Chitresh Das

🪔 About

Chitresh Das (9 November 1944 – 4 January 2015) was a classical dancer of the North Indian style of Kathak, renowned as a performer, choreographer, composer, and educator. Born in Calcutta (now Kolkata), West Bengal, to Nrityacharya Prohlad Das and Smt. Nilima Das, founders of Nritya Bharati, one of India's first institutions for dance, he began his Kathak training at age nine under Guru Ram Narayan Misra. Das was schooled in both the graceful Lucknow and the dynamic Jaipur Kathak traditions, synthesizing them in his artistry. A child prodigy, he performed at age eleven with tabla maestro Samta Prasadji and for Uday Shankar. He earned an M.A. in dance from Prayag Sangit Samiti in Allahabad. Das was instrumental in bringing Kathak to the United States, arriving in 1970 on a Whitney Fellowship to teach at the University of Maryland. In 1971, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan invited him to establish a dance program at the Ali Akbar College of Music in California. In 1979, Das established the Chhandam School of Kathak and the Chitresh Das Dance Company in California. Chhandam grew to become the largest Indian classical dance school in North America. In 2002, he re-established his parents' school, Chhandam Nritya Bharati, in Calcutta, India, and later co-founded another branch in Mumbai in 2010 with his disciple Seema Mehta. Known for his virtuosic footwork, rhythmic adeptness, and compelling storytelling, Das innovated "Kathak Yoga," a practice emphasizing improvisation and stamina. His groundbreaking collaborations included "India Jazz Suites" with tap dancer Jason Samuels Smith, which toured globally and was documented in the film "Upaj: Improvise". Until his death in 2015, Das taught dance as a way of life, committed to the guru-shishya parampara, training numerous disciples who became solo artists and teachers themselves. His legacy is carried forward by the Chitresh Das Institute and the Leela Dance Collective. Awards & Honours: Isadora Duncan Dancer of the Year Award (1987), Isadora Duncan Dancer of the Year Award (2003), Lifetime Achievement Award (2004), Dance Icon of the West (2005), Goldie Lifetime Achievement Award (2006), Award for outstanding contribution in Kathak dance (2007), National Heritage Fellow (2009), Honor for artistic commitment to Kathak and Indian classical arts (2013), Isadora Duncan Dance Award for "East as Center" (2003), Isadora Duncan Dance Award for "India Jazz Suites" (performance) (2005), Isadora Duncan Dance Award for "Sampurnam" (2006), Isadora Duncan Dance Award for "Kathak at the Crossroads" (2008).