Renowned danseuse Jayalakshmi Alva passes away

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, July 22, 2015: Renowned Bharatanatyam dancer Jayalakshmi Alva  is no more.  She breathed her last late night on July 21,Tuesday. She was  82 years of age. Jayalakshmi Alva was also a dance teacher and Director of the famed Sri Devi  Nritya Kendra. She is survived by her son  Amar Alva and daughter Dr Arathi Shetty who is also a dancer.

 

In recognition of her outstanding contribution to the classical dance field, she was conferred with a number of awards including the Natyarani Shantala Award, Rajyotsava Award, Sandesha Award, Karnataka Kala Tilaka Award by Karnataka Sangeetha Acadey and Nrityakala Shiromani title by Karnataka Nritya Kala Parishad.

Jayalakshmi Alva  who had dedicated her entire life for the cause of dance  was born on November 25, 1933 at Kumbhakonam in Tamil Nadu.  Dandayudhapani Pillai, Mathi Swarnam Saraswathi, Gowri Ammal and Karunaker Parikkar were her dance teachers.

Jayalakshmi Alva who initially  started the Chitrambala Dance Centre in Mumbai in 1959 later shifted to Mangaluru where she  started Sri Devi Nritya Kendra  in 1974.  Dancer Sonal Maansingh and renowned actress Waheeda Rehman were among her disciples while she taught Bharatanatyam in Mumbai.

 Apart from making pioneering efforts in promoting classical dance, she had also choreographed  dance ballets like ’Chitrambala Kuruvanji’,  ‘Panchakanya’ and ’Krishna Tulabharam’.