Uday Shankar

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Lore & Background

Uday Shankar Chowdhury was born in Udaipur, Rajasthan, the eldest son of a Bengali Brahmin family with origins in Narail (present-day Bangladesh). His father Shyam Shankar Chowdhury, a noted barrister, was employed with the Maharaja of Jhalawar in Rajasthan at the time of his eldest son's birth, and his mother Hemangini Devi was descended from a zamindari family. Uday's studies took place at various locations including Nasratpur, Gazipur, Varanasi, and Jhalawar. In 1918, at the age of eighteen, he was sent to Mumbai to train at the J. J. School of Art and then to Gandharva Mahavidyalaya. Subsequently, Uday joined his father in London, and on 23 August 1920, joined the Royal College of Art, London to study painting under Sir William Rothenstein. He danced at a few charity performances that his father had organized in London, and on one such occasion, noted Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova happened to be present. This was to have a lasting impact on his career. Uday Shankar did not have any formal training in any of the Indian classical dance forms. The turning point came with his first meetings with legendary Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova. This led to the creation of ballets based on Hindu themes, 'Radha-Krishna', a duet with Anna, and 'Hindu Wedding', for inclusion in her production, 'Oriental Impressions'. The ballet was presented at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in London. He worked with Anna for one and a half years, before starting out on his own in Paris. On his return to Paris in 1931, he founded Europe's first Indian dance company, along with Alice Boner. His first series of dance performances were held on 3 March 1931, at the Champs-Elysees Theatre in Paris. Soon he embarked on a seven-year tour through Europe and America with his own troupe, which he called – 'Uday Shankar and his Hindu Ballet', under the aegis of impresario Sol Hurok and Celebrity Series of Boston of impresario, Aaron Richmond. He performed in the United States for the first time in January 1933 in New York City, along with his dance partner Simkie, a French dancer. In 1938, he made India his base, and established the 'Uday Shankar India Cultural Centre', at Simtola, 3 km from Almora, in Uttarakhand Himalayas. The centre, however, closed after four years in 1942, due to a paucity of funds. He made his only film, Kalpana (Imagination) in 1948, based on his dance, in which both he and his wife Amala Shankar danced.

Reader's Guide

Uday Shankar's significance lies in his pioneering fusion of European theatrical techniques with Indian classical, folk, and tribal dance, creating a new style he initially called 'Hi-dance', though later he called it 'Creative dance'. His adaptation of European theatrical techniques to Indian dance made his art hugely popular both in India and abroad, and he is rightly credited for ushering in a new era for traditional Indian temple dances, which until then had been known for their strict interpretations, and which were also going through their own revival. In 1936, he was invited by Leonard Knight Elmhirst to visit Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon for a six-month residency, with his troupe and lead dancer, Simkie. Also present there were Michel Chekhov, the German modern dancer-choreographer, Kurt Jooss and another German Rudolf Laban, who had invented a system of dance notation. In 1962, he was awarded the highest award of the Sangeet Natak Akademi, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship for his lifetime contribution to Indian dance. Uday Shankar settled in Ballygunge, Kolkata in 1960, where the 'Uday Shankar Center for Dance' was opened in 1965. His legacy continues through his children: son Ananda Shankar, who became a musician and composer known for his fusion music, and daughter Mamata Shankar, a dancer like her parents, who became a noted actress and runs the 'Udayan Dance Company' in Kolkata.

Did You Know?

• Uday Shankar had no formal training in any Indian classical dance form.
• He initially called his fusion dance style 'Hi-dance', later renaming it 'Creative dance'.
• He founded Europe's first Indian dance company in Paris in 1931.
• His only film, 'Kalpana' (Imagination), was produced and shot at Gemini Studios, Madras in 1948.
• His father Shyam Shankar Chowdhury was a Sanskrit scholar who studied at Oxford University and became a Doctor of Philosophy.