Alarmel Valli


Alarmel Valli is a leading Indian classical dancer and choreographer and the foremost exponent of the Pandanallur style, in the Indian classical dance form, Bharatanatyam. She is widely acclaimed for her ability to turn a traditional grammar into a deeply internalized, personal dance poetry.
She founded The Dipasikha Dance Foundation in Chennai in 1984, where she teaches Bharatanatyam.
In 1991, Alarmel Valli was the second youngest dancer to be conferred the Padmasri from the Government of India, after Vyjayanthimala. She was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2001 by India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama, followed by one of India's highest civilian honours - the Padma Bhushan award from the Government of India in 2004 and Chevalier of Arts and Letters award from the Government of France, also in 2004.

Early life

Alarmel Valli was born and brought up in Chennai, where she did her schooling from The Sacred Heart Matriculation School, Church Park, Chennai. She graduated with a BA degree in English Literature from the Stella Maris College, Chennai. She trained in the Pandanallur style of Bharatanatyam from the age of six, under renowned Gurus, Pandanallur Chokkalingam Pillai and his son Pandanallur Subbaraya Pillai. She studied music under T. Muktha, of the Veena Dhanammal style of music for many years, with a focus on Padams and Javalis. She also trained in Odissi under Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra and his disciple Guru Ramani Ranjan Jena.

Career

She made her stage debut at an early age of 9 1/2 under the auspices of The Indian Institute of Fine Arts, Madras and was conferred the Natya Kala Bhushan award. She won her laurels on the International scene when she was barely 16 at the International Dance Festival of the prestigious Sarah Bernhardt Théâtre de la Ville, in Paris, and has been performing in landmark theatres and festivals ever since, both in India and aboard.
Her research into classical Tamil literature and the anthologies of the 2000 year old Sangam poetry has resulted in a significant repertoire of dance poems. Over the years she has evolved her own distinct style, within the framework of classical Bharatanatyam.
Among her leading students are Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramswamy of the [Ragamala Dance Company, Minneapolis and Meenakshi Srinivasan.
Some highlights of Alarmél Valli's career internationally, include her performances at the Bolshoi Theatre, The Vienna International Dance Festival, The Munich Opera Festival, The Edinburgh Festival, The New York International Festival of Arts, The Avignon Festival, The Cervantino Festival, the Lyon Biennale, The Venice Biennale, The Royal Albert Hall and the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, The Helsinki Biennale, The Millennium Festival in Berlin and The Frankfurt Alt Oper. In July 2015, she was the first Indian classical dancer to perform at the Salzburg Festival.

In popular culture

A film on Alarmel Valli was made for the Omnibus series, on BBC One, by producer Michael Macintyre. Alarmel Valli has also been featured in dance documentaries by noted Indian producers like the late G. Aravindan and Prakash Jha, by the BBC, the Netherlands Broadcasting Company, Arte and Japanese National Television. The Films Division of India commissioned a film on her for the National Archives of India. Titled 'Pravahi', it has been directed by eminent film-maker Arun Khopkar, with cinematography by Madhu Ambat. In 2011, Lasya Kavya, a documentary about Alarmel Valli by award-winning director, Sankalp Meshram, won the National Film Award for Best Arts/Cultural Film.

Personal life

Alarmel Valli is married to Bhaskar Ghose, an IAS officer.

Selected awards and honours