Article - The Sovereign Art and the Administrative Web: Sadhana in the shadows of the portal by Dr. Lata Surendra

 We celebrated 80 years of Independence, but let us finally be independent in thoughts, deeds, and actions. True independence cannot merely be a date on a calendar; it must live in the uncompromised truth of our cultural conscience. To safeguard the pristine in all walks of life, we must actively strip away the petite barriers of power politics, institutional lobbying, and the manufactured noise that dictates modern success.

Art, in its highest form, must remain our great didactic mirror. It must boldly reflect the raw, actual reality of our human experience, ensuring that what we sustain is truly authentic. If not, we will watch good, authentic artists fade into obscurity, leaving a concerned fraternity standing in the shadows - carrying heavy whispers, forever wondering at the how with a desperate, unanswered why.

Yet, today we find ourselves suffocating in a hyper-optimized social media landscape. We watch as innocent childhood, budding genius, and seasoned mastery are all forced into the same frantic arena - vying for fleeting digital footprints in 30-second reels. This desperate chase of quantity over quality dilutes the sacred.

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Anita says...October 2026

And just like that, I feel exhilarated to be a dancer, a performer and everything that has given me an inside view of this fabulous and frenetic world. I must confess, that the past few months had left me a bit wistful, maybe even a tad sad and uncertain about the future of our classical and neo classical styles. Despite all the efforts of recasting Bharatanatyam especially, in various moulds - stand-up comedy, Nightie Natyam (wearing kaftans for abhinaya) and Hip Hop, twerking and what not - there is so much energy and talent out there. Amidst the barrage of festivals and performances, I am seeing some phenomenal energy in the performing arts space.

And so, I share my travels and thoughts this month on a true high!

MELBOURNE

This vibrant and culturally diverse city called me back after 6 years. This time, my flight Down Under was to watch and lend solidarity to my long-time dance colleague, the dance diva of Australia, Anandavalli. 

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Modern Moksha - Dance Matters: Column by Ashish Mohan Khokar

Moksha is the ultimate quest for most evolved souls but in dance how to achieve it? No, I'm not referring to the often concluding item in Odissi repertoire, which is a joke now as all are smiling as if there's no tomorrow! Moksha? They are thinking of momos for dinner or what their mummies have made for dinner post-performance!

Minal is both a mummy and moksha seeker and if her Moksha was a quest for a new dance aesthetics in Bharatanatyam then she succeeded admirably at Alliance Francaise, Bangalore. Bringing in an international cast was both a boon and doom because one each student from London (Ritika Srikanth), Boston (Manasi) and 'Frisco (Janaki) showed virtual learning and internationalism in Indian dance and yet a repeat show will not be easy to collect them again, unless someone bank rolls it or sends their private plane to fetch each and drop back. Manasi and Janaki are sisters, besides. 

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Malavika Sarukkai's inward journey into dance/space relationship keeps audience spellbound - Taalam: column by Leela Venkataraman

Speaking of a world she inhabits, where dance is the language of communication, Malavika Sarukkai's talk at the IIC titled Dance Speak, held a rivetted audience enthralled. Totally divorced from textual theory and based entirely on her own intensely personal journey into the relationship of how dance sculpts and interacts with space, she had arrived at the conclusion that 'Space and Dance were partners'. Dance for her had become a language. Her natyadharmi, she discovered, was decided by space. Mudras and hastas don't speak by themselves. The gravitas of a hasta stems from its placing in space - as for example showing a 'sitting bird', just holding the mudra is not enough. One has to make the hand in hasta travel through the air and settle down to convey and suggest the message of a sitting bird. It is the elaboration of the hasta and its movement and placing in space, that conveys the full meaning.

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Article - Jana Gana Mana is a song not a document, Kapila Vatsyayan, T.M. Krishna, and the Politics of Sanskritization - Dr Avanthi Meduri

Abstract:
This essay responds to T. M. Krishna's 4th Kapila Vatsyayan Memorial Lecture, "I Sing, Therefore I Am," by examining his radical proposal to rethink Rabindranath Tagore's Jana Gana Mana through the lens of language, caste, and regional identity. It argues that reducing the national anthem to a problem of caste hegemony, power and Sanskritized language politics misses the distinction between written text and embodied cultural performance central to Vatsyayan's thought. Drawing on notions of rasa, unisonance, nationalism, Sanskritization, and collective singing, the essay contends that an anthem is not merely a linguistic artifact but a performed, socio-cultural form through which the individual "I" is gathered into a shared national "we."

T. M. Krishna's (TMK) title naturally intrigued me. I wanted to see how he would invoke Descartes to think through Vatsyayan's legacy - specifically her lifelong affirmation of the sovereign voice and subjectivity of the musician, actor, and dancer. But I came away dismayed. 

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Obit - Dr Mandakranta Bose (1938- 2026) - Jai Govinda

Scholar and author Dr. Mandakranta Bose passed away on September 10, 2026 in her home city of Vancouver/ Canada. Professor Emerita at the University of British Columbia, and director of the university’s Centre for India and South Asia Studies, she held a D. Phil. degree of Oxford University and was a Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and the Department of Sanskrit (Mahamahopadhyaya), University of Calcutta. 

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Individual dance creations of compelling resonance - Taalam: column by Leela Venkataraman

VILASINI NATYAM PREMIERE

It all started at the Stein auditorium of the Habitat with a stunning solo premiere in Vilasini Natyam by veteran dancer Swapnasundari, followed by a group presentation of her creation of temple dance in the Agamic style.

PARABOLA OF DANCE
Aditi Mangaldas' generous initiative in starting what she has named Parabola of Dance, featuring creative efforts by dancers pertaining to different dance traditions, with the performance part succeeded by discussions on the constantly evolving process behind these creative enterprises, has been attracting larger sections of dance lovers. 

SWAN LAKE IN ODISSI

Sharmila Mukerjee (student of Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra) and her group of students from Sanjali Ensemble of which she is the Artistic Director, presented her creation of Hansika, based on the famous Swan Lake Ballet of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky; the work in the Odissi format premiered back in 2018. 

LOKCHANDA CULTURAL UNIT PRESENTS EVENING OF NRITYA KATHA

Designed by Maitreyi Pahadi, the Nritya Katha evening at the Habitat was predominantly a Kathak event, with one exception of an item of Mayurbhanj Chhau, the event centered round the Monsoon theme.

UMA SHARMA'S CUSTOMARY JANMASHTAMI

Veteran Uma Sharma's Janmashtami evening Sree Radha at the IIC, saw her students of Bhartiya Sangeet Sadan present Nritya Ras, her annual homage to the Krishna Janma Bhoomi -which constitutes her personal contribution to the world of dance - based on the research she undertook, in the Brindavan area and its vicinities. 

TWIN SHADES OF FOLK AND CLASSICAL AT IIC

In support of its recent approach supporting both fold and classical, IIC Double Bill concert presented an evening clubbing Kajri music with Kathak. 

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