Sitara Devi, the undisputed queen of Kathak, was born in Kolkata, but her life and work — even though she was blessed by Rabindranath Tagore — was never celebrated in the city. But not any more.
A cultural group fom Kolkata, Kalindi Darpan, has organised an evening to pay tribute to the dancer. Her grandson, Vishal Krishna, who received the youth award of Sangeet Natak Academy last year, will be performing alongside students of many luminaries from the world of Indian classical dance and music.
“We have decided to have students of stalwarts, as Sitara Devi always said that it is difficult to get exposure in classical music or dance as a young performer,” said Soumali Ganguly, secretary of Kalindi Darpan.
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Sitara Devi was born in Kolkata nearly 100 years ago and was initially mentored by her father Sukhdev Maharaj. Her performance in Mumbai’s Tata Palace (now Taj Mahal Hotel) enthralled Rabindranath Tagore.
“When she was very young, perhaps barely in her teens, Rabindranath Thakur saw her performance and presented her with a stole, she told me,” recalled Rukmini Sen, a Mumbai-based journalist, who filmed many hours of interview with the Kathak legend.
“She also told me that her father told her to ask for something in writing from the poet that would stay with her. So the poet wrote ‘Nritya Samraggini’ (Empress of Dance) on a piece of paper,” Ms. Sen said.
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For the rest of her life Kathak remained her “paramour” while in personal life Sitara Devi married thrice. Two of the marriages were with formidable film personalities of India and Pakistan, K. Asif, the maker of Mughal-e-Azam , and Nazir Ahmed Khan.
Thus her love for Hindi films bloomed and she tutored many of the leading stars, from Madhubala in the 1960s to Kajol in recent years. But she refused the Padma Bhusan. She would not accept anything less than the Bharat Ratna, she reportedly told her family. “She was offered government awards which artists half her age were receiving…so wasn’t it justified to refuse anything less than the highest award?” asked Vishal Krishna. Meanwhile, her city had forgotten her.
Reviving memories
“But I am happy that some remembrances are taking place now,” Mr. Krishna said. On her deathbed, the dancer often recalled her days in Kolkata and spoke about her fondness for the city.
“For the three days before she passed away in the winter of 2014, she told us that she is in the city where she was born. So the city came to her — may be late but, I would say, on time,” said Mr. Krishna. The tribute will be held on Saturday in the auditorium named after Rabindranath Tagore in north Kolkata.