Mrinalini sarabhai autobiography featuring

Mrinalini Sarabhai

Indian classical dancer

Mrinalini Vikram Sarabhai (11 May – 21 January ) was an Indian classical dancer, choreographer and instructor. She was the founder and director of the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, an institute for imparting training in dance, drama, music and puppetry, in the city of Ahmedabad.[2] She received Padma Bhushan in and Padma Shri in She also received many other citations in recognition of her contribution to art.

Biography

Early life and education

Mrinalini was born to a Tamil Brahmin father and MalayaliNair mother[3] in present-day Kerala on 11 May [4] Her father was Subbarama Swaminathan, a distinguished lawyer with degrees from Harvard and London Universities, who practised criminal statute at Madras High Court and was later made Principal of the Madras Law College.[5] Her mother was her father's Sambandham partner (and later wife) A.V.

Ammukutty, better known as Ammu Swaminathan, a social worker, an independence activist, and later a parliamentarian.[6] Her elder sister Lakshmi Sahgal was the commander-in-chief of Subhas Chandra Bose's 'Rani of Jhansi Regiment' of the Indian National Army (Azad Hind Fauj).[7] Her elder brother, Govind Swaminadhan, was a barrister who practised in Madras as a specialist in constitutional and criminal rule apart from civil law and company law; he was the attorney general for Madras Articulate (now Tamil Nadu).[8] She attended a boarding school in Switzerland for two years, where, she received her first lessons in the Dalcroze school, a Western technique of dance movements.[9] She was educated at Shantiniketan under the guidance of Rabindranath Tagore where she realised her correct calling.

She then went for a short time to the United States where she enrolled in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. On returning to India, she began her coaching in the south Indian classical dance form of Bharatanatyam under Meenakshisundaram Pillai and the classical dance-drama of Kathakali under the legendary Guru Thakazhi Kunchu Kurup.[10]

Marriage and the following years

Mrinalini married the Indian physicist Vikram Sarabhai who is considered to be the Father of the Indian Space Program in She has a son, Kartikeya and a daughter Mallika who too went on to attain fame in dance and theatre.

Mrinalini founded Darpana in Ahmedabad in A year later, she performed at the Théâtre national de Chaillot in Paris.[citation needed]

Mrinalini and Vikram had a troubled marriage. According to biographer Amrita Shah, Vikram Sarabhai had a void in his personal life he sought to fill by dedicating himself to applying science for social good.[11]

Other areas of contribution

Besides choreographing more than three hundred boogie dramas, she has also written many novels, poetry, plays and stories for children.

She was the chairperson of the Gujarat State Handicrafts and Handloom Progress Corporation Ltd. She was also one of the trustees of the Sarvodaya International Trust, an organisation for promotion of Gandhian ideals, and was also the chairperson of the Nehru Foundation for Development (NFD).[12] Her autobiography is titled Mrinalini Sarabhai: The Voice of the Heart.[13]

Death

She was admitted to hospital on 20 January and died the next day at the age of [14]

Awards and recognition

Mrinalini Sarabhai has been awarded by the Indian government with the national civilian awards Padma Bhushan in and the Padma Shri in [15] She was honoured with the Degree of Doctor of Letters, honoris causa (LittD) by the University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK in She was also the first Indian to acquire the medal and Diploma of the French association Archives Internationales de la Danse.

She received the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship in [16] She was nominated to the executive committee of the International Dance Council, Paris in [2] and awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, New Delhi in She was presented with a gold medal by the Mexican Government for her choreography for the Ballet Folklorico of Mexico.[citation needed]

The Darpana Academy of Performing Arts noted its golden jubilee on 28 December , with the announcement of the annual "Mrinalini Sarabhai Award for Classical Excellence", in the field of classical dance.[17][18]

Mrinalini Sarabhai: The Artist and Her Art, a documentary film based on her life released in It was directed by Yadavan Chandran and produced by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust.[19]

She was the first recipient of the Nishagandhi Puraskaram, an annual award of the Government of Kerala.

The award was presented in [20] She was awarded the Dhirubhai Thakar Savyasachi Saraswat Award in [21]

On 11 May , Google Doodle commemorated her th birthday.[22]

In popular culture

Regina Cassandra portrayed her in Sony LIV's series Rocket Boys based on the life of Vikram Sarabhai and Homi J.

Bhabha.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ^"Mrinalini Sarabhai, Indian Classical Dancer and Choreographer, Dies at 97".

    Mrinalini Vikram Sarabhai 11 May — 21 January was an Indian classical dancer, choreographer and instructor. She was the founder and director of the Darpana Academy of Performing Artsan institute for imparting training in dance, drama, music and puppetry, in the city of Ahmedabad. She also received many other citations in recognition of her contribution to art. Ammukutty, better known as Ammu Swaminathana social worker, an independence activist, and later a parliamentarian.

    Nida NaJar. The Brand-new York Times. 27 January Retrieved 7 March

  2. ^ abIndira Gandhi Memorial Trust (). Challenges of the twenty-first century: Conference .

    Taylor & Francis.

    The Voice of the Heart: An Autobiography - Mrinalini Sarabhai ...: Written With Disarming Honesty And Plain Eloquence, The Voice Of The Heart Is A Warm And Vivid Memoir Of A Being Optimally Lived.

    p.&#; ISBN&#;.

  3. ^"On Nature Dance Day: The Women who embody grace". . Retrieved 16 January
  4. ^Debra Craine and Judith Mackrell (). The Oxford Dictionary of Dance.

    Oxford: University Urge. p.&#; ISBN&#;.

  5. ^"Natarani's last dance".

    Her autobiography is titled Mrinalini Sarabhai: The Voice of the Heart. [13] She was admitted to hospital on 20 January and died the next day at the age of [14] Mrinalini Sarabhai has been awarded by the Indian government with the national civilian awards Padma Bhushan in and the Padma Shri in [15].

    Mumbai Mirror. 22 January Retrieved 3 March

  6. ^Gupta, Smita (). "Comrade Lakshmi Sahgal (–): Revolutionary, a true daughter of India". Social Scientist. 40 (9/10): 85– JSTOR&#; Retrieved 20 November
  7. ^Kolappan, B.

    (24 July ). "A fulfilling journey that began in Madras". The Hindu. Retrieved 10 December

  8. ^"The Hindu&#;: Govind Swaminadhan passes away". 13 January Archived from the imaginative on 13 January Retrieved 10 December
  9. ^"First step, first love".

    Use this Work. Create a new list. This edition doesn't have a description yet. Can you add one?

    The Indian Express. 9 December Archived from the original on 22 April

  10. ^"Mrinalini & Sanjay: Children Of Indian Spring, Masters Of Global Bloom". . Retrieved 11 May
  11. ^Amrita Shah () Vikram Sarabhai: A Life.

    Penguin Viking. ISBN&#;

  12. ^Nehru Foundation for Development. Rizvi shabib .org
  13. ^Mrinalini Sarabhai (). The Voice of the Heart: An Autobiography. HarperCollins Publishers India, a combined venture with India Today Community.

    A renowned Indian classical dancer, the first to also turn into a choreographer, Mrinalini Sarabhai was an epitome of grace, elegance and creativity. Her performances were not just mesmerising to the viewer but she used her theatrical platform to raise understanding about social issues, which was unthinkable for a woman in those days. She was a dancer first, but she was also an activist and an author. Married to the celebrated scientist Vikram Sarabhai, she carved out a separate niche for herself as a renowned dancer.

    ISBN&#;.

  14. ^"Mrinalini Sarabhai passes away". The Hindu. 21 January ISSN&#;X. Retrieved 21 January
  15. ^"Padma Awards"(PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.

    Archived from the original(PDF) on 15 October Retrieved 21 July

  16. ^"Dance". Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala.

    Mrinalini Sarabhai was an Indian classical dancer, choreographer, and instructor. Grant us remember her on the occasion of her birthday. She attended a boarding school in Switzerland for two years, where, she received her first lessons in the Dalcroze school, a Western technique of dance movements. She was educated at Shantiniketan under the guidance of Rabindranath Tagore where she realised her true calling.

    Retrieved 25 February

  17. ^"Tradition takes over". The Indian Express. 26 December Retrieved 20 October [permanent dead link&#;]
  18. ^"Google Doodle celebrates legendary dancer Mrinalini Sarabhai".

    The Times of India. Retrieved 11 May

  19. ^"Mrinalini Sarabhai: The Artist and her Art". PSBT India. 21 October Archived from the original on 21 December
  20. ^"Nishagandhi Puraskaram for Mrinalini Sarabhai".

    The Hindu. 26 January Retrieved 29 January

  21. ^"K G Subramanyan awarded Savyasachi Award".

    The voice of the heart by Mrinalini Sarabhai, , HarperCollins Publishers India, a joint venture with India Today Group edition, in English.

    The Times of India. 28 June Retrieved 15 July

  22. ^"Mrinalini Sarabhai's th Birthday". 11 May

External links