Shanta Rao: A Memory

Traces the dramatic shifts of classical Indian dance through the rebellious figure Shanta Rao and her artistic practice that went beyond her identity as an urban, educated, high-caste cosmopolitan. The work provides a rare and intimate glimpse into Rao’s life who was once one of the most visible representatives in the history of classical Indian dance but is now an obscure figure. Chatterjee, whose voiceover accompanies the images, saw Shanta Rao perform for the first time in 1953. He was an ardent chronicler of her life, witnessing many public performances and private practices until her death in 2007. In 1979, Chatterjee, then the director of India’s National Institute of Design, published Dances of the Golden Hall, a collaboration with Shanta Rao and photographer Sunil Janah (1918-2012), whose images you see.