Geetanjali Lal (born Geetanjali Desai; 6 Nov 1948) is an Indian

Kathak Kathak ( hi, कथक; ur, کتھک) is one of the eight major forms of Indian classical dance. It is the classical dance from of Uttar Pradesh. The origin of Kathak is traditionally attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern Ind ...

dancer and choreographer.

Early life and education

Geetanjali Lal received formal training in Hindustani Classical music by her father, Rajnikant Desai – a well-known vocalist & professor of music and the disciple of Aftab-e-Mosiqui Ustad Faiyaz Khan of Agra Gharana. She began formal training in Kathak dance at an early age of 6, under the distinguished Kathak danseuse

Roshan Kumari Roshan Kumari Fakir Mohammad is an Indian classical dancer, actor and choreographer, considered by many as one of the foremost exponents of the Indian classical dance form of Kathak. She follows the Jaipur Gharana and is the founder of ''Nritya ...

. Geetanjali Lal continued with her formal training in Kathak dance under stalwarts – Pandit Gopi Krishna, Shri Mohan Rao Kallianpurkar and Pandit Devi Lal of Jaipur Gharana.

Career

She held the post of Chief of Repertory and Director of

Kathak Kendra Kathak ( hi, कथक; ur, کتھک) is one of the eight major forms of Indian classical dance. It is the classical dance from of Uttar Pradesh. The origin of Kathak is traditionally attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern Ind ...

from 2009-2012. She is a top grade artist of

Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...

and

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 Apri ...

, New Delhi. Geetanjali's solo performances have been applauded by audiences wherever she has performed. She is well known for her abhinaya and other features of the Jaipur gharana, like laykaari, intricate rhythmic patterns in her footwork. Geetanjali Lal had, ringing out the year 2001, surprised the audience with her imaginative choreography drawing on the tragic earthquake in Kutch, the attack on the twin towers of the World Trade Centre in New York, and the popular TV quiz show ‘

Kaun Banega Crorepati ''Kaun Banega Crorepati'' (also simply known as ''KBC'') is an Indian Hindi-language television game show. It is the official Hindi adaptation of the ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' franchise. It has been presented by actor Amitabh Bachchan ...

' starring

Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; born as Amitabh Shrivastav; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor, film producer, television host, occasional playback singer and former politician known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of the most succe ...

. Geetanjali also acted in Kashmiri feature film – Shayar-e-Kashmir Mahjoor (1972) by

Prabhat Mukherjee Prabhat Mukherjee (1917-1997) was an Indian film director, actor and writer. He is known for his work in Bengali, Assamese, Oriya and Hindi language films. Career Mukherjee's career began with All India Radio. He started acting in Bengali film ...

– in the lead role, alongside actors

Balraj Sahani Brigadier Balraj (born Balasegaram Kandiah) was a senior commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Early life Balraj was the fifth and youngest child of Kandiah and Kannagias. He received his primary education in Kokkuthoduwaai ...

Parikshit Sahni Parikshit Sahni (born 1 January 1944) is an Indian actor who is known for playing the lead in TV series Barrister Vinod, ''Gul Gulshan Gulfaam'' (Doordarshan) and ''Gaatha'' (Star Plus). He has also appeared in three of Rajkumar Hirani's block ...

, Pran.

Personal life

She was married to Pandit Devi Lal of Jaipur Gharana. Kathak dancers Abhimanyu Lal (her son) and Vidha Lal are her disciples.

Awards and honors

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in Englis ...

Sangeet Natak Akademi Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in English) is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India. History It was set up by the Indian education ministry on 31 May 1952 and be ...

in 2007 Also, she has been awarded the title of “Nritya Sharada”, "Natya Kala Shree”, “Bharat Gaurav”, “Kala Shiromani” and “Kalpana chawala award, "Jjijabai Women Achivers Award", "Acharya Kala Vipanchee"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:LaL, Geetanjali Kathak exponents Performers of Indian classical dance Indian classical choreographers 1948 births Living people Artists from Ahmedabad Teachers of Indian classical dance Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Indian women choreographers Indian choreographers Women educators from Gujarat Educators from Gujarat Indian dance teachers Indian female classical dancers 20th-century Indian dancers Dancers from Gujarat 20th-century Indian educators 20th-century Indian women artists Women musicians from Gujarat 20th-century women educators