About the Show About the Show
A recital of Kathak dance to showcase the importance of live accompaniment for Kathak dancers. Parampara is such a vital concept in Indian Classical artforms as the action of 'passing on ' is what has kept these historic artforms alive to this day. Jaipur Gharana is the oldest style of Kathak and being able to present the traditional compositions is an honour in itself. This performance hopes to stay true to its name and display "Traditions Continued." Many of the compositions being presented in the show are those passed down generation to generation. Traditions Continued, is the act of passing down the historic compositions as well as integrating new compositions to adapt to the creativity of each generation of Gurus/Teachers and emerging Kathak practioners.
A Live Kathak Recital Featuring Youth Dancers: Samarpita Biswas, Ameeya Bandoo, Shalvi Thakkar and Priyanjana Roy Choudhry Youth Musicians: Vedant Panwar, Neil Budnarain, Vishnu Kandanchatha and Salisha Purushuttam, Conducted, Choreographed, Conceptualized and Executed by Vaishnavi Panwar.
Raag Jog - Vedant Panwar
Rangeela Shambhu - An Invocation
Taal Teentaal - Vilambit
Taal Teentaal - Madhya
Devotion of Meera
Intermission
Maand - Kesariya Balam
Taal Teentaal - Drut
Jugalbandi
VAISHNAVI PANWAR
Dancer, Choreographer
Vaishnavi Panwar is trained in the Kathak art form under the able tutelage and guidance of her very talented parents, Shri Hemant & Shrimati Vaishali Panwar who are a renowned dancing duo of the dynamic art of form of Kathak of Jaipur Gharana She has been learning Classical Indian Music from a tender age from her father, Shri Hemant Panwar, with whose guidance she has performed in many events in and around the GTA Vaishnavi’s inclination with music has led her to conduct initiatives with many other youth artists in the community. She has graduated from Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts. She is currently attending the University of Toronto to get her degree in Arts and Media Management and Theatre and Performance Hailing from an artistic family background, Vaishnavi is the 11th generation of Kathak Dancers of Jaipur Gharana in her family She has performed solos at the New York Kathak Festival, Markham Civic Centre for Hindu Heritage Month, Vedic Cultural Centre, the University Theatre, Calgary, etc. She has participated in numerous group choreographies under Panwar Music and Dance at the Mosaic Festival, Aurora Multicultural festival, Taste of Asia, Festival of South Asia, and Toronto International Dance Festival, to name a few, being part of almost every stage production of the company.
Vaishnavi also teaches children enrolled under Panwar Academy and numerous community organizations in the GTA. Apart from many programs in Canada, she has also performed in India, Germany, Switzerland and USA. She aspires to be a leader and inspiration to the younger generation in North America to be inclined towards their culture. Vaishnavi actively collaborates with many Youth Artists who practice a variety classical art forms both nationally and internationally while experimenting and discovering new types of expression within the art forms she practices.
Through this project Vaishnavi has tried to provide the opportunity of understanding and performing with live musicians. This tradition of performing live is an extremely important part of any Kathak dancers professional development. Vaishnavi aspires to continue to conceptualize and execute such projects and thanks her Gurus for being the reason behind her passion, motivation and purpose.
OUR TEAM
SHALVI THAKKAR
Dancer
Shalvi Thakkar has been learning Kathak dance since the age of 5 from India She completed her Visharad Pratham a few years ago from Akhil Bhartiya Gandharva Mahavidhya Mandal In 2015, she had the opportunity to celebrate the achievement of Visharad through Rang Manch Pradarshan after years of practice She has been learning Kathak with Guruji Shri Hemant Panwar and Smt Vaishali Panwar after coming to Canada Along with her Classical dance achievements, Shalvi is an accomplished folk dancer representing the culture of India She has ventured into the creativities of semi-classical while keeping the sacredness of Kathak in tact She has performed in a variety of Canadian cities and actively engages with the community through teaching classes around the GTA Along with being an accomplished dancer, Shalvi has a Bachelors in Business Administration and 2 PostGrad degrees - one in Human Resources Management and another one in Supply Chain Management Shalvi's love for Kathak dance has kept her connected to the arts despite the barriers of international borders.
PRIYANJANA ROY CHOWDHURY
Dancer
For the past 9 years, Priyanjana has had the opportunity to train in Kathak For the first 6 years, Priyanjana practiced Lucknow Gharana under the guidance of Biplob Kar at Nritto Kala Kendra During that time, she also trained in a variety of other dance styles such as: Bharatanatyam, Rabindra Nritya & Nazrul Geeti, Deshattobodhok, Modern, multiple types of Bengali Folk, etc. She has competed in Udichi Canada where she won first place and received the opportunity to perform outside of Canada. In 2019, Priyanjana started learning Kathak under Panwar Music and Dance Academy under the guidance of Guru Shri Hemant Panwar and Smt. Vaishali Panwar. Not only did it spearhead the advancement of her understanding of Kathak but also introduced her to a new Gharana: Jaipur Gharana. Along with her Kathak training, Priyanjana has continued Bharatanatyam at Saugandhikam Dance Academy under the guidance of Dr. Sanjukta Banerjee. During the last 4 years, she has been presented with some amazing opportunities such as being a part of an amazing dance drama: Shri Krishna Leela which was under Panwar Music and Dance and represented Kathak for the Margam production Priyanjana has an undeniable love of the Kathak art form and is excited to see where it will take her in the future
OUR TEAM
AMEEYA BANDOO
Dancer
Ameeya has been dancing in the Kathak dance style for 10 years with Panwar Dance Academy She has also been learning to sing and play harmonium for the past 8 years - currently under the guidance of Preeya Persaud Ameeya has performed at various festivals, events and programs under the guidance of her Gurus: Shri Hemant Panwar and Smt Vaishali Panwar Ameeya has performed for a variety of community organizations within the GTA She actively engages with the community by teaching young children music and has been a leader within her culture Ameeya is grateful to have performed as a part of the full-length Dance Drama - Krishna, at the Living Arts Centre this past September She has been collaborating with other youth dancers and musicians to perform for the community as well Ameeya is currently in her first year of Business Management studies at the Toronto Metropolitan University.
SAMARPITA BISWAS
Dancer
Samarpita Biswas, born and raised in Kolkata, India, had been learning Kathak from the age of 4 under Guru Sandeep Banerjee for the major part of her childhood years Besides performing in various inter and intra school contests, she has also performed for UNESCO festival in Taj Bengal in Kolkata She has also received training in Rabindra Nritya from Kalavihar school and performed for various shows and local television events in Kolkata, India
A career in IT landed her in Bangalore where she re-connected to dance through various corporate shows She is a part of Team Lasyaa group of 8 women who have gone on to participate in intercorporate events and revived their dancing careers along the way Team Lasya went on to win a major inter-corporate competition in Bangalore The team has performed in various prestigious events all over India including cities like Kolkata, Chennai and Bangalore She has been learning Kathak under Guru Smitha Srinivasan, student of Murali Mohan and Nandini Mehta, over the last 5 years in the Lucknow Gharana style of Kathak. She is also learning Odissi under the tutelage of Guru Barnalee Sarkar for the last 3 years. She has performed both Odissi and Kathak with Shubham School of Performing Arts all over Bangalore and received accolades from ICCR.
OUR TEAM
VEDANT PANWAR
Musician
Vedant Panwar is a child prodigy who has been exposed to music and dance from a very early age as his parents Shri Hemant and Smt Vaishali Panwar are renowned artists Vedant has played the role of child Krishna in the famous dance production that has been staged at many prestigious venues in India, Germany and of course, Canada He often sings in community events across Toronto Vedant is the winner of the Junior category of the Panorama Indian Idol competition 2020 Vedant was called on stage by the famous singer Ali Sethi to sing in front of a large audience at the TD Mosaic Festival At the inauguration of the “Treasures of a Desert Kingdom: the Royal Arts of Jodhpur” exhibition at the Royal Ontario Museum, Vedant sang in the presence of the King of Jodhpur - Maharaja Gaj Singh He has accompanied Kathak performances with his singing numerous times and is known to mesmerize audiences with his talents in light of his young age.
SALISHA PURUSHUTTAM
Musician
Salisha has studied Indian Classical Music and Sitar for over 20 years - the first seven of which were under the guidance of the late Shri Onkar Singh Salisha has since furthered her sitar training under the tutelage of world-renowned sitar maestro Pandit Partha Bose in the Maihar Gharana. Over the last two decades Salisha has had the honour of accompanying her Gurujis, fellow dancers and musicians on sitar, harmonium, and padhanth (bhol recitation).
Salisha has also studied Kathak for 24 years. Her studies began under the tutelage of the late Smt. Deveikha Chetram in the Lucknow Gharana and has been receiving advanced Kathak training in the Jaipur Gharana under the guidance of Shri Hemant Panwar and Smt. Vaishali Panwar for the last 16 years. Salisha is an active company dancer, musician and instructor with Panwar Music and Dance Academy and Panwar Music and Dance Productions. She has graced many stages across Canada, the U S , Guyana and India and performed in large-scale productions, such as Shakuntala and Krishna: A Dance Drama, choreographed and directed by Smt Vaishali Panwar
In addition to her life-long dedication to the arts, Salisha has also completed her Masters degree in Socio-Legal Studies
OUR TEAM
NEIL BUDNARAIN
Musician
Neil Budnarain has been training in Tabla for over the past 10 years from his Guruji Shri Ajinkya Joshi, who is a disciple of TaalYogi Pt Suresh Talwalkar Since 2010, he has travelled to Pune, India multiple times for intensive training in Tabla with his Guruji In Toronto, he plays tabla for Vishnu Mandir and is a regular performer with Panwar Music and Dance He plays with many musicians in and around the GTA and continuously performs in a wide variety of events Neil is known among the young musician community as one of the best Tabla players! In addition to his passion for music, he also holds a Bachelors of Computer Science and a Masters of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo
VISHNU KANDANCHATHA
Musician
Vishnu Kandanchatha is a first year undergraduate at Toronto Metropolitan University He has had a keen interest in music and has been very passionate about it since the very beginning Vishnu is a carnatic focused musician who is blessed and honoured to be working with these spectacular hindustani artists on this project He expresses great gratitude to his musical Gurus who have continuously guided him through his musical journey - his Vocal Guru Sri Arun Gopinath, his mridangam Guru Sri Rathiruban Paramsothy, and his flute Guru Sri Kudamaloor Janardhanan Vishnu has had the privilege of competing and performing in many well known organizations such as Cleveland Thygaraja Aradhana and Kerala Kalolsavam 2021 receiving first prize awards and recognition in flute and mridangam Vishnu has been performing as a carnatic musician across various local venues in the GTA and wishes to continue his musical journey with the blessings of all teachers and music enthusiasts
GRATITUDE
Guru Shri Hemant Panwar and Smt.
Vaishali Panwar are the backbone of this entire project. All participants have benefitted from their guidance as they have years of experience for both teaching and performing.
They have been mentors to us throughout the entirety of the project and have spearheaded our understanding of the creation of a Traditional Live Kathak recital. We would like to acknowledge their hardwork to make sure this project turned out just as it was conceptualized.
We are eternally grateful for the knowledge we have received and compositions that have been passed onto us.
We would like to thank them for their huge contributions for this project, our professional growth and newfound knowledge.
The Kathak community thrives on the respect they give their Gurus because we recognize the importance of passing on knowledge selflessly - that is the definition of a Guru. Indian Classical art forms are known for the Guru-Shishya Parampara, a tradition of how to pass on knowledge. To uphold tradition and to create an atmosphere where culture flourishes, one must always pay homage to their teacher, who gave them the purpose they survive on today.
Parampara - Traditions Continued
A NOTE BY VAISHNAVI PANWAR
"Jaipur Gharana has been an integral part of the preservation of Indian culture"
Live Performance
Live Kathak recitals have been a dream for me ever since I performed my solo for the first time at the age of 16 with live musicians. Ever since then, I long for the adrenaline, power and freedom I feel during such a performance.
It's such an integral part of every Kathak dancer's journey as it builds a greater understanding of how to maintain tempo, focus on your movements while maintaining grace and creating a persona on a stage that is confident and unique to you.
Traditions Continued
This project has been my utmost honour as I feel I'm doing my part to preserve and promote Jaipur Gharana and Kathak itself within our community. Not only has this project been a learning vessel for me but has given me the opportunity to learn traditional compositions and explore my own creativity For this reason I thank all project participants for their hard work, dedication and ongoing commitment to this project.
"I'm thankful to my Gurus for providing me with my purpose, direction
and
passion."
T H A N K Y O U
Thank you to ArtReach and the Toronto Arts Council for supporting this project
Thank you to the Malvern Family Resource Centre and Lakshmi Narayan Mandir. Thank you to all project participants for being a part of this
Thank you Divya Gossai, Arjun Ghosh, Akshita Aggarwal, Riya Patni, Smita Ramkirath and Sangeeta Bahadur for all your help
Thank you Naina, Maya, Nehaa and Natasha for being my adorable emcees
Thank you Nani for all your help for this project
Most of all, thank you Maa and Papaji for making me who I am today, helping me put this project together and supporting me throughout
Huge shoutout to all my friends, family, professors, teacher ll h d for making it today!
