Classical Dancers Of India

Swapna Sundari

Introduction

Our country has a very vivid tradition of performing arts; especially when it comes to dance and
theatre, across the country a great variety of forms are prevalent for dances, each of these
dance forms have an interesting origin and also serve as a window to the social and cultural
fabric of their specific region.

According to popular belief, it is known that Lord Brahma instructed Sage Bharata, to create
rules and regulation for such entertainment practices, these later came to be codified in the
Natyashastra, the prime treatise of performing arts in India. The Sangeet Natak Akademi
recognizes 8 dance forms as classical, namely - Bharatnatyam, Kathak, Kuchipudi, Kathakali,
Odissi, Sattriya, Manipuri and Mohiniyattam.

Many famous personalities across different parts of the country are associated with these dance
forms, their practice and mastery over the dance forms has not only enriched their lives as
dancers but also added to the dynamism of each of these dance forms. One such personality,
that we are going to learn about through this worksheet is Swapna Sundari.

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Life and Work

Swapna Sundari Rao Prakash was born in Chennai. She was trained in music in her home by
her mother and grandmother. She is a trained Kuchipudi as well as a Bharatnatyam dancer. Her
training for Kuchipudi was under Pasumarty Seetharamaiah and Yeleswarapu Suryaprakash
Sarma. She has also trained under T. Mukta, who was an outstanding exponent of Kuchipudi
dance. KJ Govindarajan, KN Daskshinamoorthy, Kalanidhi Narayan were her Gurus for her
Bharatnatyam training. Her Bharatnatyam performances have received great admiration for her
nritta and abhinaya, her expertise in choreography can be seen in solo as well as dramatic
compositions.

Apart from being a dancer of great repute, Swapna Sundari is also known for her academic
work, her research on the temple dance traditions of Andhra, her book called Vilasini Natyam:
Bharatam of Telugu Temple and Court Dances was published in the year 2010. This work of
hers is a product of her decades of research along with co – author Dr. Arudra.

Her work documents the female dancers of Andhra, also known as Bhogam – Sanis, their status
was similar to that of devadasis’ and they were attached to the deities of a particular temple.
These dancers did not come from one any particular caste and were selected on the merit of
their dancing abilities, at the young age of 7. At the age of 11, these dancers were consecrated
as Bhogam and by the age of 15 they were given an official designation of the Sani. The
position of the Sani meant an official role at the temple and gave these women agency. The
format of dance performances in such temples was also adapted and performed at the royal
court and public theatres in Andhra.

Sundari and her fellow researcher as part of their

research also documented the life of the last living
Sani dancers and Swapna Sundari took lessons
from them, thereby bringing to life the dynamic of a
traditional Vilasini Natyam. Swapna Sundari has also
authored few other books on dance namely - “The
World of Kuchipudi Dance”, herein she has traced
the emergence and evolution of the dance form right
up till the 21st century and “Tracing the roots of a
classical dance.”

Swapna Sundari also has the rare honor of being a

performer, who is allowed to dance inside the temple
as part of the annual worship ritual.

Awards and Achievements

In the year 2003, she became the youngest classical dancer to receive a Padma Bhushan, for
the classical dance forms from Andhra. She has also received awards from the Sahitya Kala

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Parishad and the Sangeet Natak Akademi. She is also known as the “The Queen of Kuchipudi
Dance” and runs an institution of Kuchipudi dance in Delhi known as Kuchipudi Dance Centre.
She also imparts training to young Kuchipudi learners. Her songs for a Kuchipudi performance
are also quite popular.

ACTIVITY
1. Find out names of 5 musical instruments used in a Kuchipudi performance and
Sketch them here.

a) __________________
b) __________________
c) __________________
d) __________________
e) __________________

2. Find out about any one dancer of a folk/ classical form living in your
city/region. Document his/her contribution to their dance art form.

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References: www.artculturefestival.in narthaki.com anandfoundation.com www.the-south-asian.com