Initial training and present distinctive style 

Malavika Sarukkai, the nationally and internationally acclaimed dancer-choreographer, initially trained under eminent Gurus – Guru Kalyanasundaram, Guru Rajaratnam and Guru Kalanidhi Narayanan. A firm believer in the continuity of the classical tradition, she has, over the last twenty years, evolved a distinctive dance style that is rooted in the sacred, works with the classical alphabet, and invests interpretations with contemporary energies. Malavikaji explores and expands the language of Bharata Natyam drawing from deeper sources of Indian cultural heritage, while bringing to her style an immediacy which speaks in the present tense.

Major Performances

Dance Festivals in India –some of them held at :
Khajuraho; Ellora ; Tanjavur.
The Music Academy ; Krishna Gana Sabha ; Chennai
Sangeet Natak Academy ; ITC ; Delhi.
The National Centre for Performing Arts ; Nehru Centre ; Mumbai. 

Festivals of India – in USA ; France ; UK ; Japan ; Spain ; Brazil.

International Festivals and Cultural Events
Jacob’s Pillow ; UCLA ; Asia Society; USA.
Theatre du Rond-point ; Theatre de la Ville ; Paris.
Queen Elizabeth Hall : London.
International Arts Festival ; Adelaide
TANZ 90 Festival : Vienna
Munich 90 Festival ; Munich
Singapore Arts Festival.
Minon Concert Association, Japan.
Biennale de la danse, Lyon
Leonard de Vinci Opera de Rouen
International Kuntscentrum , Antwerp 
Edinburgh Main Festival , Edinburgh
Smithsonian Institution Inaugural of Chola Bronzes, Washington D.C
World Music Institute , New York
Chateauvallon Festival, France
Hamzanama Festival, Rietberg Museum, Zurich

Recent Performances 

European tour - Paris, Geneva, Zurich, London, other cities in UK - April/May 2004 
Essen - organised by TANZ Theater, Wuppertal (Pina Bausch) - October 2004
New Delhi - International Cultural Festival - November 2004
Le CDC - Centre De Development Choreographique, Toulouse - February 2005
Khajuraho - March 2005
USA tour - at San Diego Museum, CA; Berkeley University Campus; UCLA; Performing Arts Theater, Houston; Symphony Space, World Music Institute, New York; and other cities - October/November 2005
Museum Reitburg – Zurich in May 2006
Bozor Festival - Brussels in November 2006
Lincoln Theatre, Washington D.C. (2007)
International Dance Festival, Birmingham (2008)
Siva Nataraja Exhibition – Zurich (2008) 

Major Thematic Productions – Expanding the canvas of Bharata Natyam

Malavikaji has contributed a significant body of original work, choreographing and presenting thematic productions such as: 

Sakthi Sakthimaan - (2009) Energies Auspicious and Fearsome An exploration at different levels of the clash between good and evil cosmic forces with the good emerging as the triumphant victor . 

Ganga - Nitya Vaahini - The Eternal River ( 2008) Ganga the Eternal River traverses physical terrain and metaphysical spaces . As she journeys, she meets other rivers, gathering their flows within her until she surrenders her identity to the ocean… A silent witness to the relentless cycle of birth and death, to the sacred and the profane, to purity and pollution, Ganga laments…. 

Tejas – The Expanding Canvas ( 2006) Against images of Sayed Haider Raza's canvases Malavika ji creates dance that is abstract, intense and sacred, invoking epiphanies of creation and growth. 

Vipinam – The Grove (2004) Bringing together the languages of classical dance, poetry, music and digitally reworked images, 'tree-ness' itself is contemplated in multiple ways by Malavika ji and poet Priya Sarukkai Chabria. 

Srotasvini - Multiple streams (2003) Malavika ji's homage to the continuing living tradition of Bharata Natyam and to generations of artists who have evolved and sustained this enriching flow. 

Kasi Yatra – ( 2002) Sourced from the 8th century poem Kuttanimatham, “Kasi Yatra –– The journey of a courtesan of Varanasi “ – a celebration of the spaces of courtesan and pilgrim. 

Uthkanta–Longing - (2001) Looks into the impetus of longing --to create, to generate and nurture; grow with the fullness of life and to reach for the sacred. 

Khajuraho - Temples of the Sacred and Secular: - (2000) Explores the concept of the temple as a model for the cosmos through abstract dance , while temple sculptures inspire a dance-narrative celebration of the sacred and the secular in love and war. 

Srinkhala : ( 1995) An ongoing investigation into our links with the environment, Malavika ji voyages into inner and outer spaces to contemplate our actions of harmony and aggression. 

Krishna Ritu Krida : (1992) 1A hymn of renewal of the seasons, human emotions and the leelas and stories of Krishna in the six seasons. 

Fireflies – (1990) : An adventure into sringara, the man-woman relationship, through dialogues between an English text, miniature paintings and the language of dance. 

Recognition 

Awards: 

Padma Shree from the President of India 
SNA award for 2002 from Central Sangeet Natak Akademi, Delhi.
Kalaimamani from the State Government
Mrinalini Sarabhai Award for Excellence in Classical Dance
Nrityachoodamani from Sri Krishna Gana Sabha
Awards from Sanskriti, Haridas Sammelan
Senior Fellowships and Production Grants from Department of Culture, Government of India for creating new work and extending the repertoire.
The Raza Award for the Arts 

Malavika Sarukkai’s exceptional artistry was featured in the BBC / WNET television documentary “Dancing’, a 9 hour series on world dance. Sequences of her dance have been filmed by German TV for ARTE and by Cinematheque of Dance, Paris. 
A film “Samarpanam" by Sushant Misra was specially commissioned by the Government of India for the National Archives. More recently, a film ‘ Malavika Sarukkai – Dancing Life’, reflecting her philosophy on dance was produced by Barbara and Eberhard Fischer of Museum Rietberg, Zurich and directed by Prasanna Ramaswamy. 

Press Reviews

Malavika Sarukkai’s performances have been acclaimed by critics of leading newspapers in India and abroad – The Times of India, The Indian Express, The Hindustan Times, The Hindu, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Le Monde, Le Figaro, the Washington Post, The Independent. 

‘Easily the most accomplished Bharata Natyam dancer today…An artiste who has worked and polished her art to such perfection that it has become an extension of her body…it just flows out of her like intimate conversation’. S.Kalidas, India Today, Delhi, March 20,2000. 

“A goddess dances at Edinburgh… The Bharata Natyam of Malavika Sarukkai was flawless, her divine performance as intricate as lace…” Alice Bain, The Guardian, August 28, 2002 

“It was Malavika Sarukkai’s Bharata Natyam session that drew us deepest into the devotional aspect that makes Indian dance so potent... Weaving a clever dramatic structure that showcased her stunning technical and expressive expertise… Sarukkai had the Lyceum auditorium bristling with atmosphere”. Ellie Carr, Sunday Herald, September 1, 2002. 

‘Each performance of Malavika Sarukkai is an event… She is without any doubt the most expressive of contemporary Indian dancers…One admires the brilliance and the elegance of the artist…the perfection of her technique…the liveliness and variety of her dance, which lies somewhere between ecstasy and sensuality, always of an exquisite femininity.’ Rene Sirvin, Le Figaro, Paris, 5 February, 2000…(Translated).

‘In relating the classical form to a contemporary theme while simultaneously investing it with an individuality and modern sensibility, Malavika has few equals’ Leela Venkataraman, Hindu Madras, ‘99 

"The production (The Grove) was an artistic expression and recollection of movements, performed by celebrated Bharata Natyam danseuse Malavika Sarukkai" - India Today, 2005 

"It's as if Malavika Sarukkai discovers and marvels at each experience... over and over again, impassioned and enlivened by the warmth it has brought to her life. And that genuine relationship with her art has such heartening vibrations, that anyone in contact with it in any way - performance or interview - cannot help but experience the elation vicariously." - First City, New Delhi, February 2005 

"Today there is an inner energy which dictates her dance... Thunderous applause and standing ovation surround her..." - Sunday Express, February 2004 

"Through the dynamic and textures of dance, she takes her audience - whether in Kolkata or California - into the mind, body and being of this young courtesan to bring out a universal thought and idea." - Telegraph, Kolkata, January 2005 

‘Unusual choreography….. unique feel for nritta …….. areas of freewheeling exploration of dance and music …..Drops of water becoming larger bodies, the circle of life shown through waves and recurring cycles, floor terrain rapidly traversed showing Ganga’s gushing ease all ending with the quietude of complete submersion, symbolized an involved personal journey, the search finally attaining a different level of consciousness’ Leela Venkatraman, The Hindu 08.08.08. 

On her distinctive Bharata Natyam Style Malavikaji says: 

Bharata Natyam is a powerful and evocative language of dance. It is not to be only equated only with a repertoire that evolved at a particular point of time under certain social and historical circumstances. 

Bharata Natyam is the language of my training. It provides me with a fundamental alphabet with which I choreograph my dance – both abstract movement and interpretative abhinaya. Like a poet uses the words of a language, a creative dancer uses the vocabulary of dance language to communicate.

Bharata Natyam has within it the vitality to evolve with changing times even while it has its roots in the past. This has inspired me to create what critics have termed ‘innovative-within-tradition’ choreography on diverse themes. These presentations have evoked overwhelming response from audiences in India and abroad as being stimulating, meaningful and aesthetic. 

Choreographing diverse themes has been for me a creative journey, a learning process, a challenge. I have worked with the vocabulary, the grammar and the technique of Bharata Natyam. Adding to the movement vocabulary. Exploring the relationship with space. Reinterpreting the texts in the light of contemporary awareness. Extending the technique in the need to be true to the essence of each new piece. Creating new structures. Commissioning new lyrics and music for many of the productions.