Event Details

Opening Session

An NCPA Presentation curated by Jayashree Nair and Lata Rajesh

The NCPA Mumbai Dance Season is a community engagement initiative started by the NCPA in 2018 in association with the classical dance community in the city. The fifth edition of this season will be held from 18th January to 4th February 2024. The opening event will be curated by noted artistes, Jayashree Nair and Lata Rajesh.

Jayashree Nair is a professional classical dancer, teacher and choreographer who is instrumental in training, guiding and encouraging aspiring dancers. She was initiated into Bharatanatyam and later trained in Kathakali and Mohiniattam. In 1976, she founded the Upaasana Academy of Fine Arts—a school that trains children in Indian classical dances. Through her academy, Nair is passing on her knowledge of different Indian classical dance forms to the next generation. She was also involved in teaching these forms to differently abled children under the aegis of the Indian Society for Rehabilitation of Handicapped Children.

Lata Rajesh is an accomplished Bharatanatyam dancer, teacher and choreographer. She was initiated into the world of Bharatanatyam by Gurus Smt. & Shri Pawar[AS1] . She holds a distinction in Bachelor of Fine Arts (Dance – Bharatanatyam) from Nalanda Nrityakala Mahavidyalaya, Mumbai University and a master’s in Fine Arts (Dance – Bharatanatyam) from Bharathidasan University, Tamil Nadu. She was awarded the Sri A. Nageswara Rao Scholarship for topping the Mumbai University’s degree examination. Rajesh is a graded Doordarshan artiste and recipient of the ‘Singar-Mani’ title by the Sur-Singar Samsad, among others. In 1993, she established Nrtyanjli to impart professional training in Bharatanatyam. She has created a vast repertoire of solo, duet and group pieces including Shila – Eternal marvels of storytelling, Devi Mahatmyam, and Shaapmochan.

Inaugural welcome by Kalashri Nellyvai K.N. P. Nambisan

Chaitee & Bot Kajri (Uttar Pradesh)
by Ranjana Phadke &  Kathakalay

Laiharaoba (Manipur)
by Latasana Devi and   Students of  NCPA Nritya Parichay

Sambalpuri (Odisha)
by Monaswini Mohanty &  Pratha Academy of Performing Arts

Gaur (Maharashtra)
by Sampada Halvalkar, Pradeep Khamkar & Shree Ganesh Kalamanch

Sua ( Madhaya Pradesh)
by Ambadas Zingade & Pradeep Khamkar

Karagattam (Tamilnadu)
by Anand Jayalakshmi   & Sri Shanmukhananda Natyavidyalaya

Margamkali (Kerala)
by K.V.Rajan  & Meenakshi Nritya Vidyalaya

Entry for the opening session on a first-come-first-served basis.