Pandit Shambhu Maharaj (1910 – 4 November 1970) was a Guru of the Lucknow ''Gharana'' (school) of the Indian classical dance form,
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 ...
.
Early life and training
Shambhu Maharaj was born in
Lucknow
Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...
as Shambhunath Mishra. He was the youngest son of Kalka Prasad Maharaj who was at the court of the
Nawab of Awadh
The Nawab of Awadh or the Nawab of Oudh was the title of the rulers who governed the state of Awadh (anglicised as Oudh) in north India during the 18th and 19th centuries. The Nawabs of Awadh belonged to a dynasty of Persian origin from Nishapu ...
Wajid Ali Shah
Mirza Wajid Ali Shah ( ur, ) (30 July 1822 – 1 September 1887) was the eleventh and last King of Awadh, holding the position for 9 years, from 13 February 1847 to 11 February 1856.
Wajid Ali Shah's first wife was Alam Ara who was better k ...
. Kalka Prasad's father was Thakur Prasad was known to have taught the intricacies of Kathak to the Nawab. While reporting Shambhu's death in 1970, ''
The Indian Express
''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split betw ...
'' wrote, "The Kathak, as we know it today, can be wholly traced to this dilettante's patronage and the body of work written at his court for this mode of dance."
Shambhu received his training from his father, uncle
Bindadin Maharaj and his eldest brother
Achchan Maharaj. Dancer
Lacchu Maharaj
Pandit Bajinath Prasad also known as Pandit Lachhu Maharaj (1901–1978) was an Indian classical dancer and choreographer of Kathak dance. He came from a family of illustrious Kathak exponents in Lucknow, and also worked as film choreographer, ...
was also another his older brothers. He learned
Hindustani classical music
Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sita ...
from Ustad Rahimuddin Khan.
Career
In 1952, he joined the Bharatiya Kala Kendra (later,
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 ...
), New Delhi. He became the head of the Dance (Kathak) department. He was honoured with the
Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship
The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, also known as Akademi Ratna Sadasyata, is an Indian honour for the performing arts presented by Sangeet Natak Academy. It is "the most prestigious and rare honour" conferred by the Academy and is "restricte ...
in 1967 and the
Padmashri
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 conferred ...
in 1958.
Personal
He had two sons, Krishnamohan and Rammohan and a daughter, Rameshwari. Amongst his pupils, the most noted exponents of Kathak are his nephew
Birju Maharaj
Pandit Birju Maharaj (born Brijmohan Nath Mishra; 4 February 1938 – 16 January 2022) was an Indian dancer, composer, singer, child molester and exponent of the Lucknow "Kalka-Bindadin" Gharana of Kathak dance in India. He was a descendant of ...
,
Kumudini Lakhia
Kumudini Lakhia (born 17 May 1930) is an Indian Kathak dancer and choreographer based in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, where she founded Kadamb School of Dance and Music, an institute of Indian dance and music in 1967.
A pioneer in contemporary Kathak d ...
,
Damayanti Joshi
Damayanti Joshi (5 September 1928 – 19 September 2004) was a noted renowned exponent of the Kathak dance form.She believed Kathak is the art of storytelling. She began in the 1930s dancing in Madame Menaka's troupe, which travelled to many pa ...
,
Maya Rao
Maya Rao (2 May 1928 – 1 September 2014) was an Indian classical dancer, choreographer and educator, in Kathak dance. She is known for her pioneering work in Kathak choreography, especially in dance ballets, and is credited for bringing Kath ...
, Bharati Gupta,
Uma Sharma
Uma Sharma (born 1942) is a kathak dancer, choreographer and teacher. She is also runs the Bharatiya Sangeet Sadan, Delhi, a classical dance and music academy, situated in New Delhi, founded by her father in 1946. She is most known for reviving ...
,
Vibha Dadheech
Vibha Dadheech is an Indian classical dancer in the Kathak dance form. She began learning Kathak from Raigarh Court dancer Pt. Firtu Maharaj, and later in Guru Shishya Parampara from Pt. Shambhu Maharaj as a ganda bandh shagird, living and lea ...
and Rina Singha.
His son Rammohan was also his disciple and continues to perform his style.
Shambhu was treated for
throat cancer
Head and neck cancer develops from tissues in the lip and oral cavity (mouth), larynx (throat), salivary glands, nose, sinuses or the skin of the face. The most common types of head and neck cancers occur in the lip, mouth, and larynx. Symptoms ...
at the
All India Institutes of Medical Sciences
The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is a group of autonomous government public medical universities of higher education under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare , Government of India. These institutes ha ...
in
New Delhi
New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
for three months before he died on 4 November 1970 there.
Harsh Mohan Mishra is the son of Pt. Ram Mohan Maharaj and nephew of Lt. Pt. Birju Maharaj, who is a renowned Film Maker and Visual Effects Supervisor in Bollywood Industry.
Notes
References
*
External links
Kathak Samraat Shambhu Maharaj (Profile)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maharaj, Shambhu
Kathak exponents
1910 births
1970 deaths
Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts
Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship
Artists from Lucknow
Teachers of Indian classical dance
Performers of Indian classical dance
Dancers from Uttar Pradesh
20th-century Indian dancers