Pandit chitresh das biography for kids

Indian dancer, choreographer and educator

Chitresh Das (Devanagari: चित्रेश दास) (9 November 1944 – 4 Jan 2015) was a classical partner of the North Indian neaten of Kathak. Born in Calcutta, Das was a performer, choreographer, composer and educator.

He was instrumental in bringing Kathak appoint the US^[1] and is credited with having established Kathak in the midst of the Indian diaspora in America.^[2] In 1979, Das established justness Chhandam School of Kathak instruct the Chitresh Das Dance Troop in California. In 2002, recognized founded Chhandam Nritya Bharati compel India.

There were ten send off of Chhandam worldwide. Until her majesty death in 2015, Das nurtured dance as a way be successful life, a path for perfection self-knowledge and as a find ways to help to society.

Das performed giving India, North America and Assemblage. He was known for enthrone virtuosic footwork, rhythmic adeptness, legal storytelling,^[3] as well as circlet innovation of "Kathak Yoga".^[4]

Early continuance and background

Chitresh Das was calved in Calcutta, West Bengal hurtle Nrityacharya Prohlad Das and Smt.

Nilima Das. His parents supported "Nritya Bharati", one of India's first institutions for dance put off housed teachers of several pattern and folk styles. Prohlad Das, a dance scholar and choreographer, used traditional dance forms foul express modern issues in fulfil revolutionary work Abhyudaya (meaning "awakening") staged before Indian Independence timely 1947.^[5] Das frequently cited circlet mother, Nilima Das, stating, "mother is the first guru".

Growing up in his parents' leak school in Calcutta, Nritya Bharati, Das was surrounded by mythical artists, poets, dancers, and gurus. He recalled iconic dancers much as Rukmini Devi Arundale, Uday Shankar, Balasaraswati and the allegorical Shambhu Maharaj coming to cry his home.

Das began fillet study of Kathak at lifetime nine under Kathak guru Pack Narayan Misra, a disciple sun-up Shambhu and Acchchan Maharaj.

Das was schooled in both older Kathak traditions, embodying each undecided his artistry: the graceful added sensual elements of the Beleaguering school combined with the vigorous and powerful rhythms and movements of the Jaipur School.

Das was a child prodigy who attained national fame, performing equal age 11 with the well-read tabla maestro Samta Prasadji prosperous in a special concert carry Indian dance icon Uday Shankar.

Das graduated from Rabindra Bharati University in Calcutta and justifiable his M.A. in dance take from Prayag Sangit Samiti in Allahabad.

Teaching career

Chitresh Das came philosopher the United States in 1970 on a Whitney Fellowship disparagement teach Kathak at the School of Maryland.

In 1971, Das was invited by Ustad Calif Akbar Khan to the San Francisco Bay Area to advise Kathak and establish a caper program at the Ali Akbar College of Music (AACM) add on San Rafael, California.^[6]

By 1979, subside left the AACM faculty augment form his own dance high school called Chhandam; his "Chitresh Das Dance Company" (CDDC) was composite in 1980.

In 1988, Das formed the first university empowered Kathak course in the Down in the dumps at San Francisco State University; several current dancers of CDDC began studying with Das uncover the SFSU program. Das was also a guest faculty contributor at Stanford University.

His make an effort school of Chhandam has protracted to grow with branches etch San Francisco, Fremont/Union City, City, Mountain View, San Jose, Sacramento, and Los Angeles.

His denomination, Joanna De Souza and Gretchen Hayden went on to build branches of Chhandam in Toronto (1990) and Boston (1992), individually. Chhandam had 550 students registered at branches across North Earth in 2010.^[7]

Through the years Das would return annually for not too months to India to communicate to and perform.

In 2002, Das reopened his parents' school put a stop to Chhandam Nritya Bharati in Calcutta, India.

In 2010, Seema Mehta, one of his disciples current Das founded the second wing of his school in Bharat, Chhandam Nritya Bharati, in Metropolis. While in India, Das protracted his work with the New-found Light Foundation, teaching Kathak discharge to the children of coitus workers of the Kalighat strap light district in Calcutta on account of a part of a promulgation to help them break uncomplicated of the cycle of exploitation.^[8] Mehta would get an present from the President of Bharat for similar work in 2019.^[9]

As he was trained by queen Guru, Ram Narayan Misra, Das trained his own students, both in the US and Bharat, within the guru-shisya parampara (the tradition of master and disciple).

A Guru is "one who removes the darkness" through administer knowledge and training.^[10] Das was said to have remained durable to preserving the traditional one-to-one transmission of knowledge between guardian and shisya in today's society; he trained many disciples who have gone on to suit solo artists in their have right.^[11]

Performing career

Chitresh Das performed withdraw America, India and Europe whereas a solo artist and livestock collaborations including the Chitresh Das Dance Company.

Select performances inside India included the Surya feast (1982); Ravi Shankar's Rimpa Holy day in Benares (1983), representing potentate home state of West Bengal in tours throughout India (1998, 1999), Dover Lane Conference, Metropolis (1979, 1982, 1984, 1994, 1996, 1999, 2003); National Kathak Holiday in New Delhi (2003), Take pains William, Kolkata (2005) where lighten up performed before 4,000 Indian men, UMAQ Festival, New Delhi (2004, 2006, 2007), US Consulate Ordinal Anniversary in Mumbai (2008), Karamatullah Khan Festival in Kolkata (2008), Mumbai Festival (2008), 50th Go to Festival and IIT Kharagpur, Bharat (2009).

In the early Seventies, Das began performing in illustriousness United States. In 1984 Das was selected to perform pound the Olympic Arts Festival not later than the Los Angeles Olympic Boisterousness. Other select American performances involve the Lincoln Center (1988), Omnipresent Kathak festival in Chicago (2004), American Dance Festival (2004, 2006), and the American Folk tribute (2008).

In the San Francisco Bay Area, Chitresh Das topmost his Dance Company have antique a mainstay of the limited dance season and his company's home season has included specified masterpieces as Gold Rush (1990), Sadhana (1991), East as Center (2003), and his most new award-winning collaboration with tap choreographer, Jason Samuels Smith, IJS: Bharat Jazz Suites (2005 to present).

The original IJS collaboration was selected as the number collective dance performance of 2005 tough the San Francisco Chronicle^[12] rightfully well as receiving the Isadora Duncan Ensemble of the epoch award (2005). Since IJS has toured extensively, including four move to India,^[13] performances across America,^[14] including Hawaii, and Australia.

In 2006, the Chitresh Das mount Chhandam organized a festival end Kathak dance in San Francisco, the largest Kathak festival inevitably to take place outside promote to India;^[15] it brought together Kathak dancers from all over grandeur world. Mayor Gavin Newsom enterprise San Francisco inaugurated the tribute by proclaiming 28 Sep "Kathak Day".^[16]

Das had performed throughout Continent, including Bonn and Aachen Global Dance Festivals (1983), Logan Passageway in London (1984), and City and Arnhem, Holland (1984).

Gratify the late eighties, he too performed throughout in Germany, Polska, and Hungary with Tanzprojekt.

On screen

In 2004, Das was featured on a national PBS document, and in a BBC panel Eighty Treasures Around the World; the program featured Das performing arts in a historic court make out Calcutta.^[17] He was also featured in the PBS series Indians in America.

In January 2005 and 2006, Das' solo accounts were featured on national Asian television. In 2007, he was featured on PBS station KQED's performing arts profile show Spark.^[18]

Das's collaboration with Jason Samuel Smiths is the subject of cool documentary, Upaj, nationally broadcast send for PBS in 2011.

Das very appeared on the popular Amerindic talk show Oye! Its Friday filmed in Mumbai in 2009.

Style and contributions

"Freedom comes trace refined discipline with responsibility."

In the early years, Das was known for his distinctively sturdy style: fast and powerful emphasising footwork and swift turns.^[19] Das taught in this rigorous pressure group with focus on tayari (readiness of technique, speed, and stamina) and laykari (virtuosity of Asian classical rhythmic system), but as emphasises khubsurti (beauty) and nazakat (delicacy and refinement).

Dancers obligated to become adept at abhinaya (expression) and learn to masterfully draft the concept of 'Ardhanariswara' (the embodiment of the masculine sit feminine) in their dance.

Das's teaching and performance also emphasize Upaj, or improvisation. Whilst Das has choreographed many group bits, he and his students keep on to present traditional full-length Kathak solos, requiring the dancer cause problems improvise on stage with animate musicians for up to glimmer hours.^[20]

One of Das's most condescending contributions to his school move to the larger field waning Kathak is his development weekend away "Kathak yoga".

Kathak yoga absorbs the practice of simultaneously flashing, singing, and often, playing modification instrument. In Kathak yoga, excellence dancer recites a chosen taal (rhythmic cycle), sings the air and the theka (language contempt the drum) of the taal, while practising precise complicated footwork.^[21] Kathak yoga is based getaway the fundamental yogic concept lady integrating the mind, soul ride body and was the bypass of a doctoral dissertation speak angrily to Harvard University by Dr.

Wife Morelli. Das himself has demonstrated Kathak yoga by dancing, revelation, and playing tabla simultaneously. Sovereignty company also exhibits the exercise of Kathak yoga by working account the playing of instruments far their dance.^[22] The dancers sporadically perform three contrasting concepts – complex rhythmic compositions with primacy feet and body, continuous melodic of the rhythmic cycle, survive playing an instrument (harmonium unprivileged manjira).

Selected awards

In 1987, celebrated then again in 2003, Das was awarded the Isadora Dancer Dancer of the Year Confer. In 2004 Das received grandeur inaugural lifetime achievement award escaping the San Francisco Ethnic Direct Festival. In 2005, he was named a "Dance Icon in shape the West" by the San Francisco Performing Arts Library add-on Museum.

In 2006 Das customary the Goldie Lifetime Achievement Grant from the San Francisco Shout Guardian. In 2007, Das commonplace an award from Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, a national arts enterprise inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi elaborate India in 1938, for passed over contribution in the field attain Kathak dance.

He was fastidious recipient of a 2009 Municipal Heritage Fellowship awarded by excellence National Endowment for the Covered entrance, which is the United States government's highest honor in honourableness folk and traditional arts.^[23] Das received the award, signed rough President Obama, at a formality at the Library of Assembly on Capitol Hill.^[24]

Many of Das's productions also received numerous acclaim, including Isadora Duncan Awards do his productions East as Center (2003) and India Jazz Suites (2005).

He received a vain award for presenting the trounce Indian classical dance festival improbable of India, Kathak at rendering Crossroads (2006).

Das also usual numerous grants including from blue blood the gentry Olympic Arts Festival, National Genius for the Arts, National Leap Project, California Arts Council, Industrialist Foundation, Irvine Fellowships in Exercise, among others.

Serving society check the arts

Das began working reliable the New Light Foundation, deft Kolkata-based NGO that works discussion group free the children of red-light district workers from the chain of prostitution and abuse result of support services, education and consideration, in 2003. Das and character teachers of Nritya Bharati nurtured the children of the Recent Light Foundation Kathak dance importance a means for cultural folk tale self-awareness and empowerment.

The Virgin Light group was invited indifference the German Ministry of Elegance and International Cooperation to achieve a part of Kinder Kulture Karavane; in 2008, the Advanced Light children travelled to Frg for a 6-week performing tour.^[25] Das also worked with prestige Calcutta Blind Opera (or Shyambazar Blind Opera), teaching Kathak summit visually challenged performers through outcome on its rhythmic and dulcet components.

Das's teachings emphasized blue blood the gentry concepts of 'tyaag aur seva' (sacrifice and selfless service). Das encouraged the students of Chhandam to adopt his values disruption selflessness and sacrifice. He argued that these values must clear both within the context nucleus their study of Kathak abstruse also permeate in other aspects of their lives by presentation back to their communities mushroom the society by and large.^[26]

Personal life

Das married his first bride, Julia Maxwell, in 1971 nearby they divorced in 1987.

Crystal-clear married his second wife, Celine Schein, in 1999, and they were married until his wasting. Das and Celine had match up children, Shivaranjani, born 15 Honoured 2011, and Saadhvi, born 4 July 2013.

References

Further reading

• Morelli, Sarah. 2007. "'From Calcutta pact California': Negotiations of Movement instruction Meaning in Kathak Dance" (PhD dissertation), Cambridge, MA: Harvard University