AMlTA DUTT - exponent, choreographer, director, teacher, scholar and critic - is a name to reckon within the field of contemporary Indian classical dance.
Groomed in the strictest classical traditions under Pdt.Birju Maharaj and other leading maestroes of the premier Kathak gharanas. Amita dances with a hypnotic force and subtle sensitivity combining rhythmic virtuosity with delicate expressiveness, commendable, ’taiyaari’ with mastery in ‘abhinayanga’. In her art we find a successful blend of tradition and talent, environmental totality as well as breathtaking dynamism. Her innovative,analytic mind has also constantly encouraged her to experiment with new ideas-thus expanding the boundaries of Kathak.
Having her roots in Calcutta, Amita has performed far and wide across three continents. Among her innumerable dance recitals in major music and dance festivaIs, may be mentioned those at
- the Khajuraho Dance Festival,
- the Konark Dance Festival,
- the Vishnupur Festival,
- the Bicentenary of the ,
- Asiatic Society,
- the UN Conference on Environment,
- the First South Asian Cultural Festival of SAARC Countries,
- the Tercentenary Celebration of Calcutta,
- the India Festival in USSR,
- the Banga Sanskriti Sammelan, Chicago, USA,
- the Nitya Nritya Utsav - Bangalore and
- the Annual Kathak Festivals of the KathaK Kendras at Delhi and Jaipur.
Constantly aiming at universalizing the appeal of Kathak, Amita has performed at Universities and academic conferences, for recreation clubs of Banks and commercial firms and for Alumnae Associations and Jubilee celebrations of Institutions, at State Functions and for Fund Raising Programmes. She had the honour of performing before the President of India in a State function in which she was sponsored by the Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre.
She has further popularised Kathak through her talks over the All India Radio, the BBC, the Voice of America and the Radio Moscow and through her articles in The Statesman, Desh, Aajkaal and Prabashi Ananda Bazar as well as her performances for the television in India, Germany, USA and the former USSR.
A brilliant student of English Literature and gold medallist of the Calcutta University, Amita taught English in the Post Graduate Department of the Calcutta University before devoting herself completely to popularizing the ‘coterie’ art form of Kathak.
Amita is a Visiting Professor in Kathak at the University of Burdwan and an examiner for the Ph.D. at the Rabindra Bharati University, Calcutta. She has taught Kathak under the aegis of the University Grants Commission at the Indira Fine Arts University, MP and the Punjabi University at Patiala.
Amita’s Lecture-demonstrations on Kathak have been telecast several times over the University Grants Commission National TV Network. She has conducted workshops in Kathak for the West Bengal Government, the Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre. The North Zone Cultural Centre and the North Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre of the Government of India and given Lec-dems for SPICMACAY.
During her three concert tours of the United States, Amita conducted workshops at Orlando, Louisville and Youngstown. Her lecture demonstrations at premier institutions include those at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (London), The Asiatic Society (Calcutta),the Lal Bahadur Shastri Administrative Training Academy and the Universities of Miami, Syracuse and Central Florida at Orlando.
Member of the Advisory Board of the West Bengal State Music Academy and Principal of Ananda Chandrika School Of Fine Arts. Amita conducts classes for performers, teachers, critics and advanced students, many of whom, are national and State scholarship awardees.
