Best Female Indian Classical Dancers of All Time

India is known for its culture all over the world and classical dance is one of them. In India, every state has its own unique dance form such as Odissi from Odissa, Manipuri from Manipur, Kathakali from Kerala, Kuchipudi from Andhrapradesh, etc. Indian classical dance is more difficult in comparison to other dance forms that’s why most of the classical dancers learn dancing from a very young age. Many female Indian classical dancers glorified the name of India in foreign as well. Let’s see some of the most renowned Indian classical dancers.

1. Sonal Mansingh- Sonal Mansingh is a female Indian classical dancer in Mumbai. She is a grand-daughter of freedom fighter Mangal Das Pakvasa who was one of the first five Governors of India. She performs in Odissi, Manipuri, and Bharatnatyam dance forms. She started her training in the Manipuri dance at the age of 4. When she turned 18, she went to Bangalore to learn Bharatanatyam and after that, she also started training in Odissi dance in 1965. Sonal won many awards like- Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan, Sangeet Natak Academy award, etc. She is the founder of the “Centre for Indian Classical Dances (CICD)” which is started in 1997 in New Delhi. When she completed her 40 years of her career, film director Prakash Jha made a documentary film, titled ‘Sonal’ on her.

2. Priya Venkataraman- Priya Venkataraman is one of the most talented and experienced female Indian classical dancers in Delhi. She started to learn dancing at the age of 7. At the starting of her career, she lived in the United States for more than 12 years. In the US, Priya performed and taught Bharatanatyam. Some of her admired performances are-

• For the US President Barrack Obama’s when he visited India in 2010.
• For the Royal couple in Bhutan in 2011.
• In an International festival in South Korea.
• In Bogota, Columbia for Festival of India and many more.
• International Dance festival in Patna (2012).

3. Vidushi Deepa Bhat- Vidushi is a professional female Indian classical dancer in Bangalore. She has 20+ years of experience. She started to learn dance from Guru Smt. Vandya Srinath and then continued her training by Guru Prof. M.R Krishnamurthy. She teaches dance in many schools and running her own institution ‘Nrithyakuteera’, where more than 200 students learn dancing. Vidushi has won many awards for her dance, some of them are-

• Dancer of the year by Ashoka Shishu Vihara, Bangalore in 1992.
• Literacy Champion by National High School, Bangalore in 1994-1995.
• Gold Medal at Gopinatha Das Nyasa Dance Festival in 2002.
• Elegance in the Kreativ contest conducted by Carnatica, Chennai in 2003.

4. Anjana Jha- Anjana Jha is internationally known as Kathak dancer and choreographer. Initially, she started learning the nuances of Kathak by Guru Shri Sukh Dev Singh. After that, she admitted to the National Institute of Kathak Dance, New Delhi. Anjana pursued a Ph.D. in Kathak dance. She performed in many countries like- Australia, Switzerland, Dubai, Doha, Qatar, Bahrain, Muscat, Iceland, etc. She was the first performer and teacher of Kathak in Thailand and founder of Kathak dance academy ‘Upaj’. Some of her achievements are-

• Silver Medal Achievement awards.
• Pt Birju Maharaj from the National Institute of Kathak.
• Awarded as ‘Kathak Shri’ and gold medal by All India Dance Competition in Chhattisgarh.

5. Bineeta Bhattacharya - Bineeta is a Bharatnatyam dancer from Kolkata but she currently lives in Delhi. She learned Bharatnatyam by Thankumani Kutty inKalamandalam. After learning dance for six years in Kolkata, she went to Delhi for further training. Bineeta has also done a professional course in contemporary after learning Bharatanatyam. She has performed at various college fests and also at bigger venues like Kamani Auditorium and LTG Auditorium.