Ileana Citaristi is an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

-born Indian

Odissi Odissi (), also referred to as Orissi in old literature, is a major ancient Indian classical dance that originated in the Hindu temple, temples of Odisha – an eastern coastal state of India.Chhau dancer, and dance instructor based in

Bhubaneswar Bhubaneswar (; ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. The region, especially the old town, was historically often depicted as ''Ekamra Kshetra'' (area (''kshetra'') adorned with mango trees (''ekamra'')). Bhubaneswar is ...

, India. She was awarded the 43rd

National Film Awards The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorat ...

for Best Choreography for ''

Yugant ''Yugant'' ( en, What the Sea Said) is a 1995 Bengali drama movie directed by Aparna Sen. The movie featured Anjan Dutt and Roopa Ganguly. Plot Deepak and Anasuya are an estranged couple, now leading separate lives in Cuttack and Bombay. They ...

'' in 1995 and became, in 2006, the first dancer of foreign origin to be conferred the

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

for her contributions to Odissi.

Early life

Citaristi, a native of

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, the daughter of Severino Citaristi, a leading

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

of the

Democrazia Cristiana Christian Democracy ( it, Democrazia Cristiana, DC) was a Christian democratic political party in Italy. The DC was founded on 15 December 1943 in the Italian Social Republic (Nazi-occupied Italy) as the ideal successor of the Italian People's ...

party of Italy. She spent five years as an actress in traditional and experimental theatre in Italy before deciding to learn Kathakali. She went to

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

, where she spent three rigorous months studying

Kathakali Kathakali ( ml, കഥകളി) is a major form of classical Indian dance. It is a "story play" genre of art, but one distinguished by the elaborately colourful make-up and costumes of the traditional male actor-dancers. It is native to the M ...

before she went to

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

on the advice of her Kathakali guru, Krishnan Namboodari. Since 1979, she has been living in Odisha. She holds a

Doctorate of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

with a thesis on '

Psychoanalysis PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: + . is a set of theories and therapeutic techniques"What is psychoanalysis? Of course, one is supposed to answer that it is many things — a theory, a research method, a therapy, a body of knowledge. In what might b ...

and Eastern Mythology'.

Dancing career

Ileana Citaristi performing Mayurbhanj Chau style Siba Tandaba

Ileana Citaristi performing Mayurbhanj Chhau

Citaristi studied Odissi under Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra and started her own school of dance in 1994. Citaristi is also an exponent of the Mayurbhanj Chhau, which she learnt under the tutelage of Guru Hari Nayak and holds the title of an acharya of Chhau from the Sangeet Mahavidyalya of Bhubaneswar. She founded the Art Vision Academy in 1996, which acts as a platform for sharing ideas between various artistic forms such as theatre, music, dance and painting. The Academi also conducts classes in Odissi and Chhau. She has presented her solo dance recitals as well as her creative group choreographies in all the major festivals in India and travelled in many foreign countries such as Italy, Argentina, Poland, France, Germany. Holland, Denmark, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Japan, USA, Australia , Israel, Spain , Poland., South Korea, Canada, Peru and Portugal.

Major dance performances abroad

- International Meeting of Moving Theatre, Budapest - International Tanz-Werkstat, Bonn - International Tanzprojekt, Munster - Latin American Theatre Festival, Cordoba, Argentina - Mandapa, Paris - Vignale Danza, Italy - Estate Fiesolana, Italy - International Festival of Dance, Hong Kong - Soeterjin, Amsterdam - Todi festival, Italy - J.A.D.E. 93, Tokyo - Congress on Dance Research, Corfù - Festival La Versiliana, Italy - Invito alla Danza, Italy - Festival of Performing Arts, Cleveland - PanditJasraj School of Music, Vancouver - Aid Australia, Sidney - Teatro Olimpico, Rome - Sommer Morchen, Kuala Lumpur - Roots in Transit, Hostelbro, Denmark - Stage centre Workshop, Tel Aviv - XIII session I:S:T:A:, (International School of Theatre Anthropology) Seville, Spain - XIV session I:S:T:A: Wroclaw, Poland - Seoul Institute of Performing Arts, South Korea - Kalanidhi International Dance Conference, Toronto - Alain Danielou Centenary Celebrations, Rome - I have a dream production, Teatro Massimo, Palermo - The Bad Boys of Piano, Teatro Nazionale, Rome - Nehru Centre, London - Indian Cultural Centre, Berlin - India @70 celebration of 70years of India Independence, Lisbona, Portugal

Major productions

Ileana Citaristi is noted for her innovative choreographic productions in Odissi and Chhau that bring together themes and styles from both the West and the East. In Chhau, some of her notable productions are ‘

Echo and Narcissus Echo and Narcissus is a myth from Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'', a Roman mythological epic from the Augustan Age. The introduction of the myth of the mountain nymph Echo into the story of Narcissus, the beautiful youth who rejected Echo and fel ...

' based on the Greek myth in

Ovid's Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the w ...

, ‘The Journey' that draws on Japanese

haiku is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan. Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a ''kireji'', or "cutting word", 17 '' on'' (phonetic units similar to syllables) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a ''kigo'', or se ...

, ‘Images of Change' based on the Chinese concept of

Yin and Yang Yin and yang ( and ) is a Chinese philosophy, Chinese philosophical concept that describes opposite but interconnected forces. In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the c ...

and ‘Still I Rise' based on Maya Angelou's eponymous poem. In Odissi, 'Maya Darpan', '

Mahanadi The Mahanadi is a major river in East Central India. It drains an area of around and has a total length of . Mahanadi is also known for the Hirakud Dam. The river flows through the states of Chhattisgarh and Odisha and finally merged with Bay o ...

: and the river flows', about the history and cultural geography of Orissa, 'Karuna', based on the life of

Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was bo ...

and Sharanam, a piece on women from three faiths who attain salvation despite their dubious pasts, are some of her notable compositions. - Echo and Narcissus, (solo), Bombay, 1985 - The wreck, (solo), New Delhi, 1988 - Icarus, (group), New Delhi, 1991 - Maya Darpana, (group), Bombay 1993 - Pancha Bhuta, (group), Baripada, 1996 - The Journey, (solo) New Delhi, 1998 - Images of Change, (duet), Bombay, 2000 - Surya Devata, (group), Konarak, 2001 - Jarjara, (group), Bhubaneswar, 2003 - Still I rise, (solo), Bhubaneswar, 2005 - Tantra (duet), Bhubaneswar, 2006 - Exploration (duet), Bhubaneswar, 2006 - Karpasa (group), Hyderabad, 2006 - Ekadasa Rudra , Doordarshan (2006) - Saraha (group), New Delhi 2006 - Bolero (group), Bhubaneswar, 2007 - Rhydhum, (duet), Bhubaneswar, 2007 - I have a dream, (group) Palermo, 2008 - Sparsh, Bhubneswar, (duet)2008 - Mahanadi…and the river flows, (group) Bhubaneswar, 2008 -Partha Sarathi (duet), Bhubaneswar 2009 -Karuna (group) Bhubaneswar 2010 -Maana Bhanjan (group) Bhubaneswar 2011 -Kaala-Timebound (group) Bhubaneswar 2012 -Siddhartha (group) Bhubaneswar 2014 - Akshara (group) Bhubaneswar 2016 -Refugee (group) Bhubaneswar 2018 -Meghadootham (group) 2019

Books and films

Besides Yugantar, a Bengali film directed by

Aparna Sen Aparna Sen (, ''Ôporna Shen'') is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actress who is known for her work in Bengali cinema. She has received several accolades as an actress and filmmaker, including nine National Film Awards, five Filmf ...

for which she won a

National Film Award The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directora ...

in 1996, Citaristi has also choreographed for M.F. Hussain's '' Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities'' (2004) and Goutam Ghose's '' Abar Aranye'' (2003). Citaristi is also the author of three books. In 2001, she published ''The Making of a Guru: Kelucharan Mohapatra, his Life and Times'' in 2012 the ''Traditional Martial Practices in Orissa'' and in 2016 ''My Journey, a Tale of Two Births''.

Awards and honours

Citaristi 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 ...

. She was conferred the title of ´

Leonide Massine Leonide or Léonide is a masculine given name which may refer to: * Leonide or Leonid of Georgia (1861–1921), Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia * Leonid Berman (1896–1976), Russian Neo-romantic painter and theater and opera designer * Léoni ...

for the art of dance' in 1992. In 1996, she won the

National Film Award for Best Choreography The National Film Award for Best Choreography is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organization set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of several awards pr ...

for her work in Aparna Sen's Bengali film ''

'' (1995). She is empanelled as ‘outstanding artist’ in ICCR. She is also a recipient of the ´Raseshwar Award' given by the Sur Singar Sansad, Mumbai. For her contributions to Odissi, she was conferred the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

in 2006. The Italian government made her a member of the

Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity The Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity ( it, Stella della solidarietà italiana ) was founded as a national order by the first President of the Italian Republic, Enrico De Nicola, in 1947, to recognise civilian and military expatriates or ...

in 2008. - Leonide Massine for the Art of Dance, Italy, 1992 - Rasehswar, Bombay, 1994 - Cine Critic Association Award, Calcutta, 1995 - National Award for Best Choreography for film Yugant, New Delhi, 1996 - Prananath Patnaik Award, Bhubaneswar, 2005 - Padmashree award, New Delhi, 2006 - Sanskiti Siromani, Mumbai, 2006 - Desharatna by Bharati Foundation Trust, Bhubaneswar (2007) - Lalithakala award by Sri Lalithakala Academy Foundation, Mysore, 2007 - Pandit Jasraj Award for Cross Cultural Understanding, from Rotary Club, Hyderabad, 2009 - Order of Star of Italian Solidatiety (OSSI), from President of Italy, New Delhi 2008 -Odisha Women Leadership award from Odisha Yuve Sanskrutik Sansad, Bhubaneswar, 2012 -Showcase Odisha from Prelude, Bhubaneswar, 2014 -Nalco Karavela Award from Nalco, Bhubaneswar, 2016 -Bhavan Samman by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bhubaneswar, 2018 -Mutthiral Pathistha Vithakar by Karur Natyanjali Trust, Karur (Tamil Nadu) 2018 -Suresh Balabantaray Samman, Bhubaneswar 2018 -Saptashajya samman by Devanshi Dance Academi, Dhenkanal (Odisha) 2018 - Odisha Excellence (Dance) by Odia Media, Bhubaneswar 2019.

Works

* ''The Making of a Guru: Kelucharan Mohapatra, His Life and Times'', Published by Manohar Pub., 2001. . *Traditional Martial Practices in Odisha, Subhi Publications, New Delhi, 2012 *My Journey, a Tale of Two Births, Manohar Publication , New Delhi, 2016

References

External links

Ileana Citaristi's WebsiteMaana Bhanjan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Citaristi, Ileana Living people Odissi exponents People from Bergamo Artists from Bhubaneswar Dancers from Odisha Women artists from Odisha Women educators from Odisha Chhau exponents Italian female dancers Italian stage actresses Italian emigrants to India Naturalised citizens of India Indian people of Italian descent Indian female classical dancers Teachers of Indian classical dance Performers of Indian classical dance Indian women choreographers Indian choreographers Indian dance teachers Indian classical choreographers Indian film choreographers Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts People who lost Italian citizenship Year of birth missing (living people) Best Choreography National Film Award winners 20th-century Italian dancers 20th-century Italian women artists 20th-century Italian educators 20th-century women educators 20th-century Indian dancers 20th-century Indian women artists 20th-century Indian educators 21st-century Indian dancers 21st-century Indian women artists 21st-century Indian educators 21st-century women educators