Bharatanatyam dance

BHARATANATYAM DANCERS

INTRODUCTION

Bharatanatyam dance is a nice profession, and it is a favourite art of Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva in the form of Nataraja used to perform Bharatanatyam dance in order to maintain peace and prosperity in the universe. This famous art form gives great entertainment to the viewers and also to the performers, since dancing is also a kind of physical exercise and it would give good strength to our body. Among the various dancers, Rukmini Devi Arundale (1904–1986) was a famous Bharatanatyam dancer and she was an animal lover and the caretaker of animals. She was also participated in the politics, and during her period, Bharatanatyam dance was considered as a very popular and an entertainment form of arts, since she has introduced several movements and styles in the Bharatanatyam dance.

Rukmini Devi was a Padma Bhushan awardee, and she was highly praised by the political personalities, dance and drama artists and by the general public, for exhibiting her talents in the dance field.

Rukmini Devi was born in the year 1904 in Madurai, and her mother was very much interested in dance, drama and music, as a result, Rukmini at her young age itself was keen in learning dance and music. She married with Dr.George and travelled all over the world, along with her husband.

Rukmini Devi learned dance from a dance scholar, and thereafter she concentrated her entire attention in inventing new dance forms, and dedicated the rest of her life in the field of Dance.

In the year 1936, she established Kalakshetra, a dance academy, at Adyar. Due to her interest in protecting the animals, she started the Animal Welfare Board of India, in the year 1962. She was a strict vegetarian, and she also insisted others to follow vegetarian diet.

Rukmini Devi Arundale died in the year 1986 in Chennai.

AWARDS

1. Padma Bhushan
2. Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
3. Desikothama
4. Prani Mitra
5. Queen Victoria Silver Medal
6. Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
7. Honorary Doctorate was awarded by Wayne State University, United States

Still prominent dancers like Chitra Visveswaran, Anitha Ratnam and Amman Arul Selvi Boomija Ramaiyer are contributing a lot in the field of Bharatanatyam Dance.

“OM”

WRITTEN BY

R.HARISHANKAR