Saswati Sen

Saswati Sen is a leading Indian exponent of Kathak, an Indian classical dance form. She is a senior disciple of Pandit Birju Maharaj. She achieved early fame by dancing in Satyajit Rays film, Shatranj Ke Khilari (1977), his invocation of Lucknow society at its Paris of India zenith.Born to a family of legal and medical professionals, Saswati took to dance at an early age. Says Saswati, My mother had enrolled me at Bhartiya Kala Kendra to learn Kathak under Reba Vidyarthi. I took to Kathak like a duck to water. After receiving her initial training at Delhi’s Kathak Kendra under the guidance of Smt Reba Vidyarthi, she received the National Scholarship in Performing Arts and graduated to become the prime disciple of Pt Birju Maharaj.As the foremost disciple of Pt Birju Maharaj, she stands tall among her contemporaries in the way she has embellished Kathak by integrating the sacredness of a tradition with the creativeness of a contemporary approach. Saswati today is regarded as an artist with immense versatility and talent and one of the best exponents of the famed Lucknow gharana. She mostly teaches and performs with her Guru Birju Maharaj in his institute, Kalashram in Jor Bagh, New Delhi. She has trained a large number of students, of which many are from around the world. She has acquired the true style of her mentor and incorporates into her own presentation both the lyrical grace and rhythmic virtuosity of kathak. However, her forte is abhinaya which has always received high appreciation.

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