A commemorative postage stamp on Tanjore Balasaraswati, an Indian Bharatanatyam dancer, daughter of Jayammal, a singer and granddaughter of Vina Dhanammal, a renowned musician :

Issued by India

Issued on Dec 3, 2010

Issued for : India Post is happy to issue commemorative postage stamp on T.N. Rajarathinam Pillai, Thanjavur Balasaraswathi and Veenai Dhanammal.

Credits :
Stamp & FDC : Brahm Prakash
Cancellation : Alka Sharma

Type : Stamp, Mint condition

Colour : Multi colour

Denomination : 500 Paise

Stamps Printed : 0.3 Million

Printing Process : Wet Offset

Printer : Security Printing Press, Hyderabad

Name : Tanjore Balasaraswati

Born on May 13, 1918 at Madras, British India

Died on Feb 9, 1984 at Chennai, India

About : 

• Balasaraswathi was born on 13 May 1918 into a family of musicians. Her mother Jayammal was a versatile singer and an accomplished tabla player. Her great grandmother was the legendary Veenai Dhanammal. All her family members were musicians and earlier generations had renowned dancers. Balasaraswathi‘s interest in dance & music led her to learn Bharatanatyam and music from renowned teachers, soon becoming an artist of excellence. Known for her mastery of “abhinaya” she could portray any song imaginatively, without any anticipation. She had a rich repertoire, with well over 5 Alarippus, 19 Jatiswarams, 8 Sabdams, 13 Varnas, 97 Padas, and 51 Jhavalis etc. She visited Japan and England. In England she had the honour of performing on eight consecutive nights in the Edinburgh festival. The Sangeet Natak Akademi conferred upon her its prestigious national award and she received the Padma Bhushan in 1957, the title of Sangeeta Kalanidhi in 1975 and Doctorate in 1978. On 9 Feb 1984, the illustrious Balasaraswathi passed away.
• Text : Based on the materials as provided by the proponent.

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