Awarding South Asian Dance
Lavina Suthenthiran profiles three artists in the UK who have received awards for their work in South Asian Dance
The UK has a diverse and vibrant artistic culture and is fortunate enough to be the home of great artists from whom we can draw inspiration. Lavina Suthenthiran has spoken to three artists here in the UK who have received awards in recent times for their outstanding work in the field of South Asian Dance.
Pratap Pawar
Pratap Pawar, also known as ‘India’s divine dancer’ is a Kathak performing artist and choreographer hailing from Delhi, North India.
He won the title of Padmashree in March 2008, which is an award given by the President of India to individuals who represent the best in their spheres of public life, arts, science and business.
He began his journey by undergoing training for many years with the legendary Shri Birju Maharaj, head of the Lucknow tradition of Kathak.
Above: Pratap Pawar receiving his award from the President of India in 2008
Having established himself in India, Pratap was employed by the Indian government to spread the word of Kathak around the world. He started off performing in Trinidad and Guyana where he spent eight years and then made his way to the UK where he has been living for the past 30 years.
Prior to coming to the UK, he set up his own company, The Triveni Dance Company, with which he extensively toured the UK, Asia, Europe, the Americas, Africa and the Caribbean.
Pratap has gone ‘up and beyond’, breaking boundaries by fusing Indian dance traditions with those of other cultures, such as Andalusian flamenco, African and Caribbean dance and Modern dance. At the same time, he manages to maintain the originality and identity of all styles with which he works.
Not only has Pratap stunned audiences globally and sculpted some of the finest dancers of today, he also does a lot of educational work in schools and takes regular classes here in the UK.
When Pratap was asked if he’d be willing to accept the Padmashree award his response was, “I am not willing to accept, I am more than willing to accept!”
Having first seen Pratap Pawar perform whilst I was at ‘Dance India 2009’ in Manchester, I was completely blown away by his energy and connection with the audience and it’s of no surprise to me that he’s referred to as ‘India’s Divine Dancer.’
Nina Rajarani MBE
Nina Rajarani MBE, the Artistic Director of SRISHTI, resident company of the Harrow Arts Centre and Harrow Council in Middlesex, was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s 2009 Birthday Honours, in recognition of her Services to South Asian Dance. The award was announced in June 2009 and was presented to Nina by Prince Charles at an official ceremony in Buckingham Palace on 11th December 2009.
I wanted to know what was running through her head when she won the MBE award last year, she said: “I thought someone was playing a joke on me. I believe that someone has to nominate you for something like this, but I still don’t have the slightest clue who has nominated me. To be honest, until it was published in the London Gazette, I didn’t believe it was true.”
Nina’s artistic journey began with her training under Prakash Yadagudde at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in London. She also trained with Chitra Visweswaran of Chennai, India, during her visits to London. In 1989, Nina won a scholarship by the Arts Council and ADiTi (the then national organisation for South Asian Dance in the UK) to undergo intensive training with The Dhananjayans in Chennai and ever since she has been regularly training with them on her visits to Chennai.
Nina’s dance style today is unique and cutting edge and reflects that she is a product of both the East and the West. This has enabled her to take South Asian Dance to the next level in the UK, bringing it to wider public recognition by catering for different audiences.
She has toured extensively within the UK, in several other European countries, in India, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and the USA.
In 2006, Nina won the Place Prize, Europe’s largest choreographic competition sponsored by Bloomberg. Out of an initial total entry of 204 contestants, Nina’s piece Quick! was the audience’s favourite as well as the overall winner of the competition.
Nina has been closely linked to the committee of dance teachers who put together the syllabus for Bharatanatyam with graded examinations conducted by ISTD; in fact the ISTD graded syllabus for Bharatanatyam was born out of a syllabus that she had long before written for her own school as a personal teaching tool. Since the launch of the ISTD’s South Asian Dance Faculty in 1999, she has been its Secretary and is also a Bharatanatyam examiner for the ISTD.
Nina explained that her approach to everything as a dancer has been very simple, “Like a horse with blinkers, I just look straight ahead towards my destination and keep moving without worrying about what is going on to the left or to the right.
Nina Rajarani is the Artistic Director of SRISHTI which comprises Nina Rajarani Dance Creations – the professional international touring company; Nina Rajarani Dance School – based at the Harrow Arts Centre providing traditional training in Bharatanatyam and Karnatic music; Srishti Yuva Culture – a youth group focussing on performance experience for emerging young trainee dancers; and Srishti Skills – a community group that does outreach education work.
Chitraleka Bolar
Chitraleka Bolar, who originates from India, is a prominent Bharatanatyam artist in the UK. She is the Artistic Director of Chitraleka Dance Company and has worked extensively in Britain and abroad as a performer, teacher and choreographer. Chitraleka's company has been based at the University of Birmingham’s School of Education since 1997 and King Edward Sixth Handsworth School, Birmingham.
Recently, Chitraleka has placed emphasis on the professional development of young dancers, education and outreach work and training. This change in focus is evident in her recent achievements. Her work in dance education has been of huge impact.
Above: Chitraleka (left) is seen here being presented with her award by IAPEGSW Life Member Chiyoe Matsumoto
Last July, she became the first ever recipient of an international Dance Development Award by the International Association of Physical Education and Sports for Girls and Women (IAPESGW). The award was made by Chiyoe Matsumoto, the highly acclaimed authority on Dance Education from Japan. The award is to honour a respected dance practitioner/researcher and teacher who has sustained a strong reputation over many years and continues to work in the field of Dance Education. IAPESGW started in 1949 as an idea to bring physical education teachers together from all over the world. Dance has enjoyed a long history in this subject across the world and is celebrated by the Association. In July 2009, at the 60th birthday of the Association, participants from 22 countries enjoyed a great opportunity to share research, workshops and practices at the beautiful Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa, where this award was received by Chitraleka.
Chitraleka said: “I was extremely happy and shocked to find out that I had won this award and to be the first person to win it really meant a lot to me. I love working in schools and engaging with groups giving even the toughest students something positive to focus on.”
Chitraleka has inspired generations of UK students in Indian dance at every level of education and in the community dance sector. She travels frequently to India and her first home in Kerala, to refresh her creativity, collaborate with the finest Indian dancers and musicians to sustain the high quality of her work.
Throughout her 30-year history as an Indian dance artist in the UK, Chitraleka has sustained her work as a choreographer and dancer, as well as constantly developing the educational focus of her company.
In 1998, Chitraleka started a Youth Dance Company. Through the youth programme, the company has made a significant contribution to the region's artistic and cultural scene, regularly presenting classical and dance-drama productions to the community.
She has served as the Chair of the South Asian Dance Faculty of the ISTD for several years and continues to be a valued committee member of the Faculty. She is also a Senior Monitoring Examiner for Bharatanatyam.
When I asked what we can expect from her in the future, Chitraleka said: “I want to continue to do what I am doing and see where things head. I don’t really plan.” |
