Mylapore Gowri Ammal | |
|---|---|
| Born | Gowri Ammal 1892 (1892) |
| Died | 22 January 1971(1971-01-22) (aged 78–79) |
| Other names | Mylapore Gowri Amma |
| Occupation | Bharatanatyam dancer |
| Awards | Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1959) |
Mylapore Gowri Ammal also known asMylapore Gowri Amma (1892–1971) was aBharathanatyam dancer fromMylapore India. She was a temple dancer inKapaleeshwarar Temple in Mylapore. In 1959, she received theSangeet Natak Akademi Award for Bharathanatyam.
Mylapore Gowri Ammal was born in 1892, in aDevadasi family ofMylapore,Tamil Nadu.[2] Her mother Doraikannu Ammal was also a dancer. She learned dance from Nelluru Munuswamy Nattuvanar and also from her mother. Born into a family of temple dancers, she was the last person to serve at theKapaleeshwarar Temple in Mylapore.[3] She lived in a small house given to her by the Kapaleeshwarar temple, until a law was passed banning temple dancing.[3] Having lost her guardianship and home, she survived the rest of her life by teaching dance.[3]
She died on 22 January 1971.[4]
Gowri Ammal started her dancing career as a temple dancer inKapaleeshwarar Temple in Mylapore. Ammal is often referred to as the last devadasi of the Kapaleeshwarar temple.[5] She danced for the deity in the temple until the Indian government banned theDevadasi system in 1947, under theMadras Devadasis (Prevention of Dedication) Act.[6]
As part ofE. Krishna Iyer's efforts to support Bharatanatyam and have it recognised as an art form, and not dismiss it as part of a social reform movement, since it was based on the Devadasi system, in 1932, Gauri Ammal danced at theMadras Music Academy.[3] Ammal gained fame in 1936 whenRukmini Devi Arundale, her first student approached her to become her Bharatanatyam guru.[7] Rukmini had come to the Kapaleeshwarar temple to ask her to come to theKalakshetra, to teach her the subtleties of "abhinaya" (acting).[7]
Gauri Ammal'sabhinaya (acting),bhava (face expression) and musical talent in the Bharatanatyam performance were widely noted.[8] She last performed on a public stage at the Silver Jubilee celebrations of theIndian National Congress in 1935.[3]
Many notable dancers, includingBalasaraswati,[3]Rukmini Devi Arundale,[3]Sudharani Raghupathy,[9]Kalanidhi Narayanan,[10]Sonal Mansingh,[11]Yamini Krishnamurthy[12] andNirmala Ramachandran[13] were students of Gauri Ammal.
She received theSangeet Natak Akademi Award for Bharathanatyam in 1959.[2] She also received award fromMadras Music Academy.[3]
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