"TO A MAN WHO ONLY HAS A HAMMER EVERYTHING HE ENCOUNTERSLOOKS LIKE A NAIL" - American psychologist Abraham Maslow Hmmm- sums up how harsh and shrill the tone has been amongst some cultural and social circles. Sitting in Chennai where the temperatures are rising every second, there is much to talk about - and the two main events in the dance and music world DID NOT reflect much positivity. MOST of the action was OFF STAGE... and social media was the battle ground for much of the tussle of words, egos, ideologies and theories. What am I talking about? I will get to that But first... the good ..read more

Mohiniyattam, like other theatrical arts of Kerala, has been dramatic, but the real-life drama that unfolded in the past few days has catapulted Mohiniyattam to the segment of main/ hard news from being perhaps a byte in the arts and culture segment. Mohiniyattam became the hotbed of controversy with the instance of a faculty from Kerala Kalamandalam making derogatory comments on the gender and skin colour of an established male artiste, teacher, and scholar, Dr R LV Ramakrishnan and the whole community of Mohiniyattam dancers standing up for him on the social media. Numerous opinions and sup ..read more

It is heartening to see a surfeit of professional productions in the Naatya arena attracting a huge mixed audience being entertained with a fairly good standard of dancing. Over the years some of the Bharatanaatyam schools have been competing with each other excelling in their presentation quality using technological developments both in stagecraft and audio support. The senior and junior naatya acharyas and self-styled choreographers strive hard to train their students to maintain a good dancing technique with precision, synchronisation in group dancing, uniformity in costuming though some la ..read more

Performing arts entrepreneurship is not a new invention. It can reasonably be presumed that performing artists have always been entrepreneurial. It is indubitably admirable that art thinkers and educators have started to ponder this subject seriously for years. Nevertheless, it was only a few years ago that the subject was made as Master's program at university level around the globe. It is essentially focusing on cultural and performing art entrepreneurship today. Different modern art incubators and performing art institutions can play a key role in fostering this entire idea.  Read more ..read more

Rama Vaidyanathan, that dynamic all in one - dancer, teacher, choreographer, organiser, mother and mentor - has worked very, very hard to sustain a career in dance with family responsibilities, running a school, career and more. Today, Rama Vaidyanathan has also left a mark as the best Natya Kala Conference host with most outreach, acclaim and applause. Her students are now a legion, spread all over the world. Rama today ranks as numero uno in her generation of Bharatanatyam artistes. So, when in the Swarna Saroja year - marked to peg 50 years is her saas-guru creation the Ganesa Natyalaya ..read more

Traditional Manipuri dance Guru Sagolshem Kirti Singh expired on 6th March 2024 at his residence. Guru Sagolshem Kirti Singh, son of S. Kesho Singh, resident of Uripok Takhellambam Leikai, Imphal West, Manipur, was born on 1st March 1956. He received training in Manipuri dance from local gurus from early stage of life and formal training in three year certificate course JNMDA - 1970 and completed Diploma in Manipuri dance JNMDA-1973. Read more in the site Please provide your name / email id along with your comment. Anonymous and derogatory comments will be removed. Pl provide your name and ..read more

FROM NARENDRA SHARMA ARCHIVES From time immemorial, Music and Dance have an intimate relationship - one lives on the other in performing arts. In the 20th century, composers and choreographers shared a tenuous relationship in stimulating fresh trends in dance-making - both in the East and the West.  This post looks into a particular thread of music-making which evolved on Indian sub-continent, within the expansive 'nationalist/post-colonial' discourse, based on Indian instruments, voice culture, 'swara' of 'raga', intricate 'tala' system, and deeply embedded within the ethos of indige ..read more

Dance performances are a dime a dozen. But how often, while watching a performance, does one experience a feeling of being transported to another level of consciousness, where one has for a few moments, lost a feeling of oneself? This was the state-of-being I experienced watching Malavika Sarukkai dance in the Angan of her home, before a small gathering of friends. To review such a performance would almost be an affront, for what was an act of worship and thanksgiving at the altar of the Dance muse, for having bestowed on the dancer's person, the benediction of mental and physical v ..read more

Abstract This article reappraises Bharatanatyam from a therapeutic point of view, intending to explore the benefits it offers in physical, psychological and psycho-social realms to the practitioner. The aim is to derive useful insights on employing Bharatanatyam as a therapeutic dance form to aspirants seeking benefits in this regard. The insights can serve as a benchmark to trainers who seek to expand the scope of the dance form to a therapeutic plane. While mainstream research focuses on the aesthetic and artistic features of Bharatanatyam, often the therapeutic benefits offered by this danc ..read more

JGPAC sounds most unlike a dance music place. But it is. A college of performing arts, no less. In Ahmedabad, near Navrangpura area, beyond Gujarat University campus. The college architecture is nothing unusual in the landscape of mushrooming businesses in this city, now resembling a mini Manhattan. I've been visiting Amdavad (as locals call it) for 40 plus years now. It started with Paldi circle for most and ended at Ellis Bridge. There was one hotel those days called Karnavati and one dance institution of national importance - Darpana, initiated by the most gracious lady in dance field I'v ..read more