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Tickets on sale now! 〰️
CHITRESH DAS DANCE PREMIERES
A new work in kathak on November 7-9 at ODC Theater in San Francisco
Veil of Janki Bai A Kathak dance-drama and multimedia performance inspired by the life and legacy of one of Hindustani music’s earliest recorded female artists, Janki Bai, AKA Chappan Churi (one with fifty-six gashes).
Co-Artistic Directors, renowned kathak artist and choreographer, Charlotte Moraga (Choreographer) and award-winning filmmaker, Alka Raghuram (Dramaturg, Multimedia Artist), joined by Bay Area Indian classical vocalist Saneyee Purandare Bhattacharjee (Vocalist), Sudhakar Vaidyanathan (tabla), and Rohan Misra on Sarangi and will feature the dancers,Vanita Mundhra, Ishani Basak, Srija Bhattacharya, Ishq Pradhan of Chitresh Das Dance.
VEIL OF JANKI BAI draws inspiration from the life of Janki Bai of Allahabad (1880-1934) who was the famous vocalist and courtesan who created history as the first Indian classical artist to record on the Gramophone, and her recordings were so popular they created a lavender record as her signature. She always wore a veil when singing and was known as Chhappan Chhuri, referring to the 56 scars from cuts on her face. It is not clear how she got the scars, but what is known is that she was a pioneer and a great artist.
INSPIRATION
A STORY OF OUR TIMES
In spite of Janki Bai being the subject of great violence, ironically the expression “chhappan chhuri” has become synonymous with a “sharp tongued woman”.This piece seeks to reframe this story from a conceptual standpoint with a humanist lens, particularly in a time when women’s and trans’ bodily self-determination are under open assault.
A POWERFUL STORY FOR WOMEN
Janki Bai is a powerful symbol for women of all ages because she took her challenges and make them her superpower and became a history-making vocalist who was the first to record on the gramophone and whose records became so famous and popular, they printed a special edition lavender record as her signature.
VEIL OF JANKI BAI will utilize kathak dancers and live musicians, storytelling, poetry, multimedia, and song including traditional styles of thumri (a semi-classical vocal form known for its romantic and devotional themes) to tell a powerful and compelling story from history that relates to clearly to our current times.
ARTists
Charlotte Moraga
Charlotte Moraga began her kathak journey with Pandit Chitresh Das in 1992. In 1996, she was invited by her guru to join the Chitresh Das Dance Company and performed to critical acclaim as the principal dancer in Pandit Das’ acclaimed works, such as Subali Sugriva, Pancha Jati, Sampurnam, Darbar, Shiva, and many more. In 2002, Moraga became a “Ganda Bandhan” disciple on the banks of the Ganga with Pandit Das. Since then, Moraga has performed numerous solo performances, earning her many accolades in the Kathak Community.
Since becoming the inaugural director of the Chitresh Das Youth Company in 2002, Moraga has created choreography for the CDYC for more than two decades and trained numerous students who have become professional kathak dancers. In 2018, in her Guru’s birthplace of Kolkata, India, Charlotte received the “Anugami award” for her dedication to her Guru and his legacy.
Moraga has had many collaborations, such as with musician Alam Khan in Mantram, which premiered at the ODC Theater in 2021, Alka Raghuram, multi-media artist in which the short film 'Agni’ , won Best Mini Arts and Fashion Film at the Hollywood Film festival.
Alka Raghuram
Alka Raghuram is an award winning filmmaker and a multidisciplinary artist. She was awarded the L’Oreal Woman of Worth Filmmaker Award for her script The Conqueror at Tribeca All Access, and Director of The Year at the IDF Forum, Westlake International Documentary Festival for her feature documentary Burqa Boxers, about Muslim women boxers in Kolkata. Burqa Boxers also won the top prize, Grant Open Doors, at the Locarno Film Festival co-production market. She frequently collaborates with other artists to create narrative performances and installations. Some of her collaborations include Yatra with Kathak and Flamenco Dancers Pandit Chitresh Das, and Antonio Hidalgo Paz and Agni with choreographer Charlotte Moraga and musician Alam Khan.
She recently received a Creative Work Fund grant for a multimedia project called Invoking The River about the river Yamuna’s mythological significance and its environmental degradation, in collaboration with Charlotte Moraga and Chitresh Das Dance.
Saneyee Purandare Bhattacharjee
Saneyee Purandare Bhattacharjee began her musical education at the age of six under the tutelage of Smt. Prabha Bakshi in Pune. After moving to America at the age of 16, she continued learning with Smt. Usha Sathe, and then with Pt. Arun Dravid, in Orange County. In 2011 she became a disciple of Vidushi Padma Talwalkar In Pune, and has been under her frequent guidance, and also the guidance of her senior disciple Smt. Yashaswi Sirpotdar virtually since 2016. She also seeks guidance at times from Shri Srijan Deshpande and Smt. Shambhavi Dandekar.
Saneyee performs regularly as a solo artist, composes and records music, accompanies classical dancers, and runs an organization called Swaraswati School of Music in the East Bay Area to teach and promote Indian classical music.
As an artist, Saneyee has been featured in several public and private events in India and USA, like at the BMM 2024 convention in San Jose, the San Jose-Pune Sister Cities Foundation, the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival, concerts by the India Community center, Rangmanch Theater with a Cause, MMBA, East Bay Marathi Mandal, a fundraiser for the Ashavari Festival, and the Bayraagis to name a few.
Rohan Misra
Rohan Misra is a promising musician, specializing in the unique Indian bowed instrument called the Sarangi (translation: An instrument with a hundred colors). As the son and disciple of great Sarangi virtuoso Pandit Ramesh Misra, Rohan has inherited many of his father-Guru’s specialties, including tonal quality and aesthetic approach.
Rohan Started learning the Sarangi from his father Pandit Ramesh Misra at the age of six. Coming from the family of nine generations of Sarangi players, Rohan aspires to succeed as the 10th generation in his lineage. He also wishes to further his musicality by blending certain aspects of Western music into his heritage of Indian classical music to emerge with a unique musical expression.
Rohan has performed at Carnegie Hall, Columbia University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C., California and North Carolina. He has performed with luminaries such as Pt. Birju Maharaj, Smt. Kumudini Lakhia, Pt. Swapan Chaudhury, Pt. Rajendra Gangani, Ustad ma Zila Khan, Pt. Anindo Chatterjee, among others.
Sudhakar Vaidyanathan
Sudhakar Vaidyanathan began his training in tabla under Shri Satish Tare at the age of 8. He has been continuing his training with Padma Shri Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri for the past 10+ years. He is a well established accompanist and soloist in the Bay Area. He has had the fortune of performing at many prestigious venues and festivals such as Davies Symphony Hall (San Francisco), BRM Ragas Live Festival, Festival of Tabla, and is a regular performer at the Ali Akbar College of Music in San Rafael, CA and across the Bay Area. He has also collaborated closely with the Chitresh Das Institute, playing multiple shows with their dance company across America.
Narendra Joshi
Narendra was initiated into music (and Harmonium) by his mother, in his early childhood. He was greatly influenced by Dr. Vidhadhar Oke. Narendra has accompanied several Classical vocal artists in the Bay Area and in India Suparna Dangi , Nachiketa Sharma, Shubhangi Sakhalkar, Madhuvanti Bhide, Sandeep Ranade and Suruchi Herlekar to name a few. He provides accompaniment for Ghazal and light vocal concerts.
Vanita Mundhra
Vanita began her study of Kathak in 2008 and joined the Chitresh Das Youth Company in 2011. She performed at Davies Symphony Hall with live music, and at San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival in 2016. Also in 2016, Vanita performed the role of Lasksman in an excerpt of Das’ Sita Haran at the Asian Art Museum. She performed her first full length Kathak solo in 2017 under the direction of and guidance of Charlotte Moraga. Vanita is also a teacher at the Chitresh Das Institute, teaching intermediate and advanced youth and Youth Company classes.
Ishani Basak
Ishani Basak started learning Kathak 16 years ago, 10 of which were in the pre professional Chitresh Das Youth Company. She received training directly from Guru Pandit Chitresh Das for 4 years and is currently studying under Charlotte Moraga. She has performed at Davies Symphony Hall, War Memorial Opera House, and Palace of Fine Arts.
Srija Bhattacharya
Srija started dancing kathak in 2009 and joined the Chitresh Das Youth Company in 2014 and graduated in 2020. She’s performed in numerous community performances, as well as in San Francisco Opera House, the Palace of Fine Arts, Zellerbach Hall, and the North American Bengali Conference in Las Vegas, among others. This is her first professional production as part of Chitresh Das Dance.
Ishq Pradhan
Ishq is a New York-based writer, director, and producer, and a graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Her work is often rooted in psychological drama, exploring themes of identity, trauma, and politics. Her most recent film, Portrait, set in the world of war journalism, examines how conflict shapes our understanding of empathy. The film was executive produced by Thomas Sadoski (The Newsroom, HBO), Omar Mullick (Flight/Risk, Amazon), and Suroosh Alvi (Founder, VICE).
Previously, she wrote, directed, and starred in Tadap, a harrowing look at child marriage in India. The film premiered at the Chicago South Asian Film Festival and the International South Asian Film Festival and was a Semi-Finalist at the Academy Award – and BAFTA – qualifying Flickers Rhode Island International Film Festival. She is thrilled to be a CDI Kathak Fellow and performing in the premiere of Veil of Janki Bai.