Darpana Academy of Performing Arts is a school for

performing art The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which are the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. Perfor ...

s in

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per ...

, Gujarat, established by

Mrinalini Sarabhai Mrinalini Vikram Sarabhai (11 May 1918 – 21 January 2016) was an Indian classical dancer, choreographer and instructor. She was the founder and director of the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, an institute for imparting training in dance, ...

and

Vikram Sarabhai Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai (12 August 1919 – 30 December 1971) was an Indian physicist and astronomer who initiated space research and helped develop nuclear power in India. He was honoured with Padma Bhushan in 1966 and the Padma Vibhushan ...

in 1949, it has been directed by their daughter Mallika Sarabhai for the last three decades. The school organises a three-day Interart, the "Vikram Sarabhai International Arts Festival" at Ahmedabad, every year. It celebrated its golden jubilee on 28 December 1998, with the announcement of the annual "Mrinalini Sarabhai Award for Classical Excellence", in the field of classical dance.

Naming

While ''"darpana"'' is the

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

word for "mirror", the use here also references the ''"Abhinaya Darpana"'', "The Mirror of Gestures",

Nandikeshvara Nandikeshvara ( sa, नन्दिकेश्वर) (5th century-4th century BC) was a major theatrologist of ancient India. He was the author of the . Influence on Bharata Nandikeshvara seems to have preceded Bharata, according to Rama ...

's ancient text upon Indian stage-craft and dance.

History

The Darpana Academy of Performing Arts was founded in Ahmedabad,

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

and his wife

. The work in using arts foe social change began at Darpana in the 1960s. Darpana’s puppeteers started working with the central ministry of rural development in teaching village women the use of smokeless stove. The theatre department then run by Kailash Pandya created a play called Ma to rally people to the war effort.

, in a radical departure from the spiritual core of the classical

Bharat Natyam Bharatanatyam () is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of ...

used the style to talk of the horror of dowry violence. Over the years two departments were established to focus the work of using the arts for change. Darpana for Development in 1980, today run by actor activist Jignesh Patel, and Darpana Communication in 2001 run by film maker Yadavan Chandran. In addition, in 2009 CRANTI (Citizens Resource and Action Initiative) was formed to give practical guidance to citizen to use the laws and tools available to them to fight their own battles, and to train people in the use of the Right To Information Act to solve daily problems of access and justice, run by Bharatsinh Jhala. During the last three decades, these departments have worked on over 51 projects all over India, reaching out to over 12.5 million people. The work has been in areas ranging from

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...

women’s empowerment Women's empowerment (or female empowerment) may be defined in several ways, including accepting women's viewpoints, making an effort to seek them and raising the status of women through education, awareness, literacy, and training.Kabeer, Naila ...

, gender issues and education to the environment,

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

communal harmony Communal may refer to: *A commune or also intentional community * Communalism (Bookchin) * Communalism (South Asia), the South Asian sectarian ideologies *Relating to an administrative division called comune *Sociality in animals *Community ownersh ...

good governance Good governance is the process of measuring how public institutions conduct public affairs and manage public resources and guarantee the realization of human rights in a manner essentially free of abuse and corruption and with due regard for th ...

, citizen’s participation in democracy, race,

gender and disability Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures u ...

. Through the use of television and film, theatrical and

street performances A street is a public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, ...

quizzes A quiz is a form of game or mind sport in which players attempt to answer questions correctly on one or several specific topics. Quizzes can be used as a brief assessment in education and similar fields to measure growth in knowledge, abilities, ...

and

debates Debate is a process that involves formal discourse on a particular topic, often including a moderator and audience. In a debate, arguments are put forward for often opposing viewpoints. Debates have historically occurred in public meetings, a ...

puppets A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. The puppeteer uses movements of their hands, arms, or control devices such as rods or strings to move ...

and

board games Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well. Many board games feature a co ...

. They have been able to effectively talk about a range of sensitive issues from

women and violence A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardle ...

, to

religious intolerance Religious intolerance is intolerance of another's religious beliefs or practices or lack thereof. Mere statements which are contrary to one's beliefs do not constitute intolerance. Religious intolerance, rather, occurs when a group (e.g., a so ...

, the

environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

and

justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

. The academy received

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

sponsorship to offer Artist Residency programs in 1999-2000 and 2005–2007. The academy was also listed by UNESCO an institution active in the "Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage", and thereby invited to attend the subsequent Intergovernmental Committee meetings. In 1962,

Achyut Kanvinde Achyut Purushottam Kanvinde (9 February 1916 – 28 December 2002) was an Indian architect who worked in functionalist approaches with elements of Brutalist architecture. He received the Padma Shri in 1974. Early life and education He was bor ...

was commissioned by Sarabhai to design the building of the academy.

Activities

The academy offers courses in Indian classical dance

Bharatanatyam Bharatanatyam () is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of ...

, Indian Classical Vocal,

Mridangam The mridangam is a percussion instrument of ancient origin. It is the primary rhythmic accompaniment in a Carnatic music ensemble. In Dhrupad, a modified version, the pakhawaj, is the primary percussion instrument. A related instrument is th ...

, Violin and Flute, puppetry and martial art

Kalaripayattu Kalaripayattu (; also known simply as Kalari) is an Indian martial art that originated in modern-day Kerala, a state on the southwestern coast of India. Kalaripayattu is known for its long-standing history within Indian martial arts, and i ...

. Its departments range from performance and teaching of the arts, to the use of performance and arts as development communication, through face-to-face impact and software production. The Drama Section, under acting duo Kailash Pandya and Damini Mehta, is responsible for more than 100 productions of a wide variety. Darpana attracted young writers and staged their first scripts, making them an integral part of production efforts. Some of the names can be mentioned as

Madhu Rye Madhu Rye is a Gujarati playwright, novelist and story writer. Born in Gujarat and educated at Calcutta, he started writing in the 1960s and became known for his stories and plays. His experience at the University of Hawaii introduced him to e ...

Labhshankar Thakar Labhshankar Jadavji Thakar, also known by his pen names Lagharo and Vaidya Punarvasu (14 January 1935 – 6 January 2016), was a Gujarati poet, playwright and story writer from India. Educated in languages and Ayurveda, he taught at colleges bef ...

, Shrikant Shah, Subhash Shah,

Chinu Modi Chinu Modi ( gu, ચિનુ મોદી ), (30 September 1939 – 19 March 2017), also known by his pen name Irshad (Gujarati: ઈર્શાદ), was a Gujarati language poet, novelist, short story writer and critic from Gujarat, India. Edu ...

, and Hasmukh Baradi. It also conducted theatre-training courses for over two decades. Its research wing, Janvak, published monographs like Goverdhan Panchal's on

Bhavai Bhavai, also known as ''Vesha'' or ''Swang'', is a popular folk theatre form of western India, especially in Gujarat. Etymology ''Bhavai'' may derive from the Sanskrit word ''Bhava'', meaning expression or emotion. It is also associated wit ...

. Darpana has also built an experimental thrust auditorium, Natrani, reminiscent of Greek amphitheatres, on the banks of the river Sabarmati.

List of Kathakali artists and musicians who worked in Darpana since 1949

* Guru

Vazhenkada Kunchu Nair Vazhenkada Kunchu Nair, also spelt Kunju Nair, (1909-1981) was an Indian Kathakali dancer. Life He mainly served in PSV Natya Sangham, Kottakkal, since 1946, and from 1960 to 1972 at Kerala Kalamandalam. He was the first principal of Kerala Kala ...

, * Kavungal Shankarankutty Panicker, * Guru Kottakkal Gopi Nair, * Kottakkal Appu Nair, * V.P. Ramakrishnan, * Chandramana Govindan Namboodiri, * Mankombu Sivashankara Pillai, * Kalamandalam Govindan Kutty, * Kalamandalam Murali, * Kalamandalam Gopinath, * Kavungal Chathunni Panicker, * Kalamandalam Ravindra Warrior, * Kalamandalam Madhavan, * Kalamandalam Bhaskara Menon, * Thakazhi Kuttan Pillai, * Kalamandalam Unnikrishna Kurup, * Kalamandalam Subrahmanian, * Kalamandalam Sukumaran, *

Kalamandalam Haridas Kalamandalam Venmani Haridas (15 September 1946 – 17 September 2005) was an Indian Kathakali musician noted for his rendition of the Kathakali padams (playback songs) for the characters in the classical Kerala dance-drama.Born in Venmani Mana, ...

, * Kottakkal Narayanan Namboodiri, * Kavungal Gopala Panicker, * Kavungal Krishna Panicker, * Kalamandalam Narayanan, * Kalamandalam Ananda Narayanan, * Kalamandalam Sasi Poduval, * Kalamandalam Balaraman, * Kalamandalam Anandan, * Thichur Vasu Variar, * V.P. Shankara Narayanan, * Kalamandalam Shivaraman Nair, * Kalamandalam Devaki, * Kalamandalam Sitalakshmi, * Painkulam Narayana Chakkyar, * Kalamandalam Hariharan, * Kalamandalam Kalyanikutti Amma, * Kottakkal Sasidharan Nair

References

External links

*
Darpana Academy updates
{{authority control Dance schools in India Organisations based in Ahmedabad Educational institutions established in 1949 Education in Ahmedabad 1949 establishments in India Dance education in India Drama schools in India Kalarippayattu Bharatanatyam Puppetry in India Kathakali Arts organizations established in 1949 Music schools in India Performing arts education in India