Dr Padma Subrahmanyam

Among the outstanding Bharatnatyam dancers of today, Dr Padma Subrahmanyam through her enchanting performances has a special place in the minds of classical dance lovers. Born to late K. Subrahmanyam and Meenakshi, the creative dancer and choreographer, has revived mono-acting technique (Banika style) through Krishnaya Tubhyam Namaha, Ramaya Tubhyam Namaha, Jaya Jaya Sankara and other productions. She has given several solo and group presentations (including dance dramas) such as Meenakshi Kalyanam, Viralimalai Kuravanji and Vande Mataram (specially produced for the Golden Jubilee of India’s Independence).

Padma SubrahmanyamPadma Subrahmanyam is an accomplished composer and singer. As a research scholar she helped highlight the fact that the 108 Karanas (basic units of dance) are actually movements and not just static poses. She has choreographed recitals in Tamil, Kashmiri, Hindi, Bengali, Oriya, Marathi, Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam languages. She has also used Russian songs to demonstrate Abhinaya (communication) technique. As part of her attempts at experimentation, she depicted Jatayu Moksham (in Ramayana), set to the Tchaikovsky’s ballet Romeo and Juliet. Padma Subrahmanyam is the recipient of many awards including Padmashri, Kalaimamani, Kalidas Samman, Bharata Sastra Rakshamani and Nada Brahmam. She runs Nrithyodaya (a dance school founded by her father in 1942).