Narthaki nataraja biography of george

She started her training in dance under Namanur Jeyaraman of the Tanjavur bani. Kittappa Pillai inwho was a direct descendant of the Thanjavur Quartet. Narthaki Nataraj took the name "Narthaki" during her debut performance as a woman in Inshe moved to Chennai and has been a full time professional dancer since then. She specialises in the Tanjore-based Nayaki Bhava tradition.

She established a dance school Velliambalam Nadana Kalai Koodam in Chennai and Madurai, with her friend Shakti Bhaskar, where she trains her students in the traditional repertoire of Thanjavur Quartets. She along with her friend, Shakti, has been conducting annual workshops at the government department of music in Oslo. Her life and journey has been included as a lesson in the 11th standard Tamil text book by the Tamil Nadu government in Narthaki Nataraj was stopped at many airports as her passport denoted the alphabet "U" for her gender.

Inshe took part in one of the earliest campaigns for the rights of transgender people. She pursued Union Home Ministry to change the alphabet "U", representing eunuchs for transgender people in India to alphabet "F", representing female. She also took part in the fight to replace the derogatory Tamil word aravani with thirunangaimeaning "supreme woman" in the official circulars of the Tamil Nadu government.

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Narthaki nataraja biography of george: Narthaki Nataraj's life is

Download as PDF Printable version. She says that since the dance form and style of Bharatanatyam was essentially designed for ladies, very few men actually took interest in it. As her gender identity was still unacceptable and frowned upon by society, Narthaki was subjected to social insensitivity and stigma that forced her to run away from home at the age of But since in her heart of hearts she knew she wanted to become a dancer, she was always in constant search of a guru.

Her wish finally came true in when she met the legendary Thanjavar Kittappa Pillaia name synonymous with Classical dance in India. I was also a demonstration artist for the dance pieces he described in his research at the Thanjavur Tamil University.

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The number of performances of mine certainly increased, but acceptance initially did not. He also offered Narthaki a place in his gurukul in the south, where she lived and practiced dance for many years. She is a Bharatanatyam exponent and has become the face of the Thanjavur-based Nayaki Bhava tradition all over the world. Breaking gender stereotypes and propagating the rich traditional dance form of Tamil Nadu in different parts of the globe, Narthaki has indeed, come a long way.

I feel like a queen, that I am still And that feeling and expression translates into my dance. I always wanted to dance like the actress Vyjayanthi, so I would carefully watch her every step, every expression and movement and try to do them myself. I have never thought of identity as a hurdle. We do face a lot of roadblocks, but we still never let go of our identity, so I choose to believe that my identity is my good luck.

But my artistic achievements are never the result of my gender. Being a transgender Bharatnatyam artiste is not my only claim to fame. But all these awards are due to my talent, and not due to my gender. What would you say about the representation of transgender persons in the public sphere today? This is probably the first time the community is being represented in a top government decision-making body.

When former Chief Minister, the late M. Inclusion of the community within the government helps make such significant decisions. With regard to the art form, when I go to perform for an audience that usually comes from the IT sectors or engineers, I cater my performance to their needs. It helps me mingle with the common people. It was her passion for dance and determination to succeed that made her travel to Thanjavur, take shelter of a Guru, and spend 15 years there under his guidance before moving to Chennai in As she grew with the blessings and teachings of Guru Kittappa Pillai, she brought nuances in her performances.

She enhanced herself with knowledge about dance, music, and literature, Her name, 'Narthaki Nataraj', was also given by her Guru. She would initially dance to the pre-recorded songs. She mentioned she would only carry her grace and talent to the stage, leaving behind the many ornaments other artists wore during their performances.

Narthaki nataraja biography of george: Father George is a

Due to financial struggles, the young Narthaki would think how great it would have been if she could also dance donning some shining and stunning jewelry. But when she approached her Guru on this point, she recollects the great words he told her. Responding to this, he said, 'Narthaki, do you remember how they performed? See, you didn't speak about the quality of their performance because their shining ornaments, the 'pattu' saree, and the very elements of richness caught your eyes more than their dance.

The audience too might have viewed these aspects more than the art We asked her about her signature style, to which she noted that her dance is inspired by literature and historical magnificence. My performances narrate scenes from the Hindu mythology and the great works of Tamil literature to the audience.