{"id":284,"date":"2014-04-14T01:39:57","date_gmt":"2014-04-14T01:39:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/new.apca-usa.org\/apca\/?page_id=284"},"modified":"2016-03-04T23:20:33","modified_gmt":"2016-03-04T23:20:33","slug":"snehashish-mojumdar","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/xnl.bae.myftpupload.com\/?page_id=284","title":{"rendered":"Snehashish Mojumdar"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/strong>Snehasish Majumdar is among those few established musicians in India who has mastered the art of playing Mandolin, and has blended it perfectly into the style of Indian Classical Music.<\/p>\n

Coming from a musically oriented family, he started his initial training under the guidance of his father Sri Himangshu Manjumdar. Gradually he switched over to his cousin Sri Tejen Majumdar who is a well-known saorde player of the country. He continued his study under Pandit Ajoy Sinha Roy who was a beloved disciple of Baba Allauddin, the founder of Maihar Gharana and Guru of Pandit Ravishankar. Finally he came under the tutelage of the illustrious personality in Indian Classical music Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty.<\/p>\n

Snehashish, besides performing in all the major festivals in India , has toured Europe, U.K. , and USA and made a very good name amongst the music lovers. He is the recipient of Surmani and Jadubhatta Awards. Besides playing Indian Classical Music, he is very much involved in the film industry and arranged music for many award-winning films. Recently Snehasish was invited by Pandit Ravishankar to perform for the George Harrison Memorial Concert held in Royal Albert Hall, London .<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
<\/a>Dibyarka Chatterjee<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dibyarka Chatterjee is a young and promising Tabla player from the Farrukhabad Gharana. His natural inclination towards Tabla became evident shortly after his birth and at the age of five he was initiated into music by his illustrious father Pt. Samir Chatterjee. Since then he has been going through the rigorous disciplines of lesson and practice.<\/p>\n

Dibyarka was born in Calcutta where he spent first 10 years of his life. In Calcutta he was already performing for the All India Radio as a child prodigy. Shortly after he moved to the U.S. with his family, he was recognized for his talent by music lovers and Tabla enthusiasts and started performing with his father and in group performances composed and directed by him. In all of these performances he could be singled out for his brilliance.<\/p>\n

Later on growing up as a professional he started performing with musicians and groups of outstanding caliber, such as Dance Theater of Harlem, Battery Dance Company, Lakshmi Shankar, Ramesh Mishra, Sumitra Guha, Barun Pal, Sanghamitra Chatterjee, Mandira Lahiri, Subhra Guha, Steve Gorn, Tripti Mukherjee, Mitali Banerjee Bhawmik, Partha Bose, Anirban Dasgupta, Debojyoti Bose and others. Dibyarka has performed in important festivals and venues such as Chhandayan All Night Concert (2001, 2003 and 2006) at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, City Center , New York .<\/p>\n

Parallel to his musical career he is just about to complete his graduation degree with Philosophy and English from the State University of New York, Stony Brook. He is also a graphic designer and is the web designer and master of Chhandayan\u2019s website www.tabla.org <\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Usha Ganguli <\/strong><\/p>\n

Theater, for Usha Ganguly, is subordinate to nothing else in the world. For 28 years, she has been using the medium to voice her deepest concerns and share her gravest fears. In the process she has emerged not only as a celebrated actress and director with productions like \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Mahabhoj\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Rudali\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Antaryatra\u00e2\u20ac\u009d in her repertoire, but also as a writer engaged in unraveling elements that make our world look hideous.<\/p>\n

Ganguly is particularly respected for her responses to parochialism that stifles women in India. Her adaptation of Mahasweta Devi\u2019s text \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Rudali\u00e2\u20ac\u009d which centres on two women who develop a partnership for survival, won her the best director award in 1992. Earlier, she won the Sangeet Nakat Akademi award, besides being honoured by the West Bengal Government as the best actress for the play \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Gudia Ghar\u00e2\u20ac\u009d.<\/p>\n

A feminist with a daring stance, Ganguly could well have been content with the routine of awards. But a sense of restlessness brought her to theater which she nurtured through her group Rangkarmee.<\/p>\n

Not only did she translate and adapt texts of writers like Wesker, Ibsen and Mahasweta Devi, she also evolved scripts for theatrical presentation. A much sought after script writer for film makers like Mrinal Sen, Aparna Sen, Gautam Ghosh and Rituparno Ghosh (for whom she wrote Raincoat), Ganguly never allowed glamour to get the better of the artist in her.<\/p>\n

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<\/a>Chitra Krishnamurti<\/strong>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153You give but little when you give of your possessions,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said the poet Kahlil Gibran. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.\u00e2\u20ac\u009dDr. Chitra Krishnamurti refuses to dance around that concept\u00e2\u20ac\u201drather, she embraces it by reaching out to others. On a typical work day, she fulfills her role as deputy director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute\u2019s Office of Research Training and Minority Health. But she also pursues a beloved pastime\u00e2\u20ac\u201d teaching classical Indian dance to an extraordinary group of barefoot (with bells on their ankles), colorfully adorned children and adults. Through both enterprises, Krishnamurti bares her heart and soul.\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Personally, I achieve an incredible sense of fulfillment watching my students perform,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Krishnamurti, a former bench scientist at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. A professional dancer who began training in New Delhi at age 5 and later specialized in the Odissi style of Indian classical dance, she strives not only to be a teacher, but also to be the students\u2019 confidante, friend, philosopher and mentor\u00e2\u20ac\u201din other words, a kind of mother. While instructing in the nuances of Indian culture through dance, she also imparts her knowledge of Hindu precepts.For the past two decades, Krishnamurti has been director of Nrityalaya, an Odissi-style dance school that she operates out of her Potomac home. Translated, Nrityalaya means \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Temple of Dance.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Odissi began in the temples of eastern India centuries ago. The spiritual dance form uses stylized hand gestures, intricate footwork and flexible body and torso movements.Krishnamurti says that while Odissi is similar to ballet in some respects, it is more disciplined and encompasses themes of love, devotion and victory of good over evil. The performer aims to obtain salvation through dance.<\/p>\n

Currently, the school has 50 to 60 students of all ages, from 5 to over 40. Most have had little or no previous training in dance. Krishnamurti marvels at their determination. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153These are brilliant individuals who learn lessons for life\u00e2\u20ac\u201dabout discipline, time management, self-confidence and how to project themselves. I am honored to be a part of these achievements in their lives, while helping them get back to their roots.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

Krishnamurti\u2019s school is the first in the U.S. to graduate students in Odissi. Since the music for this dance form is unique, she sponsors musicians from India for her school shows. She choreographs and directs graduations that involve 2-hour solos. Several students have taken the experience one step further and are increasing their knowledge in the field. One plans to open a dance school and another studied in India on a Fulbright scholarship.<\/p>\n

The school knows no geographical boundaries and, at times, travels overseas. In 2007, the performers showcased the dance drama \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Mahatma Gandhi\u00e2\u20ac\u009d at three cities in India, including the site where Gandhi was assassinated in 1948. The tour received rave reviews in the Indian press. The troupe has been invited to present this dance in August in South Africa, where Gandhi initiated the non-cooperation movement. Current plans include an upcoming trip to perform a multicultural dance depicting the story of Helen Keller in as many as seven cities in India. The same show will premiere on July 17 at Montgomery College in Rockville and on July 18 at Johns Hopkins University. Through the presentations, Krishnamurti hopes to create an awareness of the trials and tribulations facing blind and deaf individuals.<\/p>\n

All proceeds obtained from the events are turned over to charities benefiting the differently abled.<\/p>\n

Interestingly, Krishnamurti\u2019s philanthropic quest somewhat mirrors her accomplishments on the job\u00e2\u20ac\u201dboth ultimately benefit the less fortunate.<\/p>\n

The focus of her administrative work is to inform applicants in underserved populations about biomedical research opportunities at NIH and NHLBI. Creating awareness about health and well-being is also part of the formula. In that context, for some time she and her colleagues have worked with Native American (Cherokee) elementary school students in Cherokee, N.C., disseminating information on key health issues and offering them \u00e2\u20ac\u0153goodies from all of the institutes.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

Mixing the arts and science through the concept of giving seems to define Krishnamurti. In her efforts to be a role model, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I always say that science is my life, while dance is my passion,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she concluded.<\/p>\n

\u201cNIH Record Archives, June 25, 2010\u2033<\/em><\/p>\n

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Asad Ali Khan<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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Amrish Puri<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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Vinayak Torvi<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

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Hari Prasad Chaurasia<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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Channulal Mishra<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

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Santosh Kumar Mishra<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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Hemang Mehta<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

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Upcoming Events<\/span><\/h4>\n
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