Mysuru: Rotary Mysore Brindavan has organised a programme at Kalamandira on Friday (Feb.9) at 6.30 pm to felicitate dance legends Vid. Kiran Subrahmanyam, Vidu. Sandhya Kiran and Vidu. Mayuri Upadhya.

Pramoda Devi Wadiyar, Rotary International District Governor 3181 Rtn. M.M. Suresh Chengappa  and Rotary Brindavan President Rtn. Prakash Keshav will honour the dancers.

On the occasion, students of Vid. Kiran Subrahmanyam and Vidu. Sandhya Kiran will present  a programme titled ‘Yatra’ that depicts many forms of Indian dance. For passes, contact P.S. Nagaraj on Mob: 98455-74771.

Profiles

Vid. Kiran Subrahmanyam and Vidu. Sandhya Kiran

Having been trained under the most reputed of Gurus — Padmini Ravi and the Dhananjayans, Kiran and Sandhya embarked on this odyssey, with passion and fire in their hearts.

Kirans have been greatly lauded for their rendition of the Bharatanatyam technique, characterised by a flavour that is undoubtedly theirs.

The Kirans have performed extensively in India and abroad. Notable among their stage shows are, Pandit Ravishankar’s magnum opus Ghanashyam, Kirans’ lead role opposite film star Hemamalini in Savitri and Ramayan, the Hampi Utsav, Seher’s Ananya Festival, International Dance Alliance and many more.

The Kirans are graded artistes of Doordarshan. They have also propagated their art on private channels in their shows Natyanjali and Hejje Mele Hejje on Udaya TV and Kasturi TV. And as empanelled artistes of the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, the Kirans are the nation’s cultural ambassadors to the world.

Kirans have been the recipients of several recognitions and awards. They have been felicitated by some of the most renowned art establishments in Karnataka like Ananya and Nritya Kala Parishath.  The Kirans were awarded the title ‘Nritya Nipuna’ by Karnataka Nritya Kala Parishath for their contribution to the field of Bharatanatyam. Kiran Subramanyam received the ‘Natyanjali  Prashasthi’ for his contributions to the field of Bharatanayam by Sri Natyanjali Academy, Mangaluru.

Most recently, Kirans have been awarded the prestigious Karnataka State Award for Arts — ‘Karnataka Kalashree’ from the Karnataka Sangeetha Nritya Academy for the year 2014 and most recently, the ‘Nritya Ratna’ Award form Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Coimbatore. Kirans notable project has been the establishment of their dance institution — RASIKA, their Academy of Performing Arts.

Vidu. Mayuri Upadhya

Mayuri Upadhya  was initiated into dance at the age of six and was trained in Bharatanatyam by Indira Kadambi, in Kathak by Eshwarpurathi, in Odissi by Uday Kumar Shetty, in Kalaripayattu by Guru Ranjan Mularatt and learnt folk dances of Karnataka from Janapadaloka.

Mayuri was also trained in contemporary dance by the Shobhana Jeyasingh Dance Company, London, where she learnt the Graham and the Release techniques. She also had training in workshops by contemporary dancers, Akram Khan and Bharat Sharma.

Siblings Madhuri and Mayuri Upadhya, are Founders of the 17-year-old Nritarutya Dance Academy, a contemporary Indian dance company.

Mayuri’s work has been showcased in national and international dance festivals like The Other Festival, Attakalari Bangalore Biennial International Festival of Movement Arts, Mysore Dasara Festival, Bangalore Habba, Tungamahotsava, Ninasam Shibira 2004 and Asian Arts Mart 2005, Singapore.

Her ensemble choreographies, Sree Shakti and Lotus, featured in Miss India 2003-04 finale and the Lakme India Fashion Week 2004 finale, have received critical acclaim.

She also choreographed an important dance at a global business conference Make In India in Hanover which took place on April 12, 2015, which was attended by leading dignitaries including our PM and  Chancellor of Germany.

Mayuri is the winner of the International Competition of Choreography for Asian Dance Productions, South Korea, and she along with actress Priyamani and actor V. Ravichandran  judged  Kannada ‘Dancing Star 2,’ on Colors Kannada. She has a clientele comprising Amitabh Bachchan, Birlas and Ambanis and has won appreciations from PM Modi, Queen of England, Nirmala Sitaraman and Smriti Irani. She has choreographer for Kannada movies, Pancharangi and Ijjodu. In Hindi for Mirzia. Currently, she is the most sought after choreographer in Bollywood. She has recently worked on Feroz Abbas Khan’s “Mughal-e-Azam” play.

Mugha-e -Azam is attracting huge audience and is running in to continuous houseful shows at Mumbai and Delhi. For this effort, she has won International Broadway Award for Best Original Choreography.

She is married to singer-composer Raghu Dixit.