is a civilizing influence that reaches far beyond mere entertainment,” declares Katherine.The award ceremony was held at Dharmasthala, Karnataka, on November 6, 2021. Hers was the first Arangetram of Bharata Kalanjali of the Dhananjayans in Adyar, Chennai. She has been running Kalanjali in Berkeley, California, since 1975.

October 2021

See Chicago Dance has chosen Hema Rajagopalan as the 2021 LEGACY AWARD recipient. It is awarded to an artistic leader who has enriched their community and made a significant and sustained impact on dance in Chicago. She is the first Indian to receive the Legacy Award. The awards presentation & Community Celebration took place on October 26, 2021 at Joffrey Tower, Chicago.

Parvathy Baul receives the SHILPOKALA LALON SMAROK SAMMAN from Bangladesh Govt. (Oct 12, 2021)

Guru Kalamandalam Sugandhi Prabhu has been conferred the PhD by Sastra University for the research she undetook under the guidance of Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam.

For the first time in its 90-year history, KERALA KALAMANDALAM has started admitting girl students for the Kathakali course.

September 2021

Madurai R Muralidaran received the KARTIK AWARD OF EXCELLENCE 2021 for his service to the field of Bharatanatyam from Kartik Fine Arts on Sept 30, 2021 at Chennai.

Odissi dancer RAHUL ACHARYA received the WORLD TOURISM DAY AWARD 2021 on Sept 27, 2021 in Bhubaneswar for his contribution to culture and heritage.

Kathakali maestro Kalamandalam Keshavadev received the PATTIKKAMTHODI AWARD 2021, instituted by Kerala Kalamandalam in memory of revered Kathakali Guru Pattikkamthodi Ravunni Menon on September 18, 2021. Keshavadev is renowned for his thaadi veshams. The award carries a purse of Rs 25,000 and a citation.

On Sept 9, 2021 on the final day of the 27th Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Award Festival presented by Srjan, the GURU KELUCHARAN MOHAPATRA AWARD went to Binodini Devi for Theatre and GURU KELUCHARAN YUVA PRATIVA SAMMAN was given to Ramachandra Behera for Odissi music, Arushi Mudgal for Odissi dance.

Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts launched the book GITA GOVINDA: JAYADEVA’S DIVINE ODYSSEY by DR. UTPAL K. BANERJEE (Published by IGNCA) written in English verse, on Sept 7, 2021 in Delhi. It is the first ever fully rhymed translation of the great 12th-century poet Jayadeva.

SIFF Young Artiste Festival 2020-21 announced the first season winners for the title of YOUNG ARTISTE OF THE YEAR on September 4, 2021 in a virtual event. Tamish Pulappadi (instrumental-guitar) from Bangalore, Akshita Singh Chouhan (vocal) from Ujjain and Janki DV (Bharatanatyam - dance) from Udupi won the title in their respective sections. Winners from each segment bag Rs 1 lakh prize money.
Celebrating music and dance in the culmination of the competition in a Grand Finale, National Winner titles across categories were given a cash prize of Rs. 25,000 each. The winners include Ananya Gaur (Kathak) from Ujjain and Meghna Mishra (Odissi) from Rourkela.
Young Artiste 2020 is a national-level talent competition for school children across India. The Singhal Iyer Family Foundation (SIFF) is a Bangalore-based philanthropic organization.

Bharatanatyam dancer NARTHAKI NATARAJ has been chosen as one of Femina’s FABULOUS 40 for 2021. She is the first trans-woman ever to be inducted into a government advisory committee.

August 2021

The annual State Kathakali award, the Pallavoor Appu Marar Award and the Keraleeya Nritya Natya Puraskaram for the years 2019 and 2020 instituted by the State Government were awarded on August 31, 2021at the KT Muhammed Memorial Theatre at the Kerala Sangeeta Nataka Akademi. Kathakali master Vazhenkada Vijayan and Sadanam Balakrishnan received the 2019 and 2020 STATE KATHAKALI AWARDS while the PULLAVOOR APPU MARAR AWARD was presented to Machad Ramakrishnan Nair and Kazhakoot Aniyan Marar. V.P Dhananjayan and Shanta Dhananjayan were honored with the KERALEEYA NRITYA NATYA PURASKARAM for 2019. The award consists of a plaque and a purse of Rs 1.5 lakhs.

The Kerala Kalamandalam Deemed University will be made into a Cultural University in a span of five years, says the Minister for Cultural Affairs, Saji Cherian.

The most people performing a choreographed dance online simultaneously is 698 and was achieved by Madurai R Muralidharan in Chennai on Aug 1, 2021. This online attempt was attended by over 800 participants from all over the world. This is the third successful Guinness World Record title attempt by Muralidharan and his team.

July 2021

Located in Telangana, Ramappa Temple, a 13th century temple (located in the village of Palampet about 200 km north of Telangana’s capital Hyderabad) named after its architect Ramappa, gets world heritage recognition. The decision was taken at the 44th session of the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO held on July 25, 2021 in China. The temple’s sculptures of high artistic quality illustrate regional dance customs and Kakatiyan culture. Dr. Nataraja Ramakrishna, who recreated the glory of Perini dance, and poet Dr. C Narayana Reddy, showed the uniqueness of this temple to the world.

CHICAGO’S CULTURAL TREASURES announced $14.4 million in grant funding to 40 organizations that contribute to the history, culture, vibrancy, and identity of communities of color in greater Chicago. Hema Rajagopalan’s NATYA DANCE THEATER is one of the organizations selected for this honor.

To commemorate the contributions of the Sattriya dance maestro, Sangeet Sattra presented RASHESWAR SAIKIA BARBAYAN SATTRIYA AWARD for 2021 to Dr. Dilip Ranjan Barthakur (tabla artiste), Gobinda Saikia (Sattriya artiste) and Nani Baruah (musician) at Sangeet Sattra auditorium, Guwahati on July 8, 2021. The award was presented by Kishor Thakuria (Director, Directorate of Cultural Affairs, Govt. of Assam) and Sudharshan Thakur (Secretary, Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra).

June 2021

The Drishtikon Dance Foundation announces the DR. SUNIL KOTHARI AWARD FOR THE EMERGING ARTIST in the name of the eminent dance critic, historian and dance connoisseur Late Dr. Sunil Kothari. The award with a cash prize of Rs.11,000 goes to the young and talented dancer Gaurav Bhatti (for Hemant, a part of the project Khidki Se…Seasons from my window), a member of Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company - The Drishtikon Dance Foundation.

USHA RAGHAVAN’s Kalasagara UK, in association with Paallam Arts presented UNITE FOR INDIA - Dance Marathon on June 12/13, 2021 for 30+ hours and raised £11392 (Rs.11,77,930) to provide Covid relief resources for people in India.

PANGEA WORLD THEATER, Minneapolis, has been chosen as one of the TEN CULTURAL JEWELS OF THE MID WEST. 25 years ago, I was fortunate to witness the early years of struggle that the Chennai couple Dipankar Mukherjee and Meena Natarajan underwent. Today, PANGEA stands for diversity, resistance, collaboration and art that are consistent with their politics.

RAMLI IBRAHIM’s scheduled talk at the University of Malaysia was cancelled abruptly by the committee citing “fear of offending some people”. The international award winning dance icon was to speak about the value of diversity in education. This incident has since snowballed into a series of national media articles and debates about Malaysia’s education system.

Dance Magazine’s power list of ‘30 OVER 30’ who've had incredible breakthroughs, or come into their own in new chapters of their careers after age 29 includes Odissi dancer BIJAYINI SATPATHY, who says she feels empowered since setting out as a soloist and choreographer at the age of 45.

World Film Carnival awards ‘COLORS: WHITE’ Best Short Film, Best Film in Performing Arts, Best Film on Women, Best Director, and Best Actress - Five awards in Singapore! Part of a trilogy, it features Bharatanatyam dancer Savitha Sastry and is directed by AK Srikanth.

Dancer Nartaki Nataraj has been appointed as member of Tamil Nadu Planning Commission by Chief Minister Stalin on June 6, 2021.

May 2021

Shobana Bhalchandra is now on the board at Bharata Kalanjali as the Executive Director and will be merging her dance institution Tharanginee with Bharata Kalanjali.

The Nutmeg Ballet Conservatory (NBC) in Torrington (Connecticut) strips dance of name after Hindu activist calls it 'patronizing' and 'caricaturing.' It has renamed performance of iconic ballet "La Bayadère" as 'Petipa highlights,' a celebration of Petipa's choreography and assured no stereotyping in its presentation during its Graduation Performance Series (May 18-21). As such, the excerpts are devoid of context and convey no story to the audience.

ASIA BOOK OF RECORDS and INDIA BOOK OF RECORDS have recognised U.S. based SWATHI LAKSHMANAN for conducting a virtual music and dance festival of Indian classical art forms titled ‘Margazhi in San Francisco’ for the maximum number of consecutive days during the pandemic. The festival was held from December 2020 to January 2021 and featured more than 56 artistes from across the globe.

University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) in Winston-Salem announced the removal of ballet “La Bayadère” from its upcoming Spring Dance concert (April 30 to May 8), after Hindus protested saying it “seriously trivializes Eastern religious and other traditions.” Hindus are also critical of Korean National Ballet (KNB) in Seoul for hosting “La Bayadère” (April 27 to May 2) for “displaying Western caricaturing of Eastern heritage and abetting ethnic stereotyping.”

Bollywood actor and theatre artist SHREYAS TALPADE launched the first-ever OTT arena dedicated to theatre and performing arts. NINE RASA aims to re-ignite the offline theatre experience through the digital platform.

Leicester based NILIMA DEVI's CENTRE FOR INDIAN CLASSICAL DANCE (CICD) celebrates 40 years throughout 2021, by sharing special performances, interviews, seminars and workshops by Indian dance artists, musicians, academics & alumnis from UK & around the globe.

March 2021

"AMERICAN MASTERS: TWYLA MOVES" that explores the iconic choreographer's storied career, premiered on March 26, 2021 on PBS. The documentary features interviews along with select footage of Tharp's more than 160 choreographed works, "including 129 dances, 12 television specials, six major Hollywood movies, four full-length ballets, four Broadway shows and two figure skating routines."

ABHAI celebrated its 32nd Anniversary with presentation of the annual ABHAI awards on March 20, 2021 at Narada Gana Sabha, Chennai.
NATYA KALANIDHI: Prof.A. Janardhanan, senior professor, Kalakshetra (gold medal, citation and Rs.25,000)
GANDHARVA NIPUNA: M.S. Kannan, senior violin accompanist for Bharatanatyam (gold medal, citation and Rs.10,000)
NARTHAKA NIPUNA: G.Narendra, senior performer/teacher and director of Avigna Dance Company (gold medal, citation and Rs.10,000)
NRITHYA PERUNJYOTI: Parvathi Ravi Ghantasala, senior Bharatanatyam exponent, acharya and Arts administrator (gold medal, citation and Rs.10,000)

Tapas Cultural Foundation presented the VIDHYA TAPASVI AWARD for 2020-21 to nagaswaram vidwan Desur DSD Selvarathinam (music) and Bharatanatyam exponent Nithyakalyani Vaidyanathan for their service towards bhakthi oriented classical Fine Arts, on March 11, 2021.

Seven women were inducted into Singapore WOMEN'S HALL OF FAME on March 8, 2021 on International Women's Day including SANTHA BHASKAR, artistic director and chief choreographer at Bhaskar's Art Academy, one of the first Indian dance schools in Singapore.

Mohiniattam dancer/mentor TARA RAJKUMAR is one of the 24 talented women nominated for the KINGSTON WOMAN OF THE YEAR AWARD 2021, Australia. Nominees of this award are women who are leaders in their field, who inspire others and who make a difference to the community through their exceptional professional or personal achievements. The Award was presented at Kingston's International Women's Day ceremony hosted on 5 March 2021.

February 2021

Odissi dancer Ileana Citaristi received PRABASI BHASHA SAMMAN 2021 on Feb 21, 2021 at the 7th International Mother Language Conclave.

KALAIMAMANI for 2019: Madurai R Muralidharam, Maya Shyamsunder, Parvathi Balasubramanian,TM Sreedevi
KALAIMAMANI for 2020: A Janardhanan, Kavitha Charles, Sreelatha Vinod, Vijayalakshmi Boopathy, Aparna Ramesh
Sound engineer Sai Shravanam (2019), KN Ramaswamy of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and M Murali (2019), Y Prabhu of Krishna Gana Sabha and J Balasubramanian of JB Cultural Foundation (2020), musicians Nirmala Rajasekhar (veena), Sikkil Gurucharan (vocal) and Anil Srinivasan (piano) also received the KALAIMAMANI.
PURATCHI THALAIVI DR.J.JAYALALITHA SPECIAL KALAIMAMANI AWARD: Ambika Kameshwar (2019) and Parvathi Ravi Ghantasala (2020)
BALASARASWATHI AWARD (dance): Alarmel Valli (2019) and Chandra Dhandayuthapani (2020)
The awards (made of 5 sovereigns gold medal - 22ct, 40gms - with a certificate of Merit) were given on February 20, 2021 by the Tamilnadu Chief Minister in Chennai.

Kolkata based Chidakash Kalalay under Kalalamandalam Piyal Bhatacharya, conferred the CHIDAKASH SAMMAN on art critic/scholar Dr.Utpal K Banerjee on Feb 17, 2021 as the first time award from this year. Other awardees include Probir Guha (theatre), Meena Banerjee (music) and Anita Mallick (Bharatanatyam).

Tridhara presented the LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD to musician Pt Anup Jhalota on Feb 13, 2021 on the inaugural day of the 14th Guru Debaprasad Award Festival at Rabindra Mandap, Bhubaneswar. On Feb 15, the GURU DEBAPRASAD AWARD 2020 was given to Aruna Mohanty (Odissi, Bhubaneswar), Guru Ghanakanta Bora (Sattriya, Assam) and Gopika Varma (Mohiniattam, Chennai). The GURU DEBAPRASAD PRATIVA AWARD 2020 went to Prof. Manoj Kumar Behera (Balasore), Prativa Panda (Bhubaneswar), Binod Chandra Sahu (Kandhamala), Palomi Mandal (Kolkata).

On February 7, 2021 during the Dhauli-Kalinga Festival, Odisha, the BUDDHA SAMMAN was awarded to Pt Gopal Chandra Panda (Odissi and Hindustani vocalist) and GURU GANGADHAR PRADHAN SMRUTI SAMMAN to Guru K. Ramarao Patra (veena player), Dr. Snehaprava Samantra (Odissi dancer), Shyamhari Chakra (journalist and dance critic) and Late Tarakanta Panda (sound designer & music arranger).

On 7th February 2021, APSARAS ARTS presented the REMEMBERING NEILA SATHYALINGAM FESTIVAL 2021, at the Stamford Arts Centre, Singapore. In 2019, Apsaras Arts instituted an endowment award to recognize a high achiever in Indian classical dance in Singapore. The award includes a citation and a cash purse. This year, Apsaras Arts presented the NEILA SATHYALINGAM MEMORIAL ENDOWMENT AWARD to Meera Balasubramanian.

Guru VIRALIMALAI R MUTHUKANNAMAL, the senior most performer and artiste from a family that has served six generations for the arts, received the TAMILNADU STATE ART AND CULTURE AWARD at Pudukottai (Tamilnadu) on Feb 5, 2021. It is a historic moment for dance history because in post independent India for the first time, a hereditary dancer has been awarded as ‘SADIR ARTIST.’

The 30th JK ARCHITECT OF THE YEAR AWARD for public building category was awarded to Indigo Architects for the NATARANI THEATRE project of Darpana, Ahmedabad.

Kathakali actor SADANAM HARIKUMAR (also a sculptor, painter, Bharatanatyam dancer, musician and composer) is honored with KERALA LALITHAKALA AKADEMI AWARD for 2020 for his sculpture titled ‘Karmayogam’ that shows a resurrected man with a wreath on his chest and crows milling around. The six-foot sculpture depicts ramifications of life and death.

Mohiniattam dancer Methil Devika received the Kerala State KSHETRAKALASREE PURASKARAM 2020 from the Kerala Kshetrakala (Temple Arts) Akademy.

The KERALA STATE KATHAKALI AWARD goes to Vazhengada Vijayan for 2019 and to Sadanam Balakrishnan for 2020.
The KERALEEYA NRITTA-NATYA PURASKARAM to V.P. Dhananjayan and Shanta Dhananjayan for 2019 and to Vimala Menon for 2020.
The PALLAVUR APPU MARAR PURASKARAM to Machad Ramakrishnan Nair for 2019 and to Keezhkoottu Aniyan Marar for 2020.
All three awards comprise a purse of Rs.1 lakh, plaque, and citation.

January 2021

Documentary filmmaker Vinu Vasudevan and Kuchipudi exponent Madhavi Mallampalli have made a film titled NRITHYA GANDHARVA: – PROF. C. V. CHANDRASEKHAR, HIS ART & LIFE that was released on Jan 24, 2021 on YouTube.

The Alumni Association of Kalai Kaviri College of Fine Arts presented the title GEM OF KALAI KAVIRIANS to MOHANAPRIYAN THAVARAJAH on Jan 24, 2021 for "his impeccable growth and establishment in this divine field of Bharatanatyam."

Dancer Geeta Chandran has been invited to join the Advisory Board of the World University of Design. Other luminaries include architect AGK Menon, Aman Nath (Neemrana Group), actress Dolly Ahluwalia and other leading lights from the design world.

Chitra Sundaram honored with the MBE (Member of The Order of The British Empire) for services to the South Asian dance sector and Aakash Odedra honored for services to dance with the BEM (British Empire Medal) in the Queen’s list of honours for the New Year.

PUSHKALA GOPAL to receive the GLOBAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 2020 from Global Arts Academy, UK.

The Nalanda Dance Research Centre’s NALANDA NRITYA NIPUNA AWARD for 2021 goes to Lekha Prasad (BN), Krishnendu Saha (Odissi), Vaishnavi Hazari (BN), Vaishali Varma (BN), Nayana Prakash (Mohiniattam), Meenakshi Venkatraman (BN) and Soumyaa Shrivastava (Kathak). A panel of judges chose them based on their participation in the Online Festival.

Highlights - Yearwise listing