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C leveland Thyagaraja Festival's Nrithya Seva Mani award will be presented to the renowned Mohiniyattam exponent Dr. Sunanda Nair. The title of Nrithya Seva Mani is bestowed upon an individual who has made a lasting contribution to Classical Dance through propagation and demonstration. Senior disciple of Pathmabhushan Dr Kanak Rele, Dr. Sunanda Nair is one of the foremost exponents of the art today. She is the first student to complete Masters Degree in Mohiniyattam in India. She has completed her PhD from University of Mumbai for her thesis "Intrinsic Lyrical Feminism in Mohiniattam". She was in high school, while she started the Srutilaya Institute of Fine Arts, which trains students both Mohiniattam and Bharatanatyam, in 1980. She had performed all around the globe in prestigious venues and had received somany awards such as 'Kalarathnam’ from Kerala Kalamandalam(2016), 'Kalaasree' from the Kerala Sangeetha Natak Akadem...

I t will be a real feast for the Mohiniyattam fans! 111 days long Soorya fest 2018, will display the opulence of Mohiniyattam performances by nation's top class artists. The details of the performances are as follows. 6th Oct Dr. Methil Devika (Venue : AKG Centre, Thiruananthapuram) 1st Dec Smt. Pallavi Krishnan (Venue : Ganesham, Thiruananthapuram) 2nd Dec Kalasree Gopika Varma (Venue : Ganesham, Thiruananthapuram) 3rd Dec Smt. Smitha Rajan (Venue : Ganesham, Thiruananthapuram) 4th Dec Kalasree Dr. Sunanda Nair (Venue : Ganesham, Thiruananthapuram) 5th Dec Dr. Neena Prasad (Venue : Ganesham, Thiruananthapuram) Time : 6.45 PM - all the above performances.

F rom a few wonderful photos which came under our consideration for this third announcement, we selected this beautiful capture of Kalasree Dr. Sunanda Nair in landacape orientation. Photo by : Sri. Murali Santhana, Captured at USA in 2017 This is a moment of Jaddaayu from The Maharaja Swathi Thirunaal’s famous composition “Bhaavayaami RaghuRaamam…” based on the Ramayanam. The position and posture of the dancer along with the composition of the frame bestow a real visual treat..! The Dancer on her toes, with shadow below in the background gives the feeling of the vast sky and the determination and strength of Jaddaayu. (Announced on 22nd August 2017) About the Artist : KALASHREE DR. SUNANDA NAIR Kalashree Dr. Sunanda Nair, is one of the leading exponents of Mohini Attam ( Mohiniyattam) in the country today. She is the disciple of the noted Mohini Aattam exponent Padmabhushan Dr. Kanak Rele who is responsible for the structured growth and establishing...