Rani Karnaa Biography 
Rani Karnaa was an Indian classical dancer, who was an exponent of Kathak. She is best remembered for blending the Jaipur and Lucknow gharanas in artistic manner. She was honoured with Padma Shri by government of India in 2014 and also Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for her contributions towards art and dance. She founded Samskritiki Shreyaskar, a dance academy in 1995 to propagate Kathak and other performing arts. The academy is located at Jodhpur Park, Kolkata, where she spent her last years. Every year the academy trains numerous students who take part in almost all leading dance festivals of India, and a few in abroad. Danseuse Rani Karnaa passed away on 7 May 2018 in Kolkata.
Rani Karnaa was born in 1939 into a Sindhi family in Hyderabad of present-day Pakistan. Karnamalani is the family name, and the over the years it got abbreviated to Karnaa. The family relocated to Delhi in 1942 when Rani was only three years old. The family was settled at Connaught Place. She spent her childhood and younger days in Delhi where she completed her education. She completed her Botany studies, yet pursued a career in art and dance forms.
Karnaa started learning dance forms at the age of four, and during early days she learnt Kathak, Odissi, Bharatanatyam and Manipuri. Later she concentrated on Kathak dance form. She received training under Jaipur gharana masters, Narayan Prasad, Sunder Prasad and Hiralal. She also studied under Lucknow gharana maestro Birju Maharaj. She loved literature and hence integrated the music and dance with the lyrics of Tagore and Surdas, to deliver some outstanding performances. Her performances within India and abroad met with critical appreciation. Rani Karnaa, 79, passed away after a brief illness at her residence at Kolkata on 7 May 2018.
Published: September 29, 2018
Updated: September 29, 2018
