March 2024
ANITA SAYS.....
To be alive at all is
to have scars
- American writer John Steinbeck
An extra day in February was most welcome to collect my thoughts after a month of relentless travel.
Just two days before February closed, I had the unique opportunity to be
in the presence of one of India's most charismatic politicians. The
extraordinary security checks, the fastidious search of everyone's
social media handles, the minute by minute instructions of where to
stand, how much physical distance that was to be maintained and what to
say felt like a complex handbook of rules. Surrounded by business
professionals who were speaking finance, economics, profitability and
employment, I was the sole artiste in this private meeting. The term
VIKSIT BHARAT was being chanted ever so often during the speeches that
followed and I was left wondering about the most developed form of
expressions of this very idea that the Indian performing arts contained.
The most evolved and the least supported. VIKSIT means DEVELOPED and
while there is so much political emphasis today on a DEVELOPED INDIA -
education, medicine, space, technology and manufacturing, it is in the
arts - the classical arts - that India is truly VIKSIT. Yet, the needle
has shifted and the mood is stubbornly tilted towards popular culture
and the visual spectacle.
Read on....
Anita Says... by Dr. Anita R Ratnam
APPLE PODCAST | SPOTIFY | YouTube
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TAKITATOM
On Feb 20, 2024 at the golden jubilee (50th edition) event of the Khajuraho Dance Festival in Madhya Pradesh at the world renowned heritage site, 1484 artistes came together to set a new GUINNESS WORLD RECORD for the biggest Kathak dance performance ever.
Parshwanath Upadhye and Punyah Dance launched a holistic new space PUNYAH ABHYASA SHAALA
on Feb 19, 2024 located at Chikale reserve forest about 40km from
Belgaum, Karnataka. The space was inaugurated by Guru T Ravindra Sharma
and Revathi Sharma.
Kuchipudi/Andhra Natyam Guru KALA KRISHNA received the Honorary Doctorate from Potti Sriramulu Telugu University.
The archiving of Montreal based Kala Bharati's legacy (Guru Mamata Niyogi Nakra) made public on the 29th February 2024 to observe Rukmini Devi's birth anniversary.
On February 2, 2024, Bharatanatyam dancer BALA DEVI CHANDRASHEKAR
released a digital version of 'Brihadeeswara - Form to Formless through
the Eyes of a Devaradiyal' at the UNESCO Head Office in Paris.
Sujata Srinivasan has been awarded the 2024 INDIVIDUAL EXCELLENCE
AWARD FOR CHOREOGRAPHY by the Ohio Arts Council. She shares this honor
with six other outstanding choreographers, out of a pool of 500
applicants.
Recipients of 2024 United States Artists Fellowships, which come with a $50,000 unrestricted grant, include MYTHILI PRAKASH.
California based contemporary dance group Ishami Dance Company (Amit
Patel & Ishika Seth) has been nominated for an IZZY AWARD for
'Outstanding Achievement in Performance as a Company' for 'Pehchaan.'
Annette Philip, the music artist for Pehchaan, has been nominated for an
'Outstanding Achievement in Music/Sound/Text.'
Soorya Foundation for Performing Arts (Los Angeles-Atlanta) founded by
Sushma Mohan, has been awarded "2024 GRANTS FOR ARTS PROJECTS" by the
National Endowment for the Arts under 'Grants for Arts Projects - Folk
& Traditional Arts' category to support its annual Los Angeles
Indian Dance Festival - LAIDF. Two other Indian performing arts
organizations in the US received 2024 grants from the NEA - Chhandayan
(New York, NY) and Ragamala Dance (Minneapolis, MN).
Bharatanatyam and Kathak dancer/teacher based in Montgomery, Alabama,
SUDHA RAGHURAM has received 2 grants from the Alabama State Council on
the Arts for 2024 - the Folk arts apprenticeship grant and a project
grant titled 'All the world is a stage' to organize dance recitals by
her students in the Public Libraries of Montgomery.
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AWARDS
The General Council of Sangeet Natak Akademi, the National Academy of
Music, Dance and Drama, New Delhi, at its meeting held on 21 and 22 Feb
2024 at New Delhi unanimously elected 6 eminent personalities in the
field of performing arts as Akademi Fellows (Akademi Ratna). The honour
carries a purse money of Rupees three lakhs.
The General Council also selected 92 artists from the field of Music,
Dance, Theatre, Traditional / Folk / Tribal Music / Dance / Theatre,
Puppetry and Overall contribution / scholarship in the Performing Arts
for the Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) for the years
2022 & 2023. The Award carries a purse money of Rupees one lakh, a
Tamrapatra and Angavastram. The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships and
Awards will be conferred by the President of India in a special
investiture ceremony.
The General Council of the Akademi has also selected 80 young artists
for Sangeet Natak Akademi Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for the
years 2022 & 2023. The Puraskar carries a purse money of Rs. 25,000
besides a Tamrapatra and Angavastram. These awards will be conferred by
the Chairman, Sangeet Natak Akademi, in a special ceremony.
AKADEMI RATNA:
Vinayak Khedekar, R. Visweswaran, Sunayana Hazarilal, Raja & Radha Reddy, Dulal Roy, D.P. Sinha
AWARDEES FOR THE YEAR 2022
AKADEMI PURASKAR for Dance:
Manjula Ramaswamy (BN), Nalini and Kamalini Asthana (Kathak),
Kalamandalam Balasubrahmaniam (Kathakali), S. Noyonshakhi Devi
(Manipuri), Bhagavatula Sethuram (Kuchipudi), Niranjan Rout (Odissi),
Gobinda Saikia (Sattriya), Kala Vijayan (Mohiniattam), Sadhucharan
Mahato (Chhau), Bharat Sharma (Creative & Experimental Dance),
Karuna Borah (Other major traditions of dance and dance theatre- Ankiya
Bhawan), Pusthakam Ramaa (Music for dance)
Margi Madhu Chakyar (Other major traditions of Theatre -Kutiyattam)
Chingtham Ranjeet Khuman (Thang Ta, Manipur)
OVERALL CONTRIBUTION/SCHOLARSHIP IN PERFORMING ARTS
Lakshahira Das (Overall contribution in performing arts), Prameela Gurumurthy (Scholarship in performing arts)
USTAD BISMILLAH KHAN YUVA PURASKAR for Dance:
Mandakranta Roy (BN), Kadam Saurinbhai Parikh (Kathak), Urmika Maibam
(Manipuri), T.Reddi Lakshmi (Kuchipudi), Arupa Gayatri Panda (Odissi),
Dimpee Baishya (Sattriya), Akshara M Das (Mohiniattam), Pradyumna Kumar
Mohanta (Chhau), Mingma Dorjee Lepcha (Creative & Experimental
Dance), Aparna Nangiar (Nangiarkoothu)
Moirangthem Kendra Singh (Nata Sankirtan, Manipur)
Anuthama Murali (Overall contribution in performing arts)
AWARDEES FOR THE YEAR 2023
AKADEMI PURASKAR for Dance:
Urmila Sathyanarayanan (BN), Jagdish Gangani (Kathak), Margi Vijayakumar
(Kathakali). Latasana Devi (Manipuri), Maddali Usha Gayatri
(Kuchipudi), Snehaprava Samantaray (Odissi), Bhaben Borbayan (Sattriya),
Pallavi Krishnan (Mohiniattam), Parikshit Mahato (Chhau), Nirupama
& Rajendra (Creative & Experimental Dance), Perini Prakash
(Other major traditions of dance and dance theatre- Periniattam),
Kalinath Mishra (Music for dance)
Piyal Bhattacharya (Other major traditions of theatre -Sanskrit Theatre)
OVERALL CONTRIBUTION/SCHOLARSHIP IN PERFORMING ARTS
Gopalan Nair Venu (Venu G - Overall contribution in performing arts), Jagdish Trivedi (Scholarship in performing arts)
USTAD BISMILLAH KHAN YUVA PURASKAR for Dance:
Apoorva Jayaraman (BN), Meghranjani Medhi (Kathak), Kalamandalam Vipin
(Vipis V.S - Kathakali), Pukhrambam Reepa Devi (Manipuri), M.
Surendra Nadh (Kuchipudi), Debasish Pattnaik (Odissi), Mukunda Saikia
(Sattriya), Vidyamol Pradeep (Mohiniattam), Sunita Mahato (Chhau),
Venkateshwaran Kuppuswamy (Music for Dance)
B. Mallikarjuna Rao (Allied Theatre Arts - Make-up)
Laxminarayan Jena (Overall contribution in performing arts)
Sarasalaya conferred the following awards on Feb 10, 2024 at the 12th Sarasa Natya Mala at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Chennai.
SWAYAM PRAKASHA NARTAKA: Sathyanarayana Raju
NRITYA VIDYA RATNA: Parvathi Ravi Ghantasala
NRITYA SANGEETHA RATNA: Murali Parthasarathy
KJ SARASA MEMORIAL AWARD: S Janaki
Natya Sampada school of dance presented KALAABHISAARIKE AWARD to
Kalamandalam Usha Datar and Veena Murthy Vijay and NATYA SIRI AWARD to
Dr. Sudharani and Manu Jagadish on February 17, 2024 at Ravindra
Kalakshetra, Bangalore.
Dr. Sadanam Harikumar will be honoured with the title KALAA-BHAASKARA on
March 2, 2024 by Bharata Kalanjali during their Kathakali festival in
Chennai.
On February 27, 2024 music and dance critic Dr. M Surya Prasad received
the SRI THYAGARAJA PRASHASTHI award carrying a purse of Rs.10000,
citation and a shawl, under the aegis of Mysore Mulakanadu Charitable
Sabha, Mysore, on the occasion of its annual Sri Thyagaraja Aradhana
festival.
Sanchari Trust presented the 1ST SANCHARI KALA SAMMAN to Guru Aruna
Mohanty and the 1ST SAMAKSH YUVA SAMMAN to Rahul Acharya on 28th
February 2024 at Utkal Rangamancha, Bhubaneswar. 
On the concluding day of the 20th Dhauli Mahotsav, Odisha, on February
11, 2024, the BUDDHA SAMMAN 2024 was presented to Madhavi Mudgal for her
lifetime contribution in the field of Odissi dance. GURU GANGADHAR
SMRUTI SAMMAN 2024 was presented to Guru Simanchala Patro (Prahallad
Natak), Pt. Debendra Narayan Satapathy (Hindustani classical vocal),
Odissi Guru Ratikant Mohapatra, and Dr. Siddhartha Mohanty (General
Medical Practitioner).
On February 25, 2024 Kalanilayam presented the DR K VISWANATH GARI AWARD
to Sharon Lowen at Hyderabad. Sharon considers it a privilege that the
great director selected her to play herself as inspiration for the
heroine of 'Swarnakamalam' to value her own classical tradition.
Shastriya Nrithya Kalakarula Sankshema Samaikhya presented the
BHARATAMUNI PURASKAR to Veena Murthy Vijay on Feb 25, 2024 at Kakinadu,
Andhra Pradesh, during the Bharatamuni Mahotsava.
Sanatan Sangeet Sanskriti awards the SANATAN SANGEET PURASKAR 2024 to
Sudha Raghuraman (classical music) and Navina Jafa (classical dance),
Vibha Galhotra (Visual Arts), Sudeep Sen (Literature), Aarti Gupta
(Ideas) on 1st March 2024 at C. D. Deshmukh Auditorium, New Delhi.
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TRIBUTE
Film director and screen writer KUMAR SHAHANI, whose complex and
deeply-layered works such as Maya Darpan, Tarang, Khayal Gatha and Char
Adhyay enriched and expanded the creative language of arthouse cinema,
passed away at a Kolkata hospital on February 24, 2024. He was 83.
Khayal Gatha (1989) explored the classical music form using legends,
poetry and dance featuring Pt Birju Maharaj. Bhavantarana (1991) is a
documentary on Odissi Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra and received the
National Film Award for best biographical film, and Alarmel Valli
featured in Bamboo Flute (2000).
The last film of Kumar Shahani
- Ileana Citaristi
We had already started to talk about the possibility of doing a film on
my story but it got finalised only when Kumar came to Bhubaneswar in
2009 to attend a film festival and visited my house.
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FROM THE ARCHIVES
 Kalamezhuthu: A ritual performance
- Padma Jayaraj
Pictorial designs, is the inheritance of humanity from ancient times.
All over the world, it first appeared on floors, and on walls of human
dwellings.
 Harikatha Kalakshepa
- Dr. BM Sundaram
Storytelling took a refined shape in 'Purana Pravachana' (Literary
discourse) and not much later as 'Sangeeta Upanyasam' (Musical
discourse) for the elite audience.
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