Gayatri Iyer

🪔 About

Gayathri Iyer is a Bangalore-based Bharatanatyam dancer and dance historian with a profound interest in the Abhinaya tradition of the Kalanidhi Narayanan style. She received her training under esteemed gurus such as Bragha Bessell, Vigneshwary Jeyagandhi, and Minal Prabhu of Kalakshetra. Academically, Iyer holds a Master's Degree in Arts and Aesthetics, specializing in Bharatanatyam within the context of Visual Arts, Theatre, and Cinema. She further pursued an MPhil in Indian Art History from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, where she is currently completing a PhD in temple architecture. Iyer's career is marked by her innovative approach to Bharatanatyam, aiming to democratize the art form through experimentation in its content and performance spaces. She utilizes dance as a medium to bring history to life, focusing on the intricate relationship between stone sculpture and embodied dance practice. Her research endeavors include a significant grant from the India Foundation for the Arts (under Project 560) to explore the life and contributions of the devadasi Venkata Sundara Sani from Bangalore, culminating in a research paper and a dance performance. This project led to the production and staging of the dance drama "Sundara" in early 2021. She has also consulted with INTACH on the inscription of Hoysala heritage sites on the UNESCO World Heritage Site List. Gayathri Iyer, who grew up in New York and moved to India in her early twenties around 2011, has performed globally, including at the United Nations. She also teaches various aspects of Bharatanatyam, including dance costumes and textile traditions, and conducts dance lectures on social media. She is currently writing a book on Venkata Sundara Sani's codifications.