Maya Rao (2 May 1928 – 1 September 2014) was an Indian
classical dancer, choreographer and educator, in
Kathak
Kathak ( hi, कथक; ur, کتھک) is one of the eight major forms of Classical Indian dance, Indian classical dance. It is the classical dance from of Uttar Pradesh. The origin of Kathak is traditionally attributed to the traveling bards ...
dance. She is known for her pioneering work in Kathak choreography, especially in dance ballets,
[ and is credited for bringing Kathak, a ]North Indian
North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Centra ...
-dance style to South India
South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the States and union territories of India, Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and T ...
, when she opened her dance school, Natya Institute of Kathak and Choreography (NIKC) in Malleswaram
Malleshwara (also referred as Malleshwaram) is a northwest neighborhood and one of the zones of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike in Bengaluru, India. It was planned in 1889 after the great plague of 1898, developed as a suburb in 1892 and ...
, Bangalore
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
in 1987. She was also the founder director of her dance company, "Natya and Stem Dance Kampni", an amalgam of NIKC and the STEM Dance Kampni ( founded by her daughter Madhu Nataraj
Madhu Nataraj (born 24 February 1971) is an Indian classical, contemporary dancer and choreographer who lives in Bangalore. She is the director of the Natya Institute of Kathak and Choreography and founded its performing wing STEM (Space.Time.E ...
) based in Bangalore. After her early training under Guru Sohanlal of Jaipur
Jaipur (; Hindi: ''Jayapura''), formerly Jeypore, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had a population of 3.1 million, making it the tenth most populous city in the country. Jaipur is also known as ...
Gharana
In Hindustani music (North Indian classical music), a ''gharānā'' is a system of social organisation in the Indian subcontinent, linking musicians or dancers by lineage or apprenticeship, and more importantly by adherence to a particular mus ...
, followed by Guru Sunder Prasad also of the Jaipur Gharana, and went to train under Guru Shambhu Maharaj of Lucknow Gharana at National Institute of Kathak Dance
National Institute of Kathak Dance, also known as Kathak Kendra, is the premier dance institution for the Indian classical dance form of Kathak, and a unit of the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama, situat ...
in Delhi.
She was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: 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 recognit ...
, given by Sangeet Natak Akademi
Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in English) is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India.
History
It was set up by the Indian education ministry on 31 May 1952 and ...
, the National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama in 1989. In 2011, the Akademi awarded her the Sangeet Natak Akademi Tagore Ratna
Sangeet Natak Akademi Tagore Ratna and Sangeet Natak Akademi Tagore Puraskar were given at special events organised by Sangeet Natak Akademi in
* Kolkata – Sangeet Natak Akademi Tagore Samman on 25 April 2012
* Chennai – Sangeet Natak Akade ...
, given to 100 artists from across India to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
, for their contribution in the field of performing arts.
Early life
She was born in Malleswaram
Malleshwara (also referred as Malleshwaram) is a northwest neighborhood and one of the zones of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike in Bengaluru, India. It was planned in 1889 after the great plague of 1898, developed as a suburb in 1892 and ...
, Bangalore to orthodox Konkani Saraswat Brahmin
The Saraswat Brahmins are Hindu Brahmins, who are spread over widely separated regions spanning from Kashmir in North India to Konkan in West India to Kanara (coastal region of Karnataka) and Kerala in South India. The word ''Saraswat'' is der ...
family of Hattangadi Sanjeev Rao, a renowned architect in the city, and Subhadra Bai. She had three brothers and three sisters. At an early age she learnt Hindustani classical music
Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sit ...
– vocal and instrumental dilruba
The dilruba (also spelt dilrupa) is a bowed musical instrument originating in India. It is slightly larger than an esraj and has a larger, square resonance box. The dilruba holds particular importance in Sikh history.
It became more widely kn ...
from Rama Rao, being from an orthodox family where girls didn't learn dance, considered a taboo. However, this changed when at age 12, after she and her architect father watched dancer Uday Shankar
Uday Shankar (8 December 1900 – 26 September 1977) was an Indian dancer and choreographer, best known for creating a fusion style of dance, adapting European theatrical techniques to Indian classical dance, imbued with elements of Indian cla ...
's troupe perform at BRV Talkies auditorium in Bangalore. Moved by the performance, his father wanted his daughters to learn dance.
Her guru Pandit Ramarao Naik, was a disciple of Ustad Faiyaz Khan
Ustad Faiyaz Khan (8 February 1886 5 November 1950) was an Indian classical vocalist, an exponent of the Agra gharana of Hindustani classical music. According to SwarGanga Music Foundation website, "By the time he died at Baroda, he had earned ...
, and vocalist of the Agra gharana
The Agra gharana is a tradition of Hindustani classical vocal music descended from the Nauhar Bani. So far, Nauhar Bani has been traced back to around 1300 AD, during the reign of Emperor Allauddin Khilji of Delhi.
The first known musician o ...
. He ran music and dance school at Benson Town, Bangalore, where various dance and music styles were taught. Here Sohan Lal from Jaipur
Jaipur (; Hindi: ''Jayapura''), formerly Jeypore, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had a population of 3.1 million, making it the tenth most populous city in the country. Jaipur is also known as ...
Gharana
In Hindustani music (North Indian classical music), a ''gharānā'' is a system of social organisation in the Indian subcontinent, linking musicians or dancers by lineage or apprenticeship, and more importantly by adherence to a particular mus ...
was in charge of the Kathak section.[ Soon, her younger sisters, Uma and Chitra, six years and four years old respectively, started learning Kathak from under Guru Sohanlal, while she at age twelve was considered too old for Kathak. Finally, her father allowed her to start her Kathak training in 1942, with a promise to never dance professionally or on stage, which she was soon break. She learnt from him for next two years. However, when she gave a first performance in 1944, at the ]Town Hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually house ...
for a Saraswat Samaj community programme, her father didn't object.[
After completing her schooling she joined B.A. (hon.) in English literature at ]Central College, Bangalore
Central College Bengaluru (1858) is one of the oldest colleges in India. This college was originally affiliated to University of Mysore in Mysore State. Rev. John Garrett was the first principal of the Central High School, which was afterwards re ...
in 1945,[ and later studied at Maharani's College in Bangalore. Here, she formed a club to dance and presented dance-dramas.] This paved way for her first major performance, a ballet "Sita Haran" in 1947, for poor students at Maharani's College. Meanwhile, her father died in 1946, after being cheated in business and incurring heavy losses. Their family home was auctioned within a year and the family moved to a one-room house. Soon she along with her brother Manohar took charge to household, and she started teaching dance at age 17, to support her family.
Career
She moved to Jaipur
Jaipur (; Hindi: ''Jayapura''), formerly Jeypore, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had a population of 3.1 million, making it the tenth most populous city in the country. Jaipur is also known as ...
in 1951, in search of Kathak. She also started teaching English at the Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls' Public School
Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls' School or MGD is located in Jaipur, India and was established by and named after Rajmata Gayatri Devi of Jaipur. It was the first all-girls school to be established in the state of Rajasthan.
History
The school wa ...
for next two years. She then moved to Sri Lanka and studied Kandyan dance with legendary dancer, Chitrasena. Subsequently, in 1955, she received the prestigious Government of India scholarship and trained under noted Guru, Shambhu Maharaj of the Lucknow Gharana at the Bharatiya Kala Kendra, New Delhi. She was the first student of the Kendra and Pt Shambhu Maharaj was the first Guru. She was the only student he ever danced with in all his life. In 1960, she was selected for the USSR Cultural Scholarship in Choreography to study for her Master's in Choreography. Upon her return from Russia in 1964, with the help of Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay
Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay (3 April 1903 – 29 October 1988) was an Indian social reformer and freedom activist. She was most remembered for her contribution to the Indian independence movement; for being the driving force behind the renaissan ...
, then Vice Chairperson of Sangeet Natak Akademi
Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in English) is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India.
History
It was set up by the Indian education ministry on 31 May 1952 and ...
, she started the Natya Institute of Choreography in Delhi under the aegis of the Bharatiya Natya Sangh.
Thereafter, she was based in Delhi for several years before she moved NIKC to Bangalore on invitation from the then Chief Minister Ramakrishna Hegde
Ramakrishna Mahabaleshwar Hegde (29 August 1926 – 12 January 2004) was an Indian politician who served as the tenth Chief Minister of Karnataka for three terms between 1983 and 1988. He was elected to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly in 19 ...
, which opened on 12 July 1987.[ Already known for her '']abhinaya
Abhinaya (Sanskrit ''abhi-'' 'towards' + ''nii-'' 'leading/guide') is the art of expression in Indian aesthetics. More accurately it means "leading an audience towards" the experience (') of a sentiment ('). The concept, derived from Bharata Mu ...
'' anga, she has to her credit several notable dance ballets production, such as Venkateshwara Vilasam, Kathak through the Ages, Art ''and Life'', Surdas, ''Barsha Mangal'', ''Tarana'', ''Ramayana Darshanam'', ''Hoysala Vaibhava'', ''The Vision of Amir Khusrau'', ''Tulsi Ke Ram'', and ''Urubhanga
''Urubhanga'' or ''Urubhangam'', (Devanagari: ऊरुभङ्गम्), ( en, The Breaking of the Thighs, italic=yes) is a Sanskrit play written by Bhasa in the 2nd or 3rd century CE. Based on the well-known epic, the ''Mahābhārata'', by V ...
'' by Bhasa,[ besides ''Krishnadevaraya'', ''Vijayanagara Vaibhava'', ]Masti Venkatesha Iyengar
Masti Venkatesha Iyengar (6 June 1891 – 6 June 1986) was a well-known writer in Kannada language. He was the fourth among Kannada writers to be honored with the Jnanpith Award, the highest literary honor conferred in India. He was popularly r ...
's ''Kaamana Billu'' and works of noted Kannada writer Kuvempu
Kuppali Venkatappa Puttappa (29 December 1904 – 11 November 1994), popularly known by his pen name Kuvempu, was an Indian poet, playwright, novelist and critic. He is widely regarded as the greatest Kannada poet of the 20th century. He was ...
.
She became the chairperson of Karnataka Sangeet Nritya Academy, state academy for music and dance, and during her tenure from 1987 to 1990, she started National Performing Arts Festivals at heritage monuments of the state, like Somanathapura
Somanathapura, also spelled Somanathpur, Somnathpur, or Somanathpura, is a town and Grama Panchayat in Tirumakudalu Narasipura, Mysore district in the state of Karnataka in India.Pattadakal
Pattadakal, also called Paṭṭadakallu or Raktapura, is a complex of 7th and 8th century CE Hindu and Jain temples in northern Karnataka (India). Located on the west bank of the Malaprabha River in Bagalakote district, this UNESCO World Her ...
and Halebidu
Halebidu ( IAST: Haḷēbīḍ, literally "old capital, city, encampment" or "ruined city") is a town located in Hassan District, Karnataka, India. Historically known as Dorasamudra (also Dwarasamudra), Halebidu became the regal capital of the ...
.[ She was awarded the ]Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: 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 recognit ...
for Creative dance/Choreography, given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi
Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in English) is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India.
History
It was set up by the Indian education ministry on 31 May 1952 and ...
, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama in 1989. She was awarded Rajyotsava Award
The Rajyotsava Prashasti or Rajyotsava Awards, the second highest civilian honor of the Karnataka state of India are conferred annually by the Karnataka Government on the occasion of the establishment of the state on 1 November celebrated as t ...
, second highest civilian honour of the Karnataka state in 1986, and the Shantala Award for the year 1999, by Government of Karnataka
The Government of Karnataka, abbreviated as, GoK, or simply Karnataka Government, is a democratically-elected state body with the governor as the ceremonial head to govern the Southwest Indian state of Karnataka. The governor who is appointed ...
. In 2013, she received the 'Tagore Ratna' award, given Sangeet Natak Akademi, also in the same year she received the lifetime achievement award for her contribution to dance and choreography at the Epic Women conference. Over the years, she has trained over 3,000 students,[ notably, Nirupama Rajendra, Syed Sallauddin Pasha, ]Satya Narayana Charka
Satya Narayana Charka is a Kathak dancer, teacher, and choreographer. He was taught by Pundit R.K. Shukla, Pundit Shambhu Maharaj, Shrimati Maya Rao and Birju Maharaj. Among his many awards is the first prize in the All-India Dance Competition ...
, Shambhu Hegde, Shivananda Hegde, and Nandini Mehta.
Her daughter Madhu Nataraj is an acclaimed dancer and choreographer, and started STEM Kampni, a branch of NIKC.She continued as s a consultant choreographer at her institute till her last days. Maya Rao's autobiography, ''Maya Rao – A Lifetime in Choreography'' was completed by her in 2013 and released by playwright and Jnanpith
The Jnanpith Award is the oldest and the highest Indian literary award presented annually by the Bharatiya Jnanpith to an author for their "outstanding contribution towards literature". Instituted in 1961, the award is bestowed only on Indian ...
awardee Shri Girish Karnad
Girish Karnad (19 May 1938 – 10 June 2019) was an Indian actor, film director, Kannada writer, playwright and a Jnanpith awardee, who predominantly worked in South Indian cinema and Bollywood. His rise as a playwright in the 1960s marked the ...
in July 2014.
She died of massive cardiac arrest shortly after midnight on 1 September 2014, at M S Ramaiah Memorial Hospital, Bangalore, where she was admitted around 11.30 pm due complains of breathlessness and chest pain. She was survived by her sisters Chitra Venugopal and Uma Rao, and daughter Madhu Nataraj, Kathak and contemporary dancer.[
]
Awards and honors
*Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: 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 recognit ...
1989
*Sangeet Natak Akademi Tagore Ratna
Sangeet Natak Akademi Tagore Ratna and Sangeet Natak Akademi Tagore Puraskar were given at special events organised by Sangeet Natak Akademi in
* Kolkata – Sangeet Natak Akademi Tagore Samman on 25 April 2012
* Chennai – Sangeet Natak Akade ...
2011
*Shantala Natya Sri Award
The Shantala Natya Sri Award is an award given every year by the Government of Karnataka to dancers in recognition of their contributions in the field of classical dance. Santala, the queen of Vishnuvardhana, the Hoysala king, was a dancer who ...
1999
References
External links
Natya Institute of Kathak and Choreography, website
* Personal Obituary by Culture Critic Veejay Sai in www.narthaki.com, http://www.narthaki.com/info/profiles/profl170.html
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rao, Maya
1928 births
2014 deaths
Performers of Indian classical dance
Kathak exponents
Indian classical choreographers
Teachers of Indian classical dance
Artists from Bangalore
Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
Indian autobiographers
Indian women non-fiction writers
Indian arts administrators
Businesspeople from Bangalore
Businesswomen from Karnataka
Indian female classical dancers
Indian women choreographers
Indian choreographers
Dancers from Karnataka
Women educators from Karnataka
20th-century Indian educators
20th-century Indian women artists
20th-century Indian dancers
Women autobiographers
Women writers from Karnataka
Educators from Karnataka
Women artists from Karnataka
Scholars from Bangalore
20th-century women educators