Bharatanatyam is an Indian classical dance form that originated in Tamil Nadu, India. It is a classical dance form recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas of Hinduism and Jainism.
Kalakshetra Foundation, formerly simply Kalakshetra, is an arts and cultural academy dedicated to the preservation of traditional values in Indian art and crafts, especially in the field of Bharatanatyam dance and Gandharvaveda music. Based in Chennai, India, the academy was founded in January 1936 by Rukmini Devi Arundale and her husband George Arundale. Under Arundale's guidance, the institution achieved national and international recognition for its unique style and perfectionism. In 1962, Kalakshetra moved to a new 40-hectre campus in Besant Nagar, Chennai.
In India, a devadasi is a female artist who is dedicated to the worship and service of a deity or a temple for the rest of her life. The dedication takes place in a ceremony that is somewhat similar to a marriage ceremony. In addition to taking care of the temple and performing rituals, these women also learn and practice classical Indian dances such as Bharatanatyam, Mohiniyattam, Kuchipudi, and Odissi. Their status as dancers, musicians, and consorts was an essential part of temple worship.
Rukmini Devi Arundale was an Indian theosophist, dancer and choreographer of the Indian classical dance form of Bharatanatyam, and an activist for animal welfare.
Thanjavur Brinda (1912-1996) was one of the representatives of the Veenai Dhanammal school of Carnatic Music. She was primarily a vocalist, although she also played the Veena. She is affectionately referred to as 'Brindamma', by her fans.
Chola Nadu is a cultural region of the Tamil Nadu state in southern India. It encompasses the lower reaches of the Kaveri River and its delta, and formed the cultural homeland and political base of the Chola Dynasty which ruled large parts of South India and parts of Sri Lanka between the 9th and 13th centuries CE. Uraiyur served as the early Chola capital, then medieval Cholas shifted to Thanjavur and later cholas king Rajendra Chola I moved the capital to Gangaikonda Cholapuram in Ariyalur in the 11th century CE.
Veenai Dhanammal (1867–1938) was a highly accomplished Carnatic musician, and the torchbearer of the school of Carnatic music that goes by her name. She was both a vocalist and a performer on the Saraswati veena. The prefix "Veenai" in her name is an indicator of her exceptional mastery of that instrument.
Kshetrayya (Telugu:క్షేత్రయ్య) was a prolific Telugu poet. He lived in the area of Andhra Pradesh in South India. He composed a number of padams and keertanas, the prevalent formats of his time. He is credited with more than 4000 compositions, although only a handful have survived. He composed his songs on his favourite deity Krishna (Gopala) in Telugu.
Neila Sathyalingam was a Singaporean classical Indian dancer, choreographer and instructor of Sri Lankan Tamil origin. An alumna of Kalakshetra in Madras under the tutelage of Srimathi Rukmini Devi Arundale, she emigrated with her family to Singapore in 1974. In 1977 she and her husband founded the performance arts company Apsaras Arts, which has staged performances throughout the world. She was the company's artistic director and continued to teach dance.
Vannadil Pudiyaveettil Dhananjayan and Shanta Dhananjayan, together known as the Dhananjayans, are an Indian dancing couple who were awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2009.
E. Krishna Iyer was an Indian lawyer, freedom-fighter, classical artist and activist. He was the follower of traditional Isaivellalar practitioners of Sadir, also known as Bharatanatyam.
Alarmel Valli is an Indian classical dancer and Bharatanatyam-Pandanallur choreographer.
Leela Samson is a Bharatanatyam dancer, choreographer, instructor, writer and actress from India. As a soloist, she is known for her technical virtuosity and has taught Bharatanatyam at Shriram Bhartiya Kala Kendra in Delhi for many years.
Justin McCarthy is an American-born Indian Bharatnatyam dancer, instructor and choreographer. He teaches Bharatnatyam at the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra at Delhi, where he has been for the last three decades. He moved to India in 1979, learnt Bharatanatyam from danseuse Leela Samson for ten years, before beginning to teach it at the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra at Delhi, where he has teaching ever since. Before this, he received his early training at the Dance School of Berkeley and later trained under Subbaraya Pillai, a leading Guru of the Pandanallur style of Bharatanatyam at Chennai. He is also a pianist of Western classical music, and adept in Carnatic music.
Kalanidhi Narayanan was an Indian dancer and teacher of Indian classical dance form of Bharatnatyam, who was the early non-devadasi girl to learn the dance form and perform it on stage in the 1930s and 1940s. After a brief career in the 1940s, she returned to dance in 1973 and became a notable teacher of abhinaya.
K. P. Kittappa Pillai was the son of Sangita Kalanidhi K. Ponniah Pillai (1888-1945), a scion of the famous Tanjore Quartet, codifiers of the Bharatanatyam format.
Indira Kadambi A brilliant performer, a sensitive, innovative and intelligent choreographer, Indira Kadambi has carved a niche for herself as one of the excellent exponents amongst her generation of Bharatanatyam artists today. Her abiding commitment, integrity and passion for the art give a sheen to her recitals.
Meenakshi Srinivasan is an Indian classical dancer and choreographer, and an exponent of the Pandanallur style of Bharatnatyam. She trained under Alarmel Valli and is considered among the most promising soloists of the younger generation of dancers in this traditional style.
R Muthukannammal is a seventh generation veteran Sadir dancer from the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. She is the only surviving person among the 32 Devadasis who served the deity at the Viralimalai Murugan temple and she is the last woman to have the ceremony pottukkattutal of dedicating oneself to God performed at the Viralimalai temple. In the year 2022, Govt of India honoured Muthukannammal by conferring the Padma Shri award for her contributions in the field of art. The dance form Sadir, variously called as Sadiraattam or Parathaiyar Aattam or Thevarattam, is a classical Indian dance from which was reinvented, modified and rechristened as Bharatanatyam through the efforts of E Krishna Iyer in 1932. However, Muthukannammal has chosen to call her art form Sadir, making her the only Sadir exponent today.
Coimbatore Thayi (1872–1917) was an Indian musician.
