Dr. Anwesa Mahanta
A national award winning dancer – scholar, specializing in the field of Indian Classical Dance with premium solo concerts across several nations, Anwesa received accolades for her unique interpretations of the Sattriya Dance keeping intact the core philosophy of the form and its ritualistic practice. She is a disciple of eminent masestro of Sattriya tradition, Bayanacharya Ghanakanta Bora, Padmashri and daughter of renowned scholar Prof. Pradip Jyoti Mahanta and litterateur Minati Choudhury. She has received accolades from the art connoisseurs and scholars for the grace and liveliness of her dance and the expressiveness of her abhinaya. Acclaimed as a “star ambassador to represent her art form on a global stage” she has been honoured with the national award Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar from Sangeet Natak Akademi for the year 2013-14 for her contributions in the field. She has also received the coveted “Charles Wallace Fellowship” from Charles Wallace India Trust and British Council to conduct research in Queen’s University Belfast.
She is an ‘A’ grade artist in Sattriya dance of National Broadcasting Channel of India, Doordarshan and an empanelled artist of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR). She has also received Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Yuva Award (2019) Bharat Kala Ratna (2018) Unique You Award for International Women’s Day (2017), Sankaradeva Yuva Nritya Samman,( 2015) for her contributions in the field. She was a Visiting Artist in Residence in IIT Guwahati teaching the students about Dance Aesthetics. Currently, she is also the Artistic Director of Kalpa, A Society for Promotion of Literature, Art, Culture and Social Harmony Pragjyoti International Dance Festival and heads Kalpavriksha – an Institute of Holistic learning of Sattriya Dance.