I happened to meet Padmavathi, the former danuese whose background and pictures adorn this blog elsewhere, after a long gap during which period she had "hung" up her Salangai, something very sad and very poignant and a great loss for the world of Kuchupudi. She just couldnt cope with all that happened in her life, her marriage, her daughter, her career first as a lawyer, then as an AirForce Air Traffic Controller, next as a Admin head of CSS, followed by a News Anchor at a popular Telegu channel and now as its head of administration and external legal support official. A great girl that she is and she will do a lot more and perhaps may even come back to Dance and contribute in a much different way than her peers who might still be dancing or set up a dance school.
Here is one artist, a professional and one of the Dance Trios of Chennai who stuck to dance and made a great career with fan following around the world. ICCR seem to have quietly supported many an artist to go abroad and perform, looks like. Shobanaa Bhalchandra of Om Shakthi Dance School is the youngest of the renowned Trio Sisters of Chennai. A seasoned and versatile artist, she is also recognized as a senior Bharathanatyam "Guru". One of the early disciples of the famous dance duo, Dhanajayans, Shobanaa was trained in the popular Kalakshetra style. She went on to complement this with an extensive study of Abhinaya (Expressions) under Padmabushan Kalanidhi Narayanan. In her quest for all-round excellence Shobanaa underwent professional training in Classical Music as well as Nattuvangam. Her dedication to this art form is also evident by the fact that she opted for a career in performing and teaching this dance form, in-spite of having a Masters degree in Business.
Finally, I was watching two different videos of Shobhana today, the versatile actress and dancer who is equally effective in both her roles. I am not sure about the way her life has gone so far, which is quite a sad thing for a artist and performer of her greatness and also coming from a legacy of the Travancore Sisters, Padmini, Rahini and Lalitha, all three of them known for their pure dance prowess. In one video, the artist had put on unusually lot of weight and in another, a more recent one she looked a bit sick and tired with her body slightly emaciated. Whatever private hell she is passing through, she is quite dedicated to her art which one can easily discern, perhaps this is what is getting her going.