Sunanda Nair

Sunanda Nair is an Indian dancer trained in Mohiniattam. She earned her master's degree in this dance form from the Nalanda Nritya Kala Mahavidyalaya affiliated to the University of Mumbai. She has completed her PhD from University of Mumbai for her thesis "An Intrinsic Lyrical Feminism in Mohiniattam" . She was born in Mumbai, India.

Early life and education Nair started her initial training in Bharatanatyam at the age six. She studied in Kathakali under Kalamandalam Krishnankutty Warrier.

Nair is a disciple of noted Mohiniattam exponent Kanak Rele, credited for the revival and popularisation of this classical Kerala dance style.

Nair was the first student to earn a master's degree in Mohiniattam. She was a student of Nalanda Nritya Kala Mahavidyalay at the University of Mumbai where she completed her Master's. She completed a seven-year course in five years. The institution is the closest to the guru Kula Sampradaya.

She has a bachelor's degree in commerce from University of Mumbai, Bachelors & Masters in Performing Arts, from University of Mumbai. She also holds a PhD in dance from University of Mumbai - Research thesis in Mohiniattam titled "The Intrinsic Lyrical Feminism in Mohiniattam"

Career

After graduating, she joined the faculty at Nalanda and served as a lecturer at her alma mater for nine years until 1999. She passed her Net exam, a UGC requirement to continue teaching at Nalanda.

She has given many performances.

She studied from masters like Kalaimamani Kadirvelu, Kalaimamani Mahalingam Pillai, T.V.Sounderajan, Dipak Majumdar, and Tejiswini Rao in Kattumanar Muthukumar Pillai's bani.

In 1980, while in high school, she started the Srutilaya Institute of Fine Arts which trains students in both Mohiniattam and Bharatanatyam.

SPARC is now in its 10th year of operation in the US. At SPARC, the rich tradition of Indian Classical Dance is passed to new dancers.

Performances Sunanda Nair is one of the leading exponents of Mohiniattam in the country today. Festival of India in the former USSR Spring Friendship Art Festival in North Korea Performances in Middle East, Singapore and U.S. Khajuraho festival in Madhya Pradesh Konark festival in Orissa Yuva Mahotsav in Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur Nishagandhi, Kerala Tourism, Trivandrum Kalidas Samaraoh, Ujjain Modera Festival, Gujarat Mysore Dassera Festival Nrityotsava, Central Sangeet Natak Akademi, Bangalore Indo-Indonesian Friendship Society Vallathol Jayanti, Kerala Kalamandalam SAARC Conference, Mumbai Sangeeta Sabha, Poona Swati Tirunal Sangeet Sabha, Trivandrum Chakradhar Samaraoh, Rajasthan Sangeet Natak Akademi India International Centre, Apna Utsav, New Delhi Krishna Gana Sabha, Bharat Kalachar, Bharatiya Music and Arts, Madras The National Centre For Performing Arts, Mumbai Haridas Sangeet Sammelan, Mumbai Kal-Ke-Kalakar, Mumbai Nitya Nityati And Tanmai Arohanam Festival, Bangalore India Habitat Centre, New Delhi Shree Chitra Dance Festival, Trivandrum Natyanjali Trust, Music Academy, Chennai National Festival of Mohini Attam, Nehru Center, Mumbai Soorya Parampara dance festival, Trivandrum, Kerala India Habitat Center, New Delhi Dharini, Cochin, Kerala Monsoon Festival Art India, New Delhi Raindrops Festival NCPA, Samved Mumbai Bharatam, Trichur, Kerala Sopanam, Bombay Kalakshetram, Bombay Asia Pacific Heritage Festival Kerala Sangeet Natak Academy -July 2015, Bhopal

Recognition

'Global Mannam award', Nair Service Society of North America, New York 2020 'Nrithya Seva Mani award', Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival 2020 'Global Excellence Award for Performing Arts', 6th International Media Conference 2019 'Citation' from Bangalore Club for Kathakali & the Arts 2018 'Muthirai Pathitha Vithagar', Natyanjali Festival, Natyanjali Trust 2018 'Anantha Margaseersha Natya Puraskaram', NSSONA, Nair Sangamam 2018 'Nalanda Kanaka Nartana Puraskaar', Nalanda Dance Research Centre 2017 ‘Kalarathnam’ from Kerala Kalamandalam 2016. Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award (Kalasree Award) 2011 'Global Excellence Award' 2011, from GIA, New Delhi "Kalaasagar" 2010 in memory of Late Kalamandalam Krishnankutty Poduval "Abhinaya shiromani" from Surya Performing Arts, Missouri, US. Scholarship from Central Sangeet Natak Akademi for advanced training in abhinaya and choreography 'Singar Mani' from Sur Singar Samsad, Mumbai Nelluvai Nambeeshan Smarak Award for Mohiniattam 'Natya Mayuri' Natyanjali Trust, Chennai Best Ethnic Classical Arts Award, New Orleans, 2003 Louisiana State Artist Roster Louisiana Touring Directory Global Excellence Dance Award, New Orleans Presidents Award for Community Service, Indian Assoc of New Orleans