Ponnaiah Lalithakala Academy

s an EMINENT INSTITUTION by Ministry of Human Resource Development, Department of Culture, Govt. of India, Academy has been imparting Classical Dance (bharatanatyam and music) to amateurs, professionals and to the students from abroad who take short term courses. Academy has also been doing innovative active work in the field of Folk Dances of India. Academy has trained many young talented artistes and sucessfully conducted their Rangapravesham & many of them teach dance in India and abroad. Academy even trains students for different levels of dance examinations conducted by the Karnataka Secondary Education Examination Board (Junior, Senior and Proficiency). Many students have secured the scholarship awarded by various Govt and private organizations. Academy has been empanelled by ICCR, New Delhi in their reference panel of artists/groups for cultural exchange with other countries. Academy has also been an approved centre for studies in Baratanatyam by IGNOU, New Delhi. Academy has produced many dance features, solo and group and dance dramas applauded by one and all on stage and screen. SOME PRODUCTIONS OF THE ACADEMY INCLUDE
DANCE DRAMAS:
GOPIKA RAMANA, SEETHA KALYANA, BHAKTA DRUVA, PARVATHI BHAVA PAREEKSHE, ASHAVATARA, SHARABHENDRA BHOOPALA KURAVANJI, PANDAVA PARINAYA, CHAMARJENDRA VILASA,
KUCHELA KRISHANA, URVASHI VILASA, NRITYARAGINI, AKKA-ANDAL-MEERA, SHANTALEYA KALA VAIBHAVA, CHATUR GANAPATHI, SANKRANTI, NATYASARA, SHANTALEYA SHILABALIKEYARU,
LAYA NADA SAMANVAYA, TIRUNAL POVAR, DEEPALAKSHMI, NILANJANA NRITYA Based on Mahakavi PAMPA'S ADI PURANA, RAMAYANA KEERTHANA, HARINABHISARANA

NAVASANDHI NRITHYA (traditional temple dance which was in vogue before 1930's) was performed by our founder director Smt. A special age old traditional item NAVASANDHI was presented in 1998, which consists of rare talas and ragas and performed for the rituals of the temple, seldom taught or practiced by any other gurus except the traditional masters This was performed by our young talents in the Nanjangud Srikanteshwara Temple in the year 1998. Ponnaiah Lalithakala Academy with its avowed objective of PRESERVE, PROPAGATE & PERPETUATE Indian Cultural Heritage, has been doing varied cultural activities like structured classes for Bharatanatyam learners, organizing seminar/work shop on different faculties in performing arts, putting up production projects with the support of State and Central Government Depts., of Culture and other Connoisseurs and Sponsoring Public and Private Enterprises. Amongst many more such activities which would improve the cultural quality and content of the society, Academy has developed an Auditorium which almost conforms to the model theatre concept visualized by the great dance exponent and dance Guru, late Padmini Rao our founder director, designed and executed by the theatrical exponent Sri Shrish Mohan at Channammanakere Achkut LayOut BSK III Stg III Phase Bg-85.After the sudden demise of Smt. Padmini Rao at a stage performance due to cardiac arrest (on 27th January 2007) when she handed over her Cymbols symbolically
to her son Shreyas.S to carry on her tradition (Paramparaa) for the benefit of the dancing community and cultural cognoscenti. He has taken over the steward ship of the academy with the support of senior students of the academy and the other senior Students of Kittappa like Narthaki Natraj (Chennai) and Guru Kittappa’s son K.Chandrashekar of Tanjavur. Academy never had time to think in executing her scheduled programme for 2007. It successfully presented the half presented Karunada Parampare, (a new production which was incomplete on 27-01-2007 due to sudden demise of padmini on the stage that day) under the stewardship of Shreyas.S on 16th February 2007 at it’s Paramparaa A&C Culture Resource Dvpt. Centre Auditorium.On that day Keerthi Ramgopal and SuhasiniKrishna Murthy also presented solo performance as the part of Shivaratri Culture Festivity. Padmini Rao, Founder Secretary of the Ponnaiah Lalithakala Academy, Padmini Rao had the privilege of tutelege under Guru K.P.Kittappa Pillai in GURUKULA SYSTEM not only in dance but also in nattuvangam. Guru Kittappa himself a doyen of bharatanatyam is the lineal descendant of the illustrious TANJORE QUARTETT. Padmini received lessons from Smt.Leela Ramanathan and in abhinaya from Padmabhushana Dr.K.Venkatalakshmamma amd Padmabhushana Kalanidhi Narayanan. She was trained in Kuchipoodi under Sri Korada Narasimha Rao and had a short stint in choreography under Smt. She is the recipient of scholarships from the Central Department of Culture, for dance and nattuvangam, a scholarship from the Bhulabhi Memorial Trust of Mumbai and Junior and Senior fellowship of Department of Culture, Government of India to work on rare compositions of the Tanjore Quartett and Nayikas in Javalis correspondingly. As a performer Padmini has presented numerous programmes all over India and in European Countries. She was featured in the documentary films produced by the Department of Information & Publicity and State Department of Tourism. She has to her credit the 'NAVASANDHI NRITYA' - a traditional temple dance, selectively taught by her guru only to a select few. Her repertoire has more than 500 peices, a rarity. Padmini has choreographed more than 30 dance dramas and dance features for stage and screen . She has adopted many kannada items for dance and herself composing few kannada lyrics including a varnam. After publishing a book entitled 'Javalis of Chinnaiah', she is currently engaged in authoring a book on 'Adavus in Bharatanatyam', beside bringing it in audio-visual form. Besides teaching in Ponnaiah Lalithakala Academy from the past 32 years, She has students from abroad. Padmini has been teaching students extensively in the European Countries every year.