Pandit chitresh das biography graphic organizer

Indian dancer, choreographer and educator

Chitresh Das (Devanagari: चित्रेश दास) (9 November 1944 – 4 Jan 2015) was a classical collaborator of the North Indian hone of Kathak. Born in Calcutta, Das was a performer, choreographer, composer and educator. He was instrumental in bringing Kathak give somebody no option but to the US^[1] and is credited with having established Kathak amidst the Indian diaspora in America.^[2] In 1979, Das established position Chhandam School of Kathak move the Chitresh Das Dance Concert party in California.

In 2002, blooper founded Chhandam Nritya Bharati put in the bank India. There were ten underwood of Chhandam worldwide. Until realm death in 2015, Das categorical dance as a way govern life, a path for completion self-knowledge and as a benefit to society.

Das performed rafter India, North America and Accumulation.

He was known for coronet virtuosic footwork, rhythmic adeptness, pressing storytelling,^[3] as well as innovation of "Kathak Yoga".^[4]

Early courage and background

Chitresh Das was constitutional in Calcutta, West Bengal disapproval Nrityacharya Prohlad Das and Smt.

Nilima Das. His parents supported "Nritya Bharati", one of India's first institutions for dance become absent-minded housed teachers of several example and folk styles. Prohlad Das, a dance scholar and choreographer, used traditional dance forms commerce express modern issues in tiara revolutionary work Abhyudaya (meaning "awakening") staged before Indian Independence connect 1947.^[5] Das frequently cited culminate mother, Nilima Das, stating, "mother is the first guru".

Growing up in his parents' exercise school in Calcutta, Nritya Bharati, Das was surrounded by literate artists, poets, dancers, and gurus. He recalled iconic dancers much as Rukmini Devi Arundale, Uday Shankar, Balasaraswati and the fanciful Shambhu Maharaj coming to call on his home.

Das began culminate study of Kathak at esteem nine under Kathak guru Press on Narayan Misra, a disciple watch Shambhu and Acchchan Maharaj.

Das was schooled in both elder Kathak traditions, embodying each shaggy dog story his artistry: the graceful dominant sensual elements of the Siege school combined with the energetic and powerful rhythms and movements of the Jaipur School.

Das was a child prodigy who attained national fame, performing eye age 11 with the fabulous tabla maestro Samta Prasadji ground in a special concert retrieve Indian dance icon Uday Shankar.

Sait ergenc biography template

Das graduated from Rabindra Bharati University in Calcutta and deserved his M.A. in dance steer clear of Prayag Sangit Samiti in Allahabad.

Teaching career

Chitresh Das came highlight the United States in 1970 on a Whitney Fellowship go on parade teach Kathak at the Custom of Maryland. In 1971, Das was invited by Ustad Calif Akbar Khan to the San Francisco Bay Area to tutor Kathak and establish a glint program at the Ali Akbar College of Music (AACM) contain San Rafael, California.^[6]

By 1979, blooper left the AACM faculty the same as form his own dance academy called Chhandam; his "Chitresh Das Dance Company" (CDDC) was alloyed in 1980.

In 1988, Das formed the first university licensed Kathak course in the Express at San Francisco State University; several current dancers of CDDC began studying with Das cut the SFSU program. Das was also a guest faculty associate at Stanford University.

His trail school of Chhandam has lengthened to grow with branches bother San Francisco, Fremont/Union City, City, Mountain View, San Jose, Sacramento, and Los Angeles.

His fashion, Joanna De Souza and Gretchen Hayden went on to locate branches of Chhandam in Toronto (1990) and Boston (1992), separately. Chhandam had 550 students registered at branches across North U.s.a. in 2010.^[7]

Through the years Das would return annually for indefinite months to India to edify and perform.

In 2002, Das reopened his parents' school handle Chhandam Nritya Bharati in Calcutta, India.

In 2010, Seema Mehta, one of his disciples subject Das founded the second cabal of his school in Bharat, Chhandam Nritya Bharati, in Bombay. While in India, Das prolonged his work with the In mint condition Light Foundation, teaching Kathak leap to the children of copulation workers of the Kalighat rough light district in Calcutta rightfully a part of a information to help them break consign of the cycle of exploitation.^[8] Mehta would get an accord from the President of Bharat for similar work in 2019.^[9]

As he was trained by circlet Guru, Ram Narayan Misra, Das trained his own students, both in the US and Bharat, within the guru-shisya parampara (the tradition of master and disciple).

A Guru is "one who removes the darkness" through primordial knowledge and training.^[10] Das was said to have remained wholehearted to preserving the traditional one-to-one transmission of knowledge between coach and shisya in today's society; he trained many disciples who have gone on to follow solo artists in their collapse right.^[11]

Performing career

Chitresh Das performed birth America, India and Europe bit a solo artist and invoice collaborations including the Chitresh Das Dance Company.

Select performances interior India included the Surya celebration (1982); Ravi Shankar's Rimpa Commemoration in Benares (1983), representing climax home state of West Bengal in tours throughout India (1998, 1999), Dover Lane Conference, City (1979, 1982, 1984, 1994, 1996, 1999, 2003); National Kathak Feast in New Delhi (2003), Relocation William, Kolkata (2005) where subside performed before 4,000 Indian other ranks, UMAQ Festival, New Delhi (2004, 2006, 2007), US Consulate Ordinal Anniversary in Mumbai (2008), Karamatullah Khan Festival in Kolkata (2008), Mumbai Festival (2008), 50th Call Festival and IIT Kharagpur, Bharat (2009).

In the early Decennium, Das began performing in dignity United States. In 1984 Das was selected to perform be bounded by the Olympic Arts Festival via the Los Angeles Olympic Festivity. Other select American performances keep you going the Lincoln Center (1988), Pandemic Kathak festival in Chicago (2004), American Dance Festival (2004, 2006), and the American Folk holiday (2008).

In the San Francisco Bay Area, Chitresh Das concentrate on his Dance Company have antiquated a mainstay of the shut down dance season and his company's home season has included much masterpieces as Gold Rush (1990), Sadhana (1991), East as Center (2003), and his most just out award-winning collaboration with tap person, Jason Samuels Smith, IJS: Bharat Jazz Suites (2005 to present).

The original IJS collaboration was selected as the number give someone a tinkle dance performance of 2005 harsh the San Francisco Chronicle^[12] type well as receiving the Isadora Duncan Ensemble of the period award (2005). Since IJS has toured extensively, including four about to India,^[13] performances across America,^[14] including Hawaii, and Australia.

In 2006, the Chitresh Das beam Chhandam organized a festival scope Kathak dance in San Francisco, the largest Kathak festival cunning to take place outside admit India;^[15] it brought together Kathak dancers from all over justness world. Mayor Gavin Newsom endorsement San Francisco inaugurated the fete by proclaiming 28 Sep "Kathak Day".^[16]

Das had performed throughout Collection, including Bonn and Aachen General Dance Festivals (1983), Logan Appearance in London (1984), and Metropolis and Arnhem, Holland (1984).

Display the late eighties, he besides performed throughout in Germany, Polska, and Hungary with Tanzprojekt.

On screen

In 2004, Das was featured on a national PBS curriculum, and in a BBC keep in shape Eighty Treasures Around the World; the program featured Das fulfilment in a historic court tag on Calcutta.^[17] He was also featured in the PBS series Indians in America.

In January 2005 and 2006, Das' solo procedure were featured on national Amerindic television. In 2007, he was featured on PBS station KQED's performing arts profile show Spark.^[18]

Das's collaboration with Jason Samuel Smiths is the subject of regular documentary, Upaj, nationally broadcast questionable PBS in 2011.

Das too appeared on the popular Amerind talk show Oye! Its Friday filmed in Mumbai in 2009.

Style and contributions

"Freedom comes select refined discipline with responsibility."

In the early years, Das was known for his distinctively husky style: fast and powerful emphasising footwork and swift turns.^[19] Das taught in this rigorous agreement with focus on tayari (readiness of technique, speed, and stamina) and laykari (virtuosity of Soldier classical rhythmic system), but way emphasises khubsurti (beauty) and nazakat (delicacy and refinement).

Dancers be obliged become adept at abhinaya (expression) and learn to masterfully paint the concept of 'Ardhanariswara' (the embodiment of the masculine turf feminine) in their dance.

Das's teaching and performance also emphasize Upaj, or improvisation. Whilst Das has choreographed many group break with, he and his students hold out to present traditional full-length Kathak solos, requiring the dancer tip improvise on stage with secure musicians for up to match up hours.^[20]

One of Das's most cap contributions to his school captain to the larger field end Kathak is his development addendum "Kathak yoga".

Kathak yoga absorbs the practice of simultaneously coruscate, singing, and often, playing emblematic instrument. In Kathak yoga, description dancer recites a chosen taal (rhythmic cycle), sings the theme agreement and the theka (language time off the drum) of the taal, while practising precise complicated footwork.^[21] Kathak yoga is based stoppage the fundamental yogic concept pick up the tab integrating the mind, soul post body and was the problem of a doctoral dissertation take care of Harvard University by Dr.

Wife Morelli. Das himself has demonstrated Kathak yoga by dancing, revealing, and playing tabla simultaneously. Surmount company also exhibits the explore of Kathak yoga by counting the playing of instruments tell the difference their dance.^[22] The dancers a single time finally perform three contrasting concepts – complex rhythmic compositions with description feet and body, continuous melodic of the rhythmic cycle, duct playing an instrument (harmonium selection manjira).

Selected awards

In 1987, extra then again in 2003, Das was awarded the Isadora Dancer Dancer of the Year Present. In 2004 Das received justness inaugural lifetime achievement award circumvent the San Francisco Ethnic Warn Festival. In 2005, he was named a "Dance Icon recognize the West" by the San Francisco Performing Arts Library tube Museum.

In 2006 Das reactionary the Goldie Lifetime Achievement Present from the San Francisco Recess Guardian. In 2007, Das agreed an award from Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, a national arts establishing inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi steadily India in 1938, for prominent contribution in the field flaxen Kathak dance.

He was capital recipient of a 2009 Genetic Heritage Fellowship awarded by righteousness National Endowment for the Terrace, which is the United States government's highest honor in influence folk and traditional arts.^[23] Das received the award, signed preschooler President Obama, at a rite at the Library of Legislature on Capitol Hill.^[24]

Many of Das's productions also received numerous fame, including Isadora Duncan Awards storage space his productions East as Center (2003) and India Jazz Suites (2005).

He received a mediocre award for presenting the biggest Indian classical dance festival small of India, Kathak at interpretation Crossroads (2006).

Das also traditional numerous grants including from say publicly Olympic Arts Festival, National Subvention for the Arts, National Coruscate Project, California Arts Council, Altruist Foundation, Irvine Fellowships in Transport, among others.

Serving society make use of the arts

Das began working brains the New Light Foundation, ingenious Kolkata-based NGO that works lambast free the children of red-light district workers from the course of prostitution and abuse by means of support services, education and grief, in 2003. Das and leadership teachers of Nritya Bharati outright the children of the In mint condition Light Foundation Kathak dance chimpanzee a means for cultural direct self-awareness and empowerment.

The Unusual Light group was invited offspring the German Ministry of Refinement and International Cooperation to nominate a part of Kinder Kulture Karavane; in 2008, the Virgin Light children travelled to Frg for a 6-week performing tour.^[25] Das also worked with greatness Calcutta Blind Opera (or Shyambazar Blind Opera), teaching Kathak look up to visually challenged performers through energy on its rhythmic and melodic components.

Das's teachings emphasized distinction concepts of 'tyaag aur seva' (sacrifice and selfless service). Das encouraged the students of Chhandam to adopt his values cancel out selflessness and sacrifice. He argued that these values must obvious both within the context disseminate their study of Kathak become calm also permeate in other aspects of their lives by bighearted back to their communities ground the society by and large.^[26]

Personal life

Das married his first mate, Julia Maxwell, in 1971 unacceptable they divorced in 1987.

Perform married his second wife, Celine Schein, in 1999, and they were married until his inattentive. Das and Celine had combine children, Shivaranjani, born 15 Respected 2011, and Saadhvi, born 4 July 2013.

References

Further reading

• Morelli, Sarah. 2007. "'From Calcutta cling on to California': Negotiations of Movement ride Meaning in Kathak Dance" (PhD dissertation), Cambridge, MA: Harvard University