Bharati Shivaji | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1948 |
| Occupation | Classical dancer |
| Known for | Mohiniyattom |
| Awards | Padma Shri Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Lasya Lakshmi Sahitya Kala Parishad Samman Nritya Choodamani |
Bharati Shivaji is an Indian classical dancer of Mohiniyattom,[1] choreographer and author, known for her contributions to the art form by way of performance, research and propagation.[2] She is the founder of Center for Mohiniyattam, a dance academy promoting Mohiniyattom[3] and the co-author of two books, Art of Mohiniyattom[4] and Mohiniyattom.[5] She is a recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award[6] and Sahitya Kala Parishad Samman.[7] The Government of India awarded her the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 2004, for her contributions to Indian classical dance.[8]
Mohiniyattam is one of the eight Indian classical dance forms recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi. The term Mohiniyattam comes from the words "Mohini" (meaning a woman who enchants onlookers) and "attam" (meaning graceful and sensuous body movements). The word "Mohiniyattam" literally means "dance of the enchantress".[9]
Bharati Shivaji was born in 1948 in the temple town of Kumbakonam, in Tanjavur district of the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu,[10] and had her early training in Bharatnatyam under Lalita Shastri[11] and Odissi under Kelucharan Mohapatra.[12] Later, on advice from Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, renowned social reformer, she took up research on Mohiniyattom, the traditional dance form of Kerala.[7] After obtaining a research fellowship from Sangeet Natak Akademi, she traveled to Kerala and pursued research under Kavalam Narayana Panicker, a scholar of the Temple Arts of Kerala and former vice-chairman of Sangeet Natak Akademi.[13] Shifting her focus from Bharatnatyam and Odissi,[11] she started training Mohiniyattom under Radha Marar and, later, under Kalamandalam Satyabhama, and also had a training stint under Kalamandalam Kalyanikutty Amma,[3] considered by many as the Mother of Mohiniyattom.[14]
Moving to New Delhi, Shivaji founded the dance academy, Center for Mohiniyattom, a dedicated facility for promoting the dance form. She is known to have contributed to the evolution of the dance tradition,[7] by adding more languor to the already languorous discipline,[11] and by adapting it to other dance forms such as ballet; her Mohiniyattom adaptation of the Swan Lake of Tchaikovsky, choreographed along with her daughter, Vijayalakshmi, is one such effort.[15] Her productions include adaptations of Bhanusinger Padavali of Rabindranath Tagore,[16] Chandrotsavam of the Manipravalam, Somastuthi from the Rig Veda, and the Devagita, from Ashtapadi.[3] She is known to have incorporated postures, movements and music from other Traditional art forms of Kerala such as Ottamthullal, Kaikottikali, Thayambaka and Krishnanattam into Mohiniyattom, a legacy from her tutelage under Kavalam Narayana Panicker.[17]
In 1986, Shivaji published his first book, Art of Mohiniyattam, co-authored by Avinash Pasricha.[4] The book documents her researches under Sangeet Natak Akademi fellowship and a subsequent senior fellowship from the Department of Culture under the Ministry of Human Resource Development and is a reference book on the subject.[7] She published another book, Mohiniyattam, co-written by her daughter, Vijayalakshmi, herself a noted Mohiniyattom performer, in 2003.[5] The book deals with the history and evolution of the art form and comments about the styles and techniques, repertoire, music, costumes and jewellery associated with it.[2] She has performed on several stages in India[18][19] and abroad[20] and has taught many Indian and foreign students.[21] She also continues her research by visiting temples and gives lecture-demonstrations on the dance form at conferences and seminars.[16]
Shivaji was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1999-2000.[6] Four years later, the Government of India included her in the 2004 Republic Day Honours list for the fourth highest civilian award of the Padma Shri.[8] She is a recipient of the Sahitya Kala Parishad Samman, Lasya Lakshmi title from Kunchan Nambiar Memorial Trust, Kerala and Nritya Choodamani title from the Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai.[22] She won the Nishagandhi Puraskaram of the Government of Kerala in 2017.[23]
Sara and Urs Baur, two American filmmakers, have made a documentary, Beyond Grace, on Mohiniyattom and the art of Shivaji which features her daughter, Vijayalakshmi, too.[24] The 78-minute film, which details the work of the mother-daughter combination,[25] was premiered on 9 July 2011 at the Raleigh Theatre, Hollywood, Los Angeles.[24]
