November 2026ANITA SAYS.....Even with all the greed, the stupidity, The terrible things that we are facing and reading in the news Or experiencing… I want to be alive I want to breathe I want to do my work - Patti Smith, American singer-song writer and poet  October moved like a single restless current between three cities. In Kolkata, the pandals rose in astonishing variety, each one a temporary palace of craft where bamboo, cane, cloth, metal and light were shaped into everything from intimate street shrines to towering architectural fantasies - the makers’ skill turning devotion into pure spectacle. In Madrid, the staccato of flamenco jostled against the late night pulse of churros and hot chocolate - heat and music spilling from plazas as if the city refused to go indoors. Finally, the Venice Biennale that offered rooms with a quieter intensity, where contemporary art sat in careful conversation with the lagoon’s shifting light. One month, three kinds of looking, and the shared pleasure of watching human hands, minds, bodies and imagination at work. Read more or Use the audio control (at the top of the page in the website) to listen to the editorial |
TAKITATOM
The Vice President of
India, C.P. Radhakrishnan released the book 'Dancing with Joy' by DR
ANANDA SHANKAR JAYANT on October 14, 2026 at the Uprashtrapathi Bhavan,
New Delhi.
PADMALAKSSHME SURESH's Padmalaya School of Bharatanatyam, marks its
silver jubilee with Padmalaya 25, a year-long celebration featuring 25
activities across the silver jubilee year, including performances,
workshops, lec-dems and other cultural engagements. |
ANNOUNCEMENTSNCPA presents world premiere The absence of presence By Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, 6pm Oct 31 & Nov 1, 2026 Mumbai Abhinaya Dance Company of San Jose premieres Kolam: At the Threshold Mexican Heritage Plaza, 4pm November 7, 2026 San Jose, CA Guru Shradha presents Guruvaibhavam Sunnyvale Theatre, 3pm November 21, 2026 Sunnyvale, CA LOOK OUT FORMASTER TALKS by ASHISH KHOKAR EP 9 | LA MERI EP 10 | RAGINI DEVI EP 11 | MADAME MENAKA EP 12 | RUKMINI DEVI ARUNDALE When Classical goes Viral | Sriram Emani | TEDxChennai Sriram Emani runs the IndianRaga movement where the most talented musicians and dancers are handpicked to collaborate and produce videos that go viral across 65 countries to over 100 million audiences. |
AWARDS Adiguru Odissi Gurukul, Bhubaneswar, presented the 13TH ADIGURU PADMASHRI PANKAJ CHARAN DAS AWARD 2026 to Odissi dance exponent Guru Minakhi Behera on October 16, 2026 at Utkal Rangamancha Auditorium, Bhubaneswar.  Tridhara presented the following awards on October 24, 2026 at Bhubaneswar on the concluding day of the 20th Guru Debaprasad Award Festival. The GURU DEBAPRASAD LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 2026 was conferred upon Guru Ramlal Baret of Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, for his contribution to Kathak, and Guru Simanchala Patra of Ganjam, Odisha, for his contribution to Prahallad Natak. Dr. Snehaprava Samantaray of Bhubaneswar received the GURU DEBAPRASAD AWARD 2026 for her contribution to Odissi dance. The GURU DEBAPRASAD YUVA PRATIVA AWARDS 2026 were presented to Gururaju of Bengaluru for Kuchipudi dance and Mokshada Tripathy of Cuttack for Odissi dance. The GURU DEBAPRASAD SISHU PRATIVA AWARDS 2026 recognised young Odissi dancers Dibyashree Kar of Bhubaneswar and Swapnarani Panigrahi of Paralakhemundi for their promising talent in Odissi dance.  On October 23, 2026 Rasika Ranjani Sabha conferred NRITYA KALA RATNA on Odissi dancer Aruna Mohanty and NRITYA YUVA KALA RATNA on Vaidehi Harish at Chennai.  SWARALAYA KALAMANDALAM RAMANKUTTY NAIR AWARD 2026 will be given to The Dhananjayans by Swaralaya on December 26, 2026 at Palakkad during the Swaralaya Samanwayam Festival.  Ileana Citaristi receives the GURU SINGHARI SAMMAN 2026 on the 7th of November 2026 during the 14th Odishi Raga Mahotsav organised by Guru Gopal Panda Odishi Academy in Bhubaneswar. |
ATMA SHANTI
 Classical dancer, actor and choreographer, Kathak legend ROSHAN KUMARI (Dec 24, 1937- Oct 5, 2026) is no more. One of the foremost exponents of Kathak, she followed the Jaipur Gharana and founded Nritya Kala Kendra in 1971 in Mumbai. Her mother Zohra Begum of Ambala was a famous playback singer of her times and her father Faqir Mohammed was a well-known maestro of tabla and pakhawaj. No wonder Roshan Kumari could claim music in her blood and rhythm in her feet. She learnt the basics of Kathak from K. S. Moray and continued her training at Maharaj Bindadin School of Kathak, Mumbai, under Guru Sunder Prasad. Later, she trained under Ghulam Hussain Khan and Hanuman Prasad and also learnt Bharatanatyam from Govindaraj Pillai and Mahalingam Pillai. Roshan Kumari has performed Kathak in Bimal Roy's film Parineeta (1953), in Satyajit Ray's film Jalsagar (1958), and several other films. She also worked as a choreographer in Hindi feature films such as Gopi, Lekin (1990), Chaitali (1975) and Sardari Begum (1996). A recipient of many awards, she has been honored with Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1975), Padma Shri from Govt of India (1984), Maharashtra Gaurav Puraskar from govt of Maharashtra (1990), and the Man Patra honour from Kathak Kendra, Jaipur (1993).  SYLVIE ARUP GHOSH passed away on October 18, 2026 on ashtami in Chennai. Shishya of guru M.K. Saroja in the 1980s with her husband Arup Ghosh of Bengal, she also learnt Karanas from Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam whose neighbour she was. A true rasika, she attended most kutcheris in Chennai. She also loved to look after stray cats and dogs and in last two decades has taken up the cause of varkaris, abhangs, Tukaram and Namdev. A true bhakta, she was German only in skin; her core was universally Indian. She is survived by her daughter Amrita.  SREEDEVI RAJAN, eminent exponent and guru of Mohiniattam, passed away on October 27, 2026 in Kochi aged 84. The daughter of Kalamandalam Krishnan Nair and Kalamandalam Kalyanikuttyamma, Sreedevi was the director of Nrithyakshethra. She began choreographing Mohiniattam pieces alongside her mother at a young age and adapted literary works of various Malayalam poets into the dance form. She made significant contributions to Mohiniattam as a performer, scholar, choreographer, composer, and educator. Her scholarly contributions include the book ‘Mudrakhyam,’ a visual dictionary detailing Mohiniattam hand gestures. Her awards include the Sangeet Natak Akademi award, Kalashree award, Kalasagar Puraskar, and Kalamandalam Krishnankutty Poduval Memorial Award. Through her teaching, publications, and choreography, she enriched the artistic and pedagogical traditions of Mohiniattam and inspired generations of practitioners. She is survived by her daughters Smitha Rajan and Sandhya Rajan who are both Mohiniattam dancers and teachers. |
FROM THE ARCHIVES I'm also coming! - Rama Vaidyanathan When I turned six, my mother took me to Yamini Krishnamurthy and enrolled me in Bharatanatyam classes.  My Mother - Ramli Ibrahim I have always believed that mothers, rather than fathers, have the strongest influence on the children, particularly the sons. |
