Alarmel Valli

Alarmel Valli (born 14 September 1956) is an Indian classical dancer and Bharatanatyam-Pandanallur choreographer.

She founded The Dipasikha Dance Foundation in Chennai in 1984, where she teaches Bharatanatyam.

In 1991, Valli became the second youngest dancer to receive the Padma Shri from the Government of India, after Vyjayanthimala. She was later awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2001 by India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama, and the Chevalier of des Arts and Letters award from the Government of France, also in 2004.

Career She made her stage debut at 9 ½ at The Indian Institute of Fine Arts, Madras, where she was conferred the Natya Kala Bhushan award. She won her laurels on the international scene when she was barely 16 at the International Dance Festival of the prestigious Sarah Bernhardt Théâtre de la Ville in Paris and has performed in landmark theatres and festivals ever since, both in India and abroad.

Her research into classical Tamil literature and the anthologies of the 2000-year-old Sangam poetry has resulted in a significant repertoire of dance poems. Over the years, she has developed a distinct style within the framework of classical Bharatanatyam.

Among her leading students are Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramaswamy of the Ragamala Dance Company in Minneapolis

Personal life Alarmel Valli is married to Bhaskar Ghose, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer.

Selected awards and honours

1979: State award of Kalaimamani from Tamil Nadu Government 1980: Nrithya Vikas, from Sur Singar, Mumbai 1985: Nritya Choodamani, from Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai. 1991: Padma Sri from the Government of India. 1997: Awarded the Grande Medaille (Medal) by the City of Paris. 2001: Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, New Delhi 2004: Padma Bhushan from the Government of India 2004: Chevalier of Arts and Letters award from the Government of France 2012: Naatya Padmam from Brahma Gana Sabha, Chennai 2014: Natya Utsav Lifetime Achievement Award from the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Chennai 2015: Natya Kala Acharya award from The Music Academy, Chennai 2018: Nritya Peroli award from Karthik Fine Arts, Chennai