Leela Samson (born 6 May 1951) is a

Bharatanatyam ''Bharatanatyam'' is a Indian classical dance form that came from Tamil Nadu, India. It is a classical dance form recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas of Hinduism and Jainism.< ...

dancer, choreographer, instructor, writer and actress from

India India, officially the Republic of India, 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 by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. As a soloist, she is known for her technical virtuosity and has taught Bharatanatyam at Shriram Bhartiya Kala Kendra in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

for many years. She was appointed as the director of

Kalakshetra Kalakshetra Foundation, formerly simply Kalakshetra, is an arts and cultural academy dedicated to the preservation of traditional values in Indian art and crafts, especially in the field of Bharatanatyam dance and Gandharvaveda music. Based in ...

by the Congress-led

United Progressive Alliance The United Progressive Alliance (UPA; Hindi: Saṁyukta Pragatiśīl Gaṭhabandhan) was a Political group, political alliance in India led by the Indian National Congress. It was formed after the 2004 Indian general election, 2004 general ele ...

in April 2005. She was subsequently also appointed as the chairperson of the

Sangeet Natak Akademi Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in English language, English) is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India. It is an autonomous body of the Ministry of Culture (India) ...

in August 2010 and as the chairperson of the

Central Board of Film Certification The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) is a statutory Motion picture content rating system, film-certification body in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of ...

(CBFC) in April 2011. She resigned from her position as director of Kalakshetra in 2012. She resigned from her position as chairperson of the CBFC after the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal overturned her attempt to ban the film '' MSG: The Messenger of God'' featuring Dera Sacha Sauda founder Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a lead role and gave it clearance. She made her film acting debut in 2015 through the

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

film, '' OK Kanmani'' directed by

Mani Ratnam Gopalaratnam Subramaniam (born 2 June 1956), known professionally as Mani Ratnam, is an Indian film director, film producer and screenwriter who predominantly works in Tamil cinema and a few Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada films. H ...

. She reprised her role in the film's

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

remake, '' OK Jaanu'' (2017). She also appeared in '' Adithya Varma'' (2019) and '' Putham Pudhu Kaalai'' (2020).

Early life and training

Samson was born on 6 May 1951Sruti, Issues 160-171, Publisher P.N. Sundaresan, 1998 in

Coonoor Coonoor (), is a taluk and a municipal town of the Nilgiris district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. As of 2011, the town had a population of 45,494. The town sits at the south-east corner of the Nilgiri plateau, and at the head of the Coonoo ...

, Tamil Nadu, daughter of

Vice Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

Benjamin Abraham Samson and Laila Samson. Her father belonged to the

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

Bene-Israelite community from

Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

, and her mother belonged to the Gujarati

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

community from

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ), also spelled 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 ...

. Her father joined the

Royal Indian Navy The Royal Indian Navy (RIN) was the naval force of British Raj, British India and the Dominion of India. Along with the Presidency armies, later the British Indian Army, Indian Army, and from 1932 the Royal Indian Air Force, it was one of the ...

in 1939 and rose to command in the Indian Fleet in 1964. He also served as

Commandant of the National Defence Academy The Commandant of the National Defence Academy is the head and overall in-charge of the National Defence Academy. The Commandant of the Academy is a Three-star rank officer from the three Services in rotation. He is supported by the Deputy C ...

in Khadakvasla between 1959 and 1962. Leela's paternal aunt Annie was the Principal of Anjum-e-Islam Muslim school for girls in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

for 31 years. When Samson was nine years of age, her father sent her to

to learn Indian classical dance and music under the founder,

Rukmini Devi Arundale Rukmini Devi Arundale (née Sastri; 29 February 1904 – 24 February 1986)Sharma, Shoba and Gangadean, Ashok (January 31, 2004 Naatya.org. Retrieved on 10 December 2018. was an Indian theosophist, dancer and choreographer of the Indian cl ...

and she studied in the Besant Theosophical High School at the same time. She completed her B.A. from Sophia College for Women and this is where she was inspired to make her career in Bharatnatyam. After completing her B.A., Samson continued to learn

at Kalakshetra.

Career

Starting her career as a Bharatanatyam soloist, Samson taught at

Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra (SBKK) is an Indian cultural institution which runs a school for music, dance and performing arts in New Delhi. It was founded by Sumitra Charat Ram in 1952, and imparts training in Indian classical dance styles ...

, Delhi, and Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, Delhi. Over the years, she started performing across India and abroad including

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

.Artiste's Profile: Leela Samson
, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT), Government of India. In 1995, Samson formed Spanda, a dance group to review the traditional vocabulary of Bharatanatyam. Two documentary films – ''Sanchari'' and ''The Flowering Tree'' – have been made on her works. Her notable disciples included Joyce Paul Poursabahian and Justin McCarthy, who now teaches at Sri Ram Bhartiya Kala Kendra. She has taught and mentored performers including the late Kamaljit Bhasin Maalik (Meeto), Jin Shan Shan (Eesha), Navtej Singh Johar and Anusha Subramanyam. She authored a biography of Rukmini Devi Arundale. She has taught Bharatanatyam across the world, including at the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

, London, and the annual Milapfest in Manchester.

Awards

Samson has received the

Padma Shri The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...

(1990), the Sanskriti, ''Nritya Choodamani'', ''

Kalaimamani The Kalaimamani is the highest civilian award in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. These awards are given by the ''Tamil Nadu Iyal Isai Nataka Mandram'' (literature, music and theatre), a unit of the Directorate of Art and Culture, Government ...

'' (2005) given by

Government of Tamil Nadu The Government of Tamil Nadu () is the administrative body responsible for the governance of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Chennai is the capital of the state and houses the state executive, legislature and head of judiciary. Under the Const ...

, and the

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IAST: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama. It is the highest Indian recogni ...

(1999–2000) for contributions to

. She was also nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress-Tamil at the 63rd Filmfare Awards South.

Controversy

Samson is known for her proximity to the Nehru-Gandhi of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

, as she was the dance tutor of Priyanka Vadra. Samson held six key positions in the 10 years of Congress-led

regime. Many papers including the ''

Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language India, Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the Indian Express Limited, ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnat ...

'' alleged favouritism regarding her appointment as the chairperson of the censor board by UPA govt in 2011: Samson's tenures at Kalakshetra, Sangeet Natak Akademi and the censor board were mired with many controversies amid allegations of corruption, illegal appointments and arbitrary awarding of contracts, as well as financial irregularities. Samson was criticised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad when she passed the 2014

Aamir Khan Mohammed Aamir Hussain Khan (; born 14 March 1965) is an Indian actor, filmmaker, and television personality who works in Bollywood, Hindi films. Referred to as "Mr. Perfectionist" in the media, he is known for his work in a variety of film g ...

-starrer movie '' PK'' without any cuts, even after two board members resigned after it was granted certification, due to content allegedly designed to ridicule

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

religious philosophy and hurt Hindu sentiments. Veteran

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

actor and a former chairperson of the censor board

Anupam Kher Anupam Kher (born 7 March 1955) is an Indian actor, director and producer who works primarily in Hindi cinema. In a career spanning over four decades, he has acted in more than 540 films. A veteran of Indian cinema, Kher is recipient of two Na ...

criticised Samson for playing politics by making partisan allegations while tendering her resignation. This criticism was made highlighting the history of CBFC under her leadership which agreed to make cuts in ''

Entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...

'' after protests by Muslim groups and also agreed to make cuts in '' Kamaal Dhamaal Malamaal'' after protests by Christian groups, personally assuring them that "necessary action had been taken". In December 2019,

Central Bureau of Investigation The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the domestic crime investigating agency of India. It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Originally set up to investigate bribery and gover ...

filed a case of corruption and criminal breach of trust against Samson and three other Kalakshetra colleagues for financial irregularities. On December 23, 2022, as a comment on a facebook post, Leela had accused a male faculty of Kakakshetra of molesting young girls of the institute. She alleged that the male faculty was in inappropriate relationsship with an intern, Athena Sadiq. The faculty as well as Athena denied the allegations and filed a criminal defamation case against Leela. The case was settled in June 2025 after a mediation. As per terms of settlement, the XVI additional civil court ordered Leela to pay her Rs. 8 lakh to Athena and publish a regret post on Fecebook.

“On December 23, 2022, I put a post on Athena, former student and presently Tutor at the Kalakshetra Foundation, on Facebook. I had wrongly mentioned her name in connection with a male faculty. I regret the error and no further comments will be made by me on her in the future,” Leela posted on Facebook.

It is also alleged that before making the regret post on the Facebook, Leela reduced the visibility of her post by reducing her 2000 facebook friends of her account to just 5 friends.

Works

* Samson, Leela (1987). ''Rhythm in Joy: Classical Indian Dance Traditions''. New Delhi: Lustre Press. * Samson, Leela (2010). ''Rukmini Devi: A Life'', Delhi: Penguin Books, India, .

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Leela Samson Official Website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Samson, Leela Bene Israel Indian classical choreographers Indian dance teachers Bharatanatyam exponents Dance writers 1951 births Living people Indian Jews Women writers from Tamil Nadu Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Indian arts administrators Kalakshetra Foundation alumni Recipients of the Kalaimamani Award People from Nilgiris district Indian women choreographers Dancers from Tamil Nadu 20th-century Indian dancers Women educators from Tamil Nadu Teachers of Indian classical dance 20th-century Indian women artists 20th-century Indian educators 20th-century Indian women educators 20th-century Indian women writers 20th-century Indian non-fiction writers Educators from Tamil Nadu Women artists from Tamil Nadu Actresses in Malayalam cinema Actresses in Tamil cinema Actresses in Hindi cinema Sophia College for Women alumni