V. P. Dhananjayan & Shanta Dhananjayan | |
|---|---|
 The Dhananjayans performing at a concert in 2009 | |
| Born | Vannadil Pudiyaveettil Dhananjayan, Shantha Dhananjayan (1939-04-30)30 April 1939 (age 86) (1943-08-12)12 August 1943 (age 82) Payyanur, Kerala, India |
| Education | B.A. in Economics and Political Science (V.P. Dhananjayan) Post Graduate diploma inBharatnatyam (Shanta Dhananjayan) |
| Website | bharatakalaanjali |
Vannadil Pudiyaveettil Dhananjayan (born 30 April 1939) andShanta Dhananjayan (born 12 August 1943), collectively known as theDhananjayans, are an Indian dance duo specializing inBharatanatyam andKathakali.
V.P Dhananjayan was born into aMalayali family of eight children on 30 April 1939 inPayyanur,Kannur District,Kerala, India.[1] A chance encounter withKathakali Master Guru Chandu Panicker ofKalakshetra made his father decide to send his son and V. Balagopalan to Kalakshetra under his tutelage. Dhananjayan joinedKalakshetra on 5th of October 1953 and trained as a male dancer underRukmini Devi Arundale (founder ofKalakshetra) from 1955 to 1967.[2] He graduated fromKalakshetra with a Postgraduate Diploma in Dance (Bharatanatyam andKathakali) with distinction. Additionally, he holds a B.A. degree in Economics and Politics.[3]
Shanta Dhananjayan was born on 12 August 1943 into aMalayali family inMalaysia and traces her ancestral roots toKerala, from where her family migrated toMalaysia.[4] In June 1952, at the age of eight, she was sent toKalakshetra, where she later graduated with a Postgraduate Diploma inBharatanatyam with distinction and also trained inKathakali andCarnatic music. She was a prominent female dancer atKalakshetra from 1955 to 1968.[5]
The couple has two sons. The elder, Sanjay, lives in theUnited States, and the younger, Satyajit,[6] lives with his wife and son inChennai, India, and is a dancer, choreographer, dance instructor, and automobile photographer.[7]
Dhananjayan received a scholarship atKalakshetra to studyBharatanatyam, Kathakali, Mridangam and music. Shanta trained inBharatanatyam and music, in addition to other subjects for nearly a decade. They have said that whatever they have been able to achieve is due to the mentoring of their Gurus Rukmini Devi Arundale and Chandu Panicker as well as various other faculty members of Kalakshetra such as NS Jayalakshmi andSarada Hoffman.[2]
Shanta was the first girl he met as he was being escorted into the portals of Kalakshetra by Guru Panicker. Though Shanta was a student completely devoted to her dance and music, she had secretly made up her mind, at the age of twelve, to partner Dhananjayan in life. Dhananjayan expressed his desire to marry Shanta when she was eighteen years old, but she left forMalaysia after graduation and did not let him know of her consent until after returning to India four years later. They married in 1966 at theGuruvayoor Temple inKerala.[2]
The Dhananjayans leftKalakshetra in the late 1960s to build a career on their own.[8]
Their performances and productions include:[9]
The Dhananjayans registered their own dance schoolBharata Kalanjali in 1971 in Adyar, Chennai. It is still active today with the classes recently shifted toTaramani, their current school at The Spastics Society of Tamil Nadu.[10]
The couple has established an academy of arts at Dhananjayan's birthplacePayyanur inKerala. They conducted an annual summer Naatya Gurukulam camp, which is no longer in operation.[11]
The Dhananjayans have been conducting an annual summer gurukulam camp at theSatchidanandaAshram,Yogaville inBuckingham County,Virginia, USA, since 1988. Developed by the Natya Adyayana Gurukulam, the camp is an intensive, full-time residential course devoted entirely to the fine arts. Situated in the Virginia countryside, it is attended by Indian-American and international students.[12]
Some of the awards and accolades conferred on the Dhananjayans[13] include:
Dhananjayan's publication,Beyond Performing Art and Culture, discusses various social and political issues concerning present-day India or Bhaaratam, the way he urges everyone to call the country.[16]
V. P. Dhananjayan played a role inGautham Menon's 2023 filmDhruva Natchathiram: Chapter One – Yuddha Kaandam, while Shanta played a martial arts guru in the 2024 Malayalam period filmMalaikottai Vaaliban.[17]
V. P Dhananjayan has published:
