Meghranjani Medhi is an Indian

Kathak ''Kathak'' is one of the eight major forms of Classical Indian dance, Indian classical dance. Its origin is attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern India known as ''Kathakar'' ("storyteller"), who communicated stories from the ...

dancer and actress from Assam. In 2024 she received the

Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar is an annual Indian award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi to outstanding artists under 40 who have demonstrated talent in the fields of music, dance and drama. The award is intended to provide national rec ...

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) ...

for Kathak.

Biography

Meghranjani Medi was born in Assam to singer, composer, and music director Joy Prakash Medi and Kathak dancer Marama Medi. She began learning Kathak dance from her mother at the age of three. She later trained under the eminent Kathak dancers like Lucknow gharana guru

Pandit Birju Maharaj Pandit Birju Maharaj (born Brijmohan Nath Mishra; 4 February 1938 – 17 January 2022) was an Indian dancer, composer, singer, and exponent of the Lucknow "Kalka-Bindadin" Gharana of Kathak dance in India. He was a descendant of the Maharaj fa ...

and

Jaipur gharana The Jaipur-Atrauli Gharana (also known as Jaipur Gharana, Atrauli-Jaipur Gharana, and Alladiyakhani Gayaki) is a Hindustani classical music, Hindustani music apprenticeship fraternity (''gharana''), founded by Alladiya Khan in the late-19th cent ...

guru Pandit Rajendra Gangani. After completing Nrtiya Nipun degree in Kathak from Bhatkhande Sangeet Vidyapith, Lucknow, she done her master's degree in Kathak dance from Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyalaya under Khairagarh University. In 2017, she completed Nrtiya Nipun degree in

Sattriya dance ''Sattriya'', or ''Sattriya Nritya'', is a major Indian classical dance. It was initially created as part of Bhaona which are performances of '' Ankiya Nat'', one-act plays, originally created by Sankardev, a 15th-16th century polymath from A ...

from Sageet Satra Pariksha Parishad, Assam. Currently, Meghranjini lives in New Zealand with her husband, Neil Das, who is also an artist.

Dance career

Meghranjani started learning Kathak dance from her mother at the age of three and completed her Nritya Nipun degree in Kathak dance from Bhatkhande Sangeet Vidyapeeth, Lucknow in 2009. She has received scholarships from the Department of Culture, Government of India and the

Centre for Cultural Resources and Training The Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT) is autonomous organisation under Ministry of Culture of Government of India. Established in May 1979, to support cultural education, with its inceptio ...

(CCRT) and was selected as an M Panel Artist for Kathak by the

Indian Council for Cultural Relations The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) is an autonomous organisation of the Government of India, involved in India's global cultural relations, through cultural exchange with other countries and their people. It was founded on 9 April ...

(ICCR) in 2012. Meghranjani, who performed with her mother all over India has also performed solo Kathak recitals at many prestigious events in India and abroad, including the Sadhana Festival of Dance in New Delhi, Kathak Mahotsav organized by

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, situate ...

, Pragjyoti International Dance Festival (in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014), Khajuraho Dance Festival (2014),

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival The Kala Ghoda Arts Festival is annual festival, nine days long, commencing always on the first Saturday of February and closing is always on the second Sunday in February, in the Kala Ghoda area of South Mumbai, India. From its inception in ...

(2015), Sarjaya Festival of Dance & Music (2013), Panch Tattva Festival, Mumbai, and World Dance Day in Chennai. She toured Egypt, Israel, Palestine and the UAE under the ICCR and also performed at the Fleck Dance Theatre of the

Harbourfront Centre Harbourfront Centre is a cultural organization on the waterfront of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated at 235 Queens Quay West. Established as a crown corporation in 1972 by the Government of Canada to create a waterfront park, it became a no ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

in June 2011. Together with her mother, Meghranjani run a dance school named Sur Sangam in Guwahati.

Acting career

Meghranjani started her acting career with the video film ''Lakhimi'' and later acted in films like ''Abhimani Mon'', ''Poornima'', ''Janmoni'' (Volume-I & II), ''Rumal'' and ''Kasijun''. Her first full-length feature film was ''Anuradha'', which released in 2015. Apart from this, she acted in the television mega serial ''Tumi Dusokut Kajol Lole'' and several TV commercials.

Awards and honors

Meghranjani has won the gold medal at the Guwahati University Inter-College Youth Festival for three consecutive years starting in 2007. She received the Nebcus Media Award as the Best Actress for the video film ''Jaanmoni'' in 2010–2011. She received the Nirod Chaudhary Award for Best Actress for her performance in her first full-length feature film, ''Anuradha''. In 2024 she received the

for Kathak for the year 2023. In 2025 January, she received the Kala Sadhak - The One Devoted to Art award.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Medhi, Meghranjani Indian female classical dancers Living people Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Kathak exponents Dancers from Assam 21st-century Indian women artists 21st-century Indian dancers Actresses in Assamese cinema Actresses in Assamese television