How Kumudini Lakhia Stirred The Dance World With Her Path-Breaking Approach

When you look at kumudini lakhia’s gentle, modest and cheerful persona, you also have hardly imagined she was a woman with immense inner strength and a steel resolve. After all, she fought in her own quints in the patriarchal setup in the kathak world, and encouraged many young girls to pursue dance on their terms. And this was about 60 years ago, when the Maharajs’ After performing as a soloist for many years, kumudini designed a distinct vocabulary for group choreography. In fact, she pionered ensemble work in kathak, in a way freeing the dance form of its restrictive reepertoire and regressive narratives. Her productions, with their contemporary sensibilites, Drew the world’s attention. Her biggest contribution to dance is transforming the conventional image of a woman perform – from an unquestioning artiste to a thought.

Kumudini Lakhia Passed Away on Saturday Morning at Her Residence in Ahmedabad. She was 95. The Funeral Took Place on Saturday afternoon. A Prayer Meeting will be help on April 15 (9 AM) at Sindhu Bhavan, Bodakdev, Ahmedabad.

Kumudini and Ram Gopal | Photo Credit: Courtesy: Kadamb

The Celebrated Artiste was conferred with the padma vibhushan on republic day this year in recognition of her lifelong dedication to kathak. She was awarded the padma shri in 1987 and the padma bhushan in 2010, Along with Several Other Prestigious Honors.

From Teaching in a small space in her husband’s automobile shop in ahmedabad to starting her school kadamb in 1965, Kumudini (Kumiben to her Students and Admirers) Was Happier Being a TEACHER MEING A TACHER MEING AAPPARERS During conversations, she devoted much of the time talking about her students and how she does not want them to merely replicate her ideas.

Aditi Mangaldas and Daksha Sheth, two of the most experimental minds in dance, was trained by kumudini. Says Aditi, “Her Teaching Shaped Bot The Body and the Mind to Not Be Pressurised by Fixed Boundaries or Criticisms, which, in her view, clock strike stifle imagination. Courage from this Lesson when Developing a new work.

Dancers of Kadamb performing one of kumudini lakhia’s popular work, ‘Atah Kim’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Expeded to the works of trailblazing dancers early on in her life, kumudini, despite her training in traditional kathak under pt. Sohanlal, pt. Sundar Prasad and Pt. Shambhu Maharaj, Travelled to London to join the pioneering ram gopal, who put Indian dance on the global culture map. He Introduced Her to a Broader Definition of Dance – Beyond the body. “When Touring with Him, I Realized Choreography is not just about well-conceptiveized movements, it’s also about well-coordinated lighting, costume, makeup and Music,” SAD Interview with The Hindu,

These assoctions and travels served as a catalyst in her constant search for new material. As a soloist, kumudini blazed through the classical idiom with enormous success, but her haunger for challenges live her to adopt a unique approach. She came up with abstract works, which study out for their Ballet-Like Jumps and Glides and Stunning Formss. The Pared-Down Costume-She Sometimes Did Away With The dupattaAnd instead of Heavy Silk Used Skirts in Light, Breathable Fabrics. Her dancers often wore only a maang tikka And a pair of earrings, in a move away from convention. The music of her works was a contemporary arrangement of Indian classical rhythm and melody.

“I do what I do definitely not believe I want to be called an expertist or an innovator. And my dance is what i am, “She had said.

Kumudini Lakhia Believed in Minimalism when it came to kathak’s costume and jewelry | Photo Credit: Courtesy: Kadamb

Kathak comes from Katha (Story) and kumudini wanted to tell her own stories in her own way. So she came up with works that lookd beyond mythology and radha-krishna tales. ‘Okhaharan’, ‘Setu’, ‘Chakshu’, ‘Suvarna’, ‘Yugal’, ‘Duvidha’, ‘Coat’, ‘Samanvay’, ‘Vivarta’ and ‘Atah Kim Atah Kim Atah Kim Eloquently to AudENCE Trying to Find Audee A Classical Art Form. It Resonated Beautifully with Her Young Dancers Too.

Says Rupanshi Kashyap, One of Her Senior Students, “We Never Experienced A Generational Gap With Kumiben, Because she was always ahead of time. She was delighted when we came up with our inputs to her productions. “

Pt birju maharaj presenting the ‘Pandit Achhan Maharaj Kalajyoti Award’ to Kumudini Lakhia at Kamani Auditorium in New Delhi on March 10, 2008. Photo Credit: S. Subramanium

During a chat after a performance at chennai’s kalakshetra, kumudini had shared how she hams Slavish Obedience. “My Students should never hesitate to question – that is only way to make learning and teaching exciting.”

Bengaluru-Based Dancer Couple Nirupama and Rajendra, in their facebook post, highlighted how a teacher can leave a lasting impact on her students. “During the last week of February, we visited her. When we told her that her art, her legacy, continues here in the south through many youngsters learning and performing her composishes, her compositions, she Held our Hands Tight and Kissed. With Pride and She Said – ‘I don’t just just teach dance, I create dancers’. ”

Published – April 12, 2025 09:29 pm IST