Classical Dancers – Chennaiyil Thiruvaiyaru

Subhadra Marimuthu

Lakshman Sruthi — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 00:03:00 +0000

Kumari. Subhadra Marimuthu (D/O Mr. R. Marimuthu & Mrs. Vasumathi Marimuthu), a Lawyer by profession, is a Bharatnatyam artist who has been learning the art from the age of 5 under the able guidance of her guru Smt. Kausalya Srinivasan.

She has performed for various sabhas like Karthik Fine Arts, Bhramha Gana Sabha, Parthsarathy Swamy Sabha, Barath Kalachar, Rasiga Ranjani Sabha, Priya Vision and more.

She has also performed at Guruvayoor, Kapaleeshwarar temple, Thirichandoor murugar temple, Madurai Meenakshi Amman temple, Thirunnallaar Saneeswarar temple etc. From being just a dancer, she transformed into a professional teacher in May 2007 by starting her own bharatnatyam institution, AMRITHAVARSHINI, centre for the promotion of Art & Culture.

She has performed for 3 consecutive years at Chennaiyil Thiruvaiyaaru bringing various innovative concepts in bharatnatyam like “drums n dance”, Jugalbhandi with 6 percussion instruments, female infanticide awareness etc. Last year she formed her group of elegant dancers and is working on several dance dramas.

She is a trained Carnatic music singer, plays Veena and has started learning to play Mridhangam to improve Thala knowledge.

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Krishnakumari Narendran

Lakshman Sruthi — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 00:01:30 +0000

Krishnakumari Narendran who has over twenty five years of experience in the field of dance, is the founder -director of Abinaya Natyalaya and has been the vital force behind this institution for over two decades. She has trained and given to the world of Bharathanatyam many talented artistes. She is a veteran Guru, well known for her imaginative choreography and scintillating nattuvangam.

She is well known for her group productions, and Abinaya Natyalaya has a cultural repertoire of over fifty thematic solo and group productions. These productions have won great appreciation from audiences both in India and abroad, as well as from the press.

‘Navagraha Ula ‘, based on the nine planets which incorporated, for the first time in bharathanatyam, computerised animation and special effects was a great success. This is a mega production in which 60 dancers participate. This ballet incorporates, for the first time in dance, digital animation and visual special effects. The mythological and factual details about each planet are depicted. Navagraha Ula was a major success in Chennai and has now also been released as a video. The press has been unanimous in giving Navagraha Ula excellent reviews. Navagraha Ula has been released as a full length video tape.

Sri Venkatadri Vaibhavam, is Abinaya Natyalaya’s latest production. This production incorporates a unique blend of religion,music, dance and visuals to chronicle the greatness of Tirumala-Tirupathi. ‘Sri Venkatadri Vaibhavam’, which is choreographed entirely by Krishnakumari Narendran, has been set to music by violin maestro Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan. The Tamil lyrics have been penned by Sreekavee. This unique multimedia production enjoyed a very successful performance tour of the United States of America between June and August 2001.

Awards & Titles

Krishnakumari Narendran is a recipient of the prestigious Kalaimamani Award which is sponsored by the Government of Tamil Nadu. With her versatility and distinctive style of choreography, Kalaimamani Smt. Krishnakumari Narendran has carved a distinct niche for herself in the world of Bharathanatyam .She has been bestowed with many titles, Natya Natak Priya, Natya Rathna, Nrithyarathna and the prestigious Kalaimamani are to name a few.

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Swarnamalya

Lakshman Sruthi — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 00:01:27 +0000

Swarnamalya is a Tamil actress and TV anchor. She is also a bharathanatyam dancer. She is currently acting in a Kalaignar TV serial called Thekkathi Ponnu which is directed by Bharathiraja. She is a famous classical dancer. Swarnamalya means “A golden garland”.

Swarnamalya means “A golden garland”. A golden girl born with artistic fervour and ordained to shoot to fame donning multi various avatars. A dancer, an anchor, an actress, all with academia in excellence. With her potpourri of talents, quest for knowledge and artistic pursuits, she truly is `The Madonna of Chennai’ as once a newspaper had called her.

A graduate from MOP Vaishnav College where she was the student President. She went on to do her MBA, from Symbiosis, PG Diploma in Acting and Direction from Sanjose State University, CA, USA and at present pursuing her Masters in Bharatanatyam from the Madras University. She is deeply involved in her search and research on certain aspects of dance in which she would be pursuing her doctoral degree.

Films Acted

Alaipayuthey
Yuga
Mozhi
Vellithirai
Azhagu Nilayam
Engal Anna
Periyar Ramaswami Naicker
Ennittum
Kerala Police

Awards & Titles

`Yuvakala Bharati’ from the Bharat Kalachar at the age of 17 ! The youngest recipient in the history of Bharat Kalachar selected by a Committee consisting of Sri Lalgudi Jayaraman, Dr.Padma Subramaniyam, Smt Chitra Visweswaran, Smt Sudharani Raghupathy, Sri V.P.Dhananjayan, etc.
`Lakshmi Viswanathan Endowment Prize’ from Sri Krishna Gana Sabha in the year 1998 for the best varnam presentation in the December festival.
Scholarship from the Tamilnadu Iyal Isai Nataka Mandram.
Raving reviews from all the senior most dance critics in all leading newspapers and magazines.
Hosting a dance based TV programme in Srilanka’s Sakthi TV.
Founder Trustee and Director of RANGA MANDIRA, a Trust founded to promote Bharatanatyam and other performing arts.

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G.SHRUTHI LEKHA

Lakshman Sruthi — Thu, 03 Dec 2020 00:03:36 +0000

G.Shruthi Lekha, passionate and highly talented Bharatanatyam dancer has been trained under the eminent Guru Kalaimamani Smt Urmila Sathyanarayanan for the past thirteen years.

Her innate abilities coupled with hard work has made her a very promising dancer. Her clean lines, agile body and mobile face add lustre to her nritta and abinaya. She performed her Arangetram at the age of 12 in Narada Gana Sabha in the presence of two great legends Padmashree Dr.A.K.Palanivel and Padmashree Dr.Kadri Gopalnath. She is a 1st year B.Com student of M.O.P Vaishnav College for Women.

Awards and Prestigious Performances

She received the Best Performer Award for her Bharatanatyam solo performance in the 114^thyear Dance Festival 2014 of Parthasarathy Swami Sabha from Padmashree Dr.Nalli Kuppuswamy Chetti.
She performed solo Bharatanatyam recital in mega carnatic music festival Chennayil Thiruvaiyaru organized by Lakshman Shruthi on 21^st December 2015 in Kamarajar Arangam.
She has performed solo Bharatanatyam recital in Prayarthanam festival of Kalakshetra in under 14 category on 24^th September 2015.
She has been awarded with the title, “Miss Abhilasha” for the culturals in M.O.P Vaishnav College for Women, Chennai on 27^thJuly 2019.
She has also performed in the bharatanatyam competition conducted by

Association of Bharatanatyam Artistes of India (ABHAI) ,“Kalapraveena Pratiyogita

season 2- 2019” and won cash prize.

Solo Performances in Sabhas

Performed in the Thejas Bala Natyotsav organized by Srekala Bharath on 2^nd October 2013.
She has performed in the International Women Association conducted in Brahma Gana Sabha on 12^thDecember 2013.
Performed in Aadi Natya vizha organized by Brahma Gana Sabha in Sivagami Petatchi Auditorium on 27^th July 2014.
She has also performed in Natarajar Temple and Krishna temple at Chidambaram on 16.08.2014.
Performed in Marghazhi season organized by Brahma Gana Sabha on 13^th January 2015.
Performed Margam in the dance festival of Mylapore Fine Arts on 16^th January 2017.
Performed Margam in the margazhi festival under the auspices of Karthik Fine Arts on 15^th January 2018.

Group Performances

She has been part of various productions of her dance school, Natyasankalpaa, like that of the Narada Niranjan at Tirupati, International Chess tournament, Mamallapuram dance festival, Narada Natya Vizha, Ponniamman Navaratri Festival, Thiruvottiyur Natyanjali Festival, Government Music college dance festival, Meenakshi College dance festival, Margazhi season dance festival at Tag Auditorium in 2010-2013.
Performed in the 26^th Annual Day Celebrations of Association of Bharatanatyam Artistes of India (ABHAI) on 20^th October 2013.
Performed in group in Tamilnadu Global Investors Meet 2015 in the presence of Honourable chief minister J.Jayalalitha on 9^th September 2015.
Performed in many group presentations of the dance school, Natyasankalpa in Chennayil Thiruvaiyaru, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Krishna Gana Sabha, Narada Gana Sabha, Bharat Kalachar, Vani Mahal, Vadapazhani temple, Kapaleeshwarar temple and Tirupathi in 2014-2017.
She also performed in Sri Ramunujar temple in Sriperumbudur on 1.05.2017 on account of his 1000^th birth anniversary.

Thematic Presentation

She performed as Bala Meera in the Thematic presentation, “Lotus of Prem” along with her guru Kalaimamani Smt Urmila Sathyanarayanan and students of her dance school Natyasankalpaa in the year 2016 and 2017 in various stages such as Narada Gana Sabha, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mylapore, Krishna Gana Sabha, Vani Mahal and Bharat Kalachar.

Courses Attended

She has attended “Abhivriddhishaala” training conducted by Association of Bharatanatyam Artistes of India (ABHAI) in 2014, 2015 and 2019.

Performance Link

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Yamini Krishnamurthy

Lakshman Sruthi — Thu, 03 Dec 2020 00:02:40 +0000

Yamini Purna Tilaka Krishnamurthy alias Yamini Krishnamurthy, accomplished Bharatanatyam andKuchipudi dancer who has dedicated her life to Indian classical dance for decades, was born in 1940, in Madanapalli, Andhra Pradesh. She hails from an eminent family which was more literarily than artistically inclined. Yamini’s father, M. Krishnamurthy, was a Sanskrit scholar and grandfather was an expert in Urdu poetry.

Yamini gave her debut in 1957 in Chennai, where her charisma and stage presence were recognized, when she was only seventeen. By 1960, she became one of the most admired dancers in the country. Her performances brought about national and international recognition to the classical styles of Bharat Natyam and Kuchipudi. Yamini played a significant role in popularizing Kuchipudi which was then emerging as a solo dance form of Andhra Pradesh in southern India.

Yamini is working on a ballet, titled ‘The Gandhian Order of Life’ and another on Tagore and Subramania Bharati and their depiction of the Goddess Kali. Totally dedicated, her life revolves around her dance school, her students and her compositions.

Musical Training

Yamini enrolled as a student of Bharat Natyam at the age of five in Kalakshetra School of Dance, Chennai and her initial training was under Rukmini Devi Arundale. After acquiring a structural base at Kalakshetra, she went on to higher studies under renowned masters such as Kanchipuram Ellappa Pillai, Thanjavur Kittapa Pillai, Dhandayudhapani Pillai and Mylapore Gouri Amma.

She trained in Kuchipudi under Vedantam Lakshmi Narayana Shastri, Chinta Krishnamurthi and Pasumarthy Venugopal Krishna Sharma. In addition to Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi, she learnt Odissi from Pankaj Charan Das and Kelucharan Mohapatra. She was trained in Carnatic vocal music by M.D. Ramanathan and learnt the Veena from Kalpakam Swaminathan.

Awards & Titles

Her dancing career brought her many awards, including the Padma Shree (1968) and the Padma Bhushan (2001), which are among the highest civilian awards of the Republic of India. She received Sangeet Natak Academy Award’ in 1977. The title of ‘Asthana Narthaki’ was bestowed upon her by the Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam, one of the most sacrosanct temples of India.

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Vipanchee

Lakshman Sruthi — Thu, 03 Dec 2020 00:01:07 +0000

Mythology says that the veena held by Goddess Saraswathi was named ‘Vipanchee’ and ‘Vipanchee Natyalaya’, a dance institute run by Kalaimamani Dr. Saraswati derives its name from there. Entering the dance hall in Vipanchee with its aesthetic settings engulfs everyone in melody and rhythm. Dance choreography and rehearsals are round the clock activity and it all started when Dr. Saraswati came down from the North of India after having acquired the distinction of a renowned dancer and decided to set up an institution for teaching dance. This idea was translated into the establishment of a dance school by name ‘Ramana Sudha Natyalaya’.

When she started looking for a musician to set the musical score for her dance drama ‘Annamayya’, she approached Dr. Balamuralikrishna and to her pleasant surprise the veteran artiste readily agreed to help, thus began their association. Subsequently, Dr. Balamuralikrishna evinced interest in having this natyalaya as a wing of his Trust and it was re-christened as Vipanchee Natyalaya and Dr. Saraswati took over as its Director.

Vipanchee has established branches and is also associated with the Thirupattur Dance School. Vipanchee workshops are being conducted in India, Canada, USA, Australia, U.K. and South Africa. Many research students and dancers sponsored by American Institute of Indian Studies have had vigorous training under Dr. Saraswati, notable among them is Aridoram, who did research in interpreting Bharatanatyam through Saiva Siddantam and Mimi Jaisalwanki a renowned teacher of Bharatanatyam from San Francisco. There are many students from Australia, South Africa, Tanzania and England who have had training under Dr. Saraswati.

“Starting from the Panchatantra story, ‘A mouse is a mouse is a mouse’, we have done over 60 dance features for the Doordarshan including ‘Shakthi Leela’ the first colour dance drama produced for Chennai Doordarshan. Vipanchee has worked on patriotic themes like national integration, social themes like family planning and dance features on Ramana Maharshi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Balasaraswati. We have also dealt with rare themes like ‘Kurunkali’ a 200 year old dance form and a feature about metals” says Dr. Saraswati explaining about the versatility of her dance productions.

To crown all these comes the production on Pada Kavitha Pitamaha ‘Annamayya’ with Dr. Balamuralikrishna himself playing the role of the saint poet, Annamacharya. This dance drama has been performed by Vipanchee troupe and has received encomiums from all over the world.

Dr. Saraswati is a descendant of Appayya Dikshitar and is a renowned dancer, having had her early training in Kolkata where she was born and brought up. She furthered her tutelage in Bharatanatyam under Pandallur Sri Shanmughasundaram Pillai. After her graduation with a gold medal from Calcutta University, she continued her studies from Delhi School of Economics. She has a Doctorate from America West University, USA for her contribution to the fields of Music and Dance.

Founder of Vipanchee, Dr. Balamuralikrishna, a child prodigy born at Sankaraguptham in Andhra Pradesh to musician parents Smt. Suryakanthamma and Shri Pattabhiramayya is a doyen among musicians. At the young age of sixteen, he composed songs in all the seventy two Melakartha ragas, considered the very foundation of carnatic music. Dr. Balamuralikrishna is endowed with the ability of being an accomplished instrumentalist in addition to being a legendary singer. He plays the Violin, Viola, Ganjira, Veena and Mridangam with equal ease. He has over 400 compositions to his credit.

Vipanchee apart from continuing its present good work of spreading art and culture across the globe has embarked on a mission of restoring over 700 rare krithis (songs) of the Saint Composer Thyagaraja. When they accomplish this task it will be an invaluable treasure for generations to come in experiencing the divinity of Saint Thyagaraja through his music.

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Tapasyakala Sampradaya

Lakshman Sruthi — Wed, 18 Nov 2020 00:02:12 +0000

Tapasya Kala Sampradaya has been working to preserve traditional cultural heritage for close to two decades. Set up under the guidance of Isai Perarignar K.P. KITTAPPA PILLAI, Tapasya has been working with hereditary families to research and document traditional Bharatanatyam. Tapasya will be presenting the Narayaneeyam based on the 16th century text by Melpathur Narayana Bhatatiri. Choreographed in traditional style set to traditional Carnatic ragas, this production presents the story of Lord Krishna as described by the composer in The Narayaneeyam. This production, first performed as an offering at Guruvayur , has been widely performed to much public acclaim.

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Urmila Sathyanarayanan

Lakshman Sruthi — Wed, 18 Nov 2020 00:02:06 +0000

Urmila Sathyanarayanan is one of India’s finest dancers of Barata Natyam, the classical dance from the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Urmila has received rave reviews and international acclaim for the perfection and joy of her dance and her captivating stage presence. She is praised for her crisp and precise footwork, the spontaneity and vivaciousness of her facial expressions, her graceful poses, and her deep aramandi (plié position) which is one of the hallmarks of this dance style.

Urmila is also an astute choreographer and has conceptualized, choreographed and presented close to a dozen of her own original thematic productions to high critical acclaim.

Urmila has been performing at the professional level for over two decades. She performs regularly at all the prominent dance festivals across India. She has also toured extensively in Europe, North America, the Middle East, Australia, Asia, and South Africa. Urmila is an empanelled artist of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and an ‘A Top’ grade Artist of Doordarshan (Indian public television).

Musical Training

Urmila has been trained by some of India’s most eminent dance masters. She had undergone her initial training under the late Guru K.N. Dandayudapani Pillai and was later groomed under Guru K.J. Sarasa.

Awards & Titles

Urmila has been the recipient of many prestigious awards, including the Kalaimamani award in 1997, Nritya Choodamani Award in 2001, and the National Eminence Award in 2003 to name only a few. In 2009 the Indian Fine Arts Society awarded her the Best Natyacharya award in recognition of her excellence in teaching, and in 2010, Natya Kalasikhamani or her contribution to the dance field. In addition to her busy performance schedule, Urmila runs a successful dance school in Chennai (Madras) known for its high standards.

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Abimithra

Lakshman Sruthi — Wed, 18 Nov 2020 00:01:07 +0000

Abimithra, aged 13 years, was introduced to Bharathanatyam by Selvi R Karpagam while studying LKG itself. She has performed at various Natyanjalis at Chidambaram, Tanjore, Kumbakonam,Thiruvaiaru, etc. She performed at the International Dance Festival 2009 at Mahabalipuram and received appreciation from Kalaimamani Smt Indira Rajan. She has also trained herself in vocal, Veena, Keyboard, Drums, Rhythm Pad and Guitar.She has performed on many stages and TV programmes. For 7 years she practiced under ‘Nadha laya Natya Kalai Arasi’ Chinnamanur Smt A Sujatha. Nadana Kalai Isaivani award from Tamil Isai Sangam, Karur.

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M V Narasimhachari

Lakshman Sruthi — Wed, 07 Oct 2020 00:03:23 +0000

Shri M.V. Narasimhachari and Shrimati M. Vasanthalakshmi, the well-known duo in Kuchipudi dance, have been at the forefront of their chosen field for many years. Shri Narasimhachari was born in Chennai in 1942 and Shrimati Vasanthalakshmi in 1954 at Kanigiri, Andhra Pradesh.

Shri Narasimhachari was initially trained by his father Satyanarayanachari, a performer and teacher of Kuchipudi dance, and later by masters including Pasumarti Venugopala Krishna Sarma and Mahankali Satyanarayana. He also trained in Bharatanatyam under Shrimati N.S. Jayalakshmi and Rukmini Devi Arundale at Kalakshetra, Chennai, where he participated in some major dance-dramas of the institution. Further, he learnt Mridangam playing under Shanmukhananda Pillai and Karaikudi Krishnamurthy, and vocal music from M.D. Ramanathan and S.R. Janakiraman.

Shrimati Vasanthalakshmi received her training, in Kuchipudi dance under Pasumarthi Venugopala Krishna Sarma, Mahakali Satyanarayana Sarma, C. R. Acharyulu and M. V. Narasimhachari. She also trained in Bharatanatyam under S. Bhoopal, Adyar K. Lakshmanan and M.V. Narasimhachari, Kathak from Vishnu Vaichalkar, Odissi from Ramani Ranjan Jena, and Mohiniattam under Vasantha Arvind. Further she learnt to play the Veena from Kamala Ashwathama.

Shri Narasimhachari and Vasanthalakshmi married in 1969, and went on to establish their institution, the Kalasamarpana Foundation, soon after. Here, they have imparted training to young dancers for many years. The couple have performed widely in the country and outside, and have received high appreciation for their dance-dramas including Tirukkoneswaram, Meghasandesa, Siva Leela, Kalidasa, and Landscape of Emotions.

Awards & Titles

He has received various awards including the Kalaimamani conferred by the Tamil Nadu Eyal Isai Nataka Manram (2003) and the Nritya Choodamani conferred by Srikrishna Gana Sabha (2004). Shri M.V. Narasimhachari and Shrimati M. Vasanthalakshmi receive the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for their contribution to Kuchipudi dance.

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