Raja & Radha Reddy

The world-renowned dancing couple, Raja and Radha Reddy, have given a new dimension to the age-old art of Kuchipudi dance without sacrificing the traditional poetry or dramatic sensibility. With rare excellence and perfection of technique, they stand tall on the highest stage of Kuchipudi today, among the major dance forms of India. They hail from the state of Andhra Pradesh, the birth place of Kuchipudi style of Indian classical dance.

Through their togetherness and perfect unison, Raja and Radha Reddy portray the masculine vigour and lyrical charm of the classical pairs of Hindu mythology--such as Shiva-Parvati, Rama-Sita and Krishna-Radha--thus identifying themselves with the twin concept of Purusha and Prakriti, the male-female principle in Indian philosophy. In precise postures and refined patterns the duo re-enlivens the magnificent sculptures chiseled in the ancient temples of India.

Raja-Radha Reddy have formulated a syllabus for the Kuchipudi repertoire systematizing the basic movements and mudras. They have choreographed each item to make Kuchipudi classical dance form acceptable to modern cosmopolitan audiences.

Raja-Radha Reddy have taken upon themselves to propagate music and dance among the growing younger generation. What started as a passion for Raja and Radha has now changed into a tradition with both maestros working, indefatigably, towards initiating fresh talent into the cultural paradigm and perpetuate this art form.

Kuchipudi

Kuchipudi (తెలుగు : కూచిపూడి) (pronounced as 'Koochipoodi') is a Classical Indian dance form from Andhra Pradesh, a state of South India. Kuchipudi is the name of a small village in the Divi Taluq of Krishna district that borders the Bay of Bengal and with resident Brahmins practising this traditional dance form, it acquired the present name.

With the dance form attaining perfection by the time of Golconda king Abdul Hassan Tanesha, Kuchipudi brahmins are said to have received 600 acres (2.4 km²) of land as an endowment from Tanesha for the great presentation before him.

Siddhendra Yogi is said to be the first scholar to give it the current form of dance drama. Bhamakalapam is one of his celebrated compositions. He also reserved the art to males by teaching it to young brahmin boys of the village. However, in modern times, the art has been dominated by women.

The performance usually begins with some stage rites, after which each of the character comes on to the stage and introduces him/herself with a daru (a small composition of both song and dance) to introduce the identity, set the mood, of the character in the drama. The drama then begins. The dance is accompanied by song which is typically Carnatic music. The singer is accompanied by mridangam (a classical South Indian percussion instrument), violin, flute and the tambura (a drone instrument with strings which are plucked). Ornaments worn by the artists are generally made of a light weight wood called Boorugu.

Satriya Nritya

Satriya, The Beautiful Classic Dance of Assam. During winter (November- February) the best place to see the Satriya dance is Guwahati. A tourist to Assam during winter would do well to find out if their visits coincide with the annual Satriya Dance festival organised by one of the following institutions : Puspanjall Cultural Academy, Sangeet Satra, Srimanta Sankardev Sangha and Satra Mahasabha. The Satriya Dance festival organised by these institutions would normally have all the facts of this dance including Dhemalis by Goyan Bayans. Apart from this, many institutions show Satriya Dance on the make shift open stages during Bihu festival (April May) The lively and colourful folk dances of Assam

Bihu Dance

This form of dance is the most popular folk dance in Assam and is also a part of the life known as Assamese life. The folk dance cuts through all the religious, caste and class barriers of the different kinds of people living in Assam.
Bihu Dance is performed during the festival and the festival is celebrated thrice annually with their respective common name. Rongali , the biggest festival of Assam, is celebrated in the mid of April. Bhogali is celebrated during mid of January and Kangali is done in the mid of October.

When the festival arrives, the young men and girls who are performers gather during day time in the open. These performers dance together but are not paired together and form in lines when they dance. The music played at this dance are drums and pipes and the performers sing of love during the act. The pattern which the performers follow during the dance is the circle or the parallel rows. The dancers sway their hips, take brisk steps and fling and flip their hands when the dance progresses. The traditional dress worn consist of Dhoti, Gamocha, Chadar and Mekhala (Indian clothes).

Dance Culture of Assam

Dance culture of Assam also represent another facet of Assam rich culture. There are two well known dance form in Assam, namely the Bihu Dance and the Sattriya Dance. Bihu dance is mostly performed during the Bihu festival and Sattriya Dance is a classical form of dance often termed together with the most popular classical dance of India like Kathak, Bharatnatyam etc.

Sonal Mansingh

An eminent Indian classical dancer, she is the maestro of Odissi dance form. She is also proficient in performing other dance forms such as Kuchipudi, Bharatnatyam and Chhau. Well, we are talking about the great Indian dancer Sonal Mansingh, who has made Indians proud. In this article, we will present you with the biography of Odissi dancer Sonal Mansingh, one of the most prominent dancers of India.

She was born in the year 1944 in Mumbai. Her dance performances are simply awe inspiring and have brought her lot of fame and fortune. Her works have always been highly praised. Infact, she has been honored with several awards as a mark of appreciation of her works. In the year 1992, she received the Padma Bhushan, which is the highest civilian award of India. To know the complete life history of Sonal Mansingh, read on.

Not only she has committed herself to the dancing field, but also made an incredible contribution in bringing a smile on the faces of millions of people. Sonal Mansingh is the first Indian dancer to have been honored with Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award in the year 2003. Due to her great thoughts and opinions, sometimes, she is also called a philosopher.

GOVINDA

Govinda (Hindi: गोविंदा; Punjabi: ਗੋਵਿੰਦਾ) (born Govind Arun Ahuja, on December 21, 1963)[1] is a Filmfare award-winning Indian actor and politician. He has appeared in over 120 Hindi language films. At the start of his career, his acting and dancing skills gained him widespread attention among film viewers. He later gained worldwide fame as a Bollywood icon through comedy films such as Shola Aur Shabnam, Aankhen, Coolie No.1, Haseena Maan Jaayegi and Partner.
Govinda was nicknamed and referred to as "Chi Chi " (Punjabi: Little Finger) by his family, close associates and occasionally by the media.
He is a member of the Indian National Congress Party He was elected as the 7th Member of Parliament for the Mumbai North Constituency of Maharashtra, India in the 14th Lok Sabha elections after defeating Ram Naik of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

HRITIK ROSHAN

Hrithik Roshan (Hindi: ऋतिक रोशन [ˈrɪtɪk ˈroːʃən]; born January 10, 1974) is an Indian actor who appears in Bollywood films.
After having appeared in films as a child actor in the 1980s, Roshan made his film debut in a leading role in Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000). The film was a major success, and Roshan's performance earned him Filmfare Awards for Best Actor and Best Male Debut. He has been noted for his performances in films like Koi... Mil Gaya (2003), Krrish (2006), Dhoom 2 (2006) and Jodhaa Akbar (2008) which are also his biggest commercial successes so far, and for which he won numerous Best Actor awards.
In 2008, Roshan received his first international award at the Golden Minbar International Film Festival in Kazan, Russia for his performance in Jodhaa Akbar. Roshan has thus established himself as one of the leading actors of Bollywood.

Shahid Kapoor

As a young boy, he was an eager student of Shiamak Davar. Since then, Shahid Kapoor has gained much acclaim and admiration for his dancing prowess. Shahid Kapoor has danced his way in to the hearts of audiences. His energy and enthusiasm spilled out of his screen performance in the track Mauja hi Mauja

CHITRA VISHWESWARAN

Chitra Vishweswaran is famed as one of the leading Bharatnatyam dancers of India. A competent performer, teacher and choreographer, she heads her own dance institution, 'Chidambaram Academy of Performing Arts (CAPA)', at Chennai.

Chitra's association with dance began early at the tender age of three from her own mother, Smt. Rukmini Padmanabhan, an excellent dancer herself. She took up Western Classical Ballet in London where her father was Railway Adviser at the Indian High Commission. This was followed by training in Manipuri and Kathak in Calcutta (Kolkata). Chitra started training under Smt.T. A. Rajalakshmi which continued for 10 years. Under her guidance, talented Chitra could achieve a level of proficiency and she choreographed her first dance at the age of eleven.

Debamitra Sengupta

Who: Dancer and Choreographer
Genre: Dancer
Short Bio: Debamitra Sengupta is one of the finest exponents of the classical Odissi dance form in country. Based in Kolkata, Debamitra has been performing since the past 18 years.

A hugely talented dancer, Debamitra trained under renowned teachers of this art such as Padmabibhushan Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra, Padmashree Sanjukta Panigrahi and Sutapa Talukdar.

She has performed in various parts of the globe including cities such as San Francisco, Atlanta, Boston, New York and Washington D.C.

Apart from being an exceptional dancer, Debamitra shares a passion for teaching. The passion for grooming talent led her to form the 'Kolkata Mayur Lalit Dance Academy', a dance academy by means of which she has been developing young talent in the country.