Guru Dr. Shashi Sankhla

Varishtha Kathak Nrityaacharya and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awardee

Dr. Shashi Sankhla is a Kathak Maestro and an outstanding dancer. She is an incarnation of the great artistic and social traditions of India. She created a new and innovative style of performing arts by enriching it with a deeper and wider canvas of expression and dimensions. She has also given new dimensions to the Abhinaya in Kathak by blending it with the Rajasthani Folk style of singing “Maand”. She has been awarded with Sangeet Natak Academy Awards in 2008 for her outstanding work in the field of Kathak Dance.

Life

An exquisite diamond of her art style, intense and passionate, elegant yet vibrant, effortlessly spanning centuries of Kathak heritage as she does her dance space, Shashi Sankhla is sheer poetry and sublime joy transcending boundaries. She is not only India’s most celebrated Kathak Guru and Maestro of the present age but she has also become a living legend who has blazed a trail in Kathak, re-defining the ethos and vocabulary of Kathak bestowing it with dignity. Every fiber of her body lives and breathes dance. Her performances are intimate yet pristine. A consummate artiste and choreographer, a revered guru to her disciples and an intellectual, she combines artistry with keen observation and humanism.

Training

Dr. Shashi Sankhla received the initial training from Pt. Mool Chand, and Pt. Mohan Lal. She was later groomed by legendary Kathak maestro Pt. Kundan Lal Gangani. Besides Kathak she has also learned Bharatnatyam by Ms. Pratibha Pandit and Hindustani Classical Vocal by Pt. B.N. Kshirsagar. She gave her debut performance at the age of 9. Ever since, she had a colorful and eventful dancing career. She became one of the most admired dancers of the country. Her performances brought accolades from all over the nation. Shashi Sankhla thus appeared as one of the leading classical dancers of India.

Teaching

She started her career as a teacher at an early age of 18 at Jodhpur. Later she joined Jaipur Kathak Kendra (An autonomous body of Government of Rajasthan) in the year 1978 and retired as Principal in 2006. She has over 40 years of teaching experience. She has trained many foreign national apart from Indians. The list of the students trained under her crosses over 1000 names. She has choreographed many dance ballets in her teaching span, to name a few, Panihaari, Radharani, Chaunsar, Dashaavtaar, Gangaur, Rajputani, etc. Her expertise in fusion of Folk Dance with Kathak is unparalleled.

Awards

Shashi Sankhla has been awarded by Sangeet Natak Academy Award for her outstanding work in the field of Kathak Dance by the Honorable President of India in the year 2008. Besides, she has also been awarded Fellowship by Human Resource Development, Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Govt. of India. She is also honored by Gunijan Award, Rajasthan Shree, Saini Bandhu Award, Dainik Bhaskar, etc to name a few. Her work has also been recognized by the Rajasthan Sangeet Natak Academy, Jodhpur.