Damayanti Joshi Biography 
Damayanti Joshi was a Kathak exponent from Mumbai. She was fortunate enough to get trained under doyens of Lucknow Gharana, Acchan Maharaj, Lacchu Maharaj and Shambhu Maharaj. She was the first person to introduce “Saree” as a costume in Kathak dance. She was a recipient of Padma Shri in 1970 and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for Dance in 1968. She remained Director of the U.P. Kathak Kendra in Lucknow till her death. Madame Menaka (1989) and Rediscovering India, Indian philosophy library: Kathak dance through ages (1990) co-authored with Projesh Banerji are her published books. She died on September 29, 2004 at her home in Dadar, Mumbai aged 76.
She was born on September 5, 1928 in Mumbai, India. She grew up in the household of General Sokhey and his wife Madame Menaka. It was Madame Menaka who took her to the world of art and Kathak. She was initially trained in Kathak under Pandit Sitaram Prasad. Then she started as a young dancer in the troupe of Madame Menaka in the 1930s and toured several countries when she was only 5. In the next 10 years, she performed in all major cities of Europe. In between she completed her formal education also. Damayanti's mother too was an employee of Sokhey and thus she also supported in nourishing her daughter’s career as a dancer.
She was the first student at Mumbai's Sri Rajarajeswari Bharata Natya Kala Mandir. She learnt Bharatnatyam from T. K. Mahalingam Pillai. In the late 1950’s, Joshi established herself as an outstanding solo performer. Training under Achhan Maharaj, Lachhu Maharaj and Shambhu Maharaj of the Lucknow gharana and Guru Hiralal of the Jaipur gharana played a significant role in grooming her career. She also taught Kathak at Indira Kala Vishvaidyalaya, Khairagarh, and Kathak Kendra in Lucknow.
Published: N/A
Updated: January 27, 2014
