17 Facts About Sanjukta Panigrahi

Sanjukta Panigrahi was a dancer from India, who was the foremost exponent of Indian classical dance Odissi.

Sanjukta Panigrahi is recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1976.

Apart from presenting Odissi performances in different parts of India, Sanjukta Panigrahi has been a part of Government's cultural delegation to different countries, including to the US and the Philippines, United Kingdom, Israel, Delphi International Festival in Greece.

Sanjukta Panigrahi has performed in France for eleven weeks, and participated there in the International Music Festival at Paris.

Sanjukta Panigrahi was born in Berhampur, Ganjam District, Odisha state, to a traditional Brahmin family of Abhiram Mishra and Shakuntala Mishra.

Sanjukta Panigrahi's mother was from Baripada and belonged to a family, which had been patronising chhau folk dance for long.

Sanjukta Panigrahi recognised the talent in her daughter, and encouraged her despite some initial resistance from Abhiram Misra, Sanjukta's father.

Sanjukta Panigrahi's mother had to shout at and cajole her to stop dancing.

Sanjukta Panigrahi won the first prize in International Children's Film Festival in 1952.

Sanjukta Panigrahi had made her mark at the national level, and from that point she did not look back.

Sanjukta Panigrahi later came to be known as Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra's greatest disciple, and they travelled the length and the breath of the India, performing together and popularising the almost lost dance form of Odissi, so much so that today, both are considered equal revivalists of the dance form.

Sanjukta Panigrahi spent some time at the International School of Theatre Anthropology at Bologna, Italy in 1986,1990 and 1992, teaching short courses and demonstrating Odissi dance to foreign students, further adding to its global popularity.

Sanjukta Panigrahi's forte was her Nritta, or pure dance, in which she was outstanding.

Sanjukta Panigrahi continued to perform in most of the state functions.

Sanjukta Panigrahi died of cancer at the age of 52, on 24 June 1997.

Sanjukta Panigrahi left behind many accomplished students, including Dr Chitra Krishnamurti, director of Nrityalaya and Joyoti Das a resident of Melbourne, a devout disciple of her in Australia, the artistic director and teacher of Kalamandir School of Indian classical dances, dedicated to maintain the continuum of Sanjukta Panigrahi's Odissi style.

Sanjukta Panigrahi is considered an embodiment of Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra's art.