Komala Varadan is an Indian classical dancer of
Bharatnatyam
Bharatanatyam () is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of ...
, writer
and the founder of ''Kalaikoodam'', a Delhi-based institute for promoting arts, literature and culture.
She is known to be proficient in various art forms such as choreography, photography and painting.
Career
Ms Varadan learnt classical dance from one of the leading dance maestros of India,
Vazhuvoor Ramiah Pillai. She has performed on many stages in India and abroad. Her paintings have been exhibited at many galleries including the
Russian Centre of Science and Culture (RCSC), New Delhi and the
National Gallery of Modern Art
National may refer to:
Common uses
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** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
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, New Delhi. She has published two novels and a text on Bharatnatyam and has served as the member of the Jury of the 30th National Film Awards for the feature films section. She is also a member of the Authors Guild of India.
Varadan is a recipient of the
Kalaimamani Award
The Kalaimamani is the highest civilian award in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. These awards are given by the ''Tamil Nadu Iyal Isai Nataka Mandram'' (literature, music and theatre), a unit of the Directorate of Art and Culture, Government of ...
of the Government of Tamil Nadu,
Rajyotsava Prashasthi of the Government of Karnataka, Natya Rani title, International Woman of the Year Award (1998 -1999) of the
International Biographical Centre
The International Biographical Centre is a publisher owned by Melrose Press Ltd that specializes in producing biographical publications, such as the ''Dictionary of International Biography'', ''Great Men and Women of Science'' and other vanity awa ...
,
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...
, Sahitya Kala Parishad Samman and the Full Circle Inner Flame Award (1999).
The Government of India awarded her the fourth highest civilian honour of the
Padma Shri
Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...
, in 2005, for her contributions to Indian classical dance.
Three years earlier, Varadan was in the news for a civil suit filed by her against the
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 ...
(ICCR), for categorising performing artists over the age of 45 as ''lecture-demonstration presenters''. However, the court ruling was against her.
Her life has been documented in an autobiography, ''Komala Varadan'', published in 1985.
See also
*
Bharatnatyam
Bharatanatyam () is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of ...
*
30th National Film Awards
The 30th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 1982. Ceremony took place in ...
References
External links
*
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Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Varadan, Komala
Living people
Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts
Year of birth missing (living people)
Indian classical choreographers
Bharatanatyam exponents
Indian women painters
Indian women photographers
21st-century Indian photographers
Indian women novelists
20th-century Indian novelists
Recipients of the Rajyotsava Award
Recipients of the Kalaimamani Award
Indian women choreographers
Indian choreographers
Writers from Delhi
Women writers from Delhi
20th-century Indian women writers
Women artists from Delhi
20th-century Indian women artists
Dancers from Delhi
Photographers from Delhi
Novelists from Delhi
20th-century women photographers
21st-century women photographers