Geeta Chandran

Geeta Chandran is celebrated as one of the leading figures in Indian classical dance across the world today. She is known for having cultivated a personal vision for the form which pushes its scope beyond traditionally received knowledge to reflect contemporary reality and enhance its universality. Aside from being a prolific dancer, she is a trained Carnatic vocalist and is known for her work in television, video and film, theatre, choreography, dance education, dance activism and dance-issue journalism.

She is the Founder-President of Natya-Vriksha, an organisation devoted to promoting Bharatanatyam. She is also known for using classical Bharatanatyam to amplify gender and environmental issues. Her most recent work ‘Gandhi: Warp and Weft’ has been hailed for spotlighting minimalism in Indian dance choreography. Geeta Chandran was bestowed with the Padma Shri by the President of India in 2007. She was conferred the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for Bharatanatyam in 2016 and has also been a Tagore National Fellow (2017-2018).