Visit the website of Dr Swarnamalya Ganesh
Link to Dr Swarnamalya Ganesh’s Research, Productions, Archives and Documentation
Swarnamalya is a combination of a performer with over 35 years of experience, and a scholar of Performance History and Cultural Studies, with degrees in Sociology, Performance Studies and Law. Her PhD dissertation was on Research and Reconstruction of Lost Dance Repertories of Early Modern South India (Nayak Period). In a pioneering effort she studied in-depth the history and sources involved in the lost performing traditions to reconstruct them. From The Attic is a performance- lecture- exhibition series based on her research. From collaborations with artistes of various genres to reflecting the multicultural historicity of dance and music in South India, FTA stands as a unique voice that reveals the cultural networks of the Tamil, Persianate and Sanskritic worlds to actively speak of the arts, as a negotiator for peace, harmony and inter-faith dialogue in today’s world. Jakkini, Sivalila, Gondhali and Perani are some of her pioneering reconstructed repertoires, widely appreciated. Her latest work, RAKTI – Collaborations In Pleasure was created as a multisensorial Music-Dance-Live Works engaging with pleasure as a social disposition of Early Modern Deccan and therefore an instrument of peace, bringing international musicians from Iran and Egypt to meet Indian music on the multicultural platform of performance. This was premiered to a Full House in 2023 at The Serendipity Arts Festival, Goa. The first Bharatanatyam (Sadir) dancer of South India to go to Pakistan, her latest performance, SADIR-Beyond Borders initiated a much needed conversation on cross border empathy, togetherness in crisis, hope and peace as resistance to hate and partisan politics. Her recent performances at the Kochi Biennale, at various venues in England for The Akademi, UK, European Tour to Prague, Vienna and Germany, as well as the most recent Australian Arts Council tour to perform at Asia Topa, brought excellent visibility to From The Attic and Sadir.
During the pandemic, she continued to offer tutorials and lectures for student communities and worked with folk artiste families on Covid Relief. Swarnamalya was one among the six chosen Indian artistes on whom a movie was produced by Arts Quotient and India Foundation for the Arts called #BehindTheSeen.
Her further research interests include Sadir as the subaltern form of Bharatanatyam through gender, culture, society, stigma and political movements. Her first book was titled Nammai Marandarai Naam Marakkamattom (Tamil), based on her very successful stage production of the same title, the Tamil Epic Silappadikaram from the point of view view of Madhavi, the danseuse. She researched to bring to light the history of repertoires in early 20th century Madras, under her production Dancing in the Parlour. Her more recent production Choreographing Society – A Tryst with Destiny raises critical questions around inherent inequalities, identities, stigma and the legal frame striving to relieve democracy from it. As a writer and thinker, some of her eminent contributions to critical theories on performance history call for interrogation of post colonial scholarship through her on-going project Decolonising Dance History, where she develops new and experimental methods of writing performance histories; Decolonising Dance History Project, Notions of Classical in Bharatanatyam, Sex and Gender in Performance, Mired in Dravidian Politics, Womanity, and Daughters of Pandanallur – The Other Story.
In her professorial capacity she has designed and taught courses such as Past Performing Practices, Art as History, Women in Performance, and Literature and Media that cover archival writing practices and performance in the study of the body and culture as a lived experience. Her more recent addition has been a workshop style course on ditties and dances of folk and tribal cultures from across the world titled Or Muf Leh. She is also a sought-after speaker on topics pertaining to Education, Art and Culture.
As a Fulbright-Nehru Fellow for Academic and Professional Excellence, Swarnamalya went to UCLA to teach and pursue post-doctoral research. She is trained in Indian and Middle Eastern music, epigraphy, history and archeology. She has received prestigious awards and fellowships for her contributions. She is an invited member on the Ministry of Culture Advisory Board for the Telangana Government, and serves on the Board of Academic advisors for institutions such as the Sarojini Naidu School of Arts and Communication, Hyderabad. She is also the Director of Ranga Mandira Academy of World Dance/ Performance and Indic Studies which works at providing education in Performing Arts. She is Festival Director and Curator of Textures of Traditions – Culture Festival, that happens in Chennai annually. She has served as a visiting faculty at SASTRA University, The Madras University (Gender Studies), and a guest faculty to Ashoka University, Bridgewater State University (Boston), and Flame University in India. Swarnamalya is a well known actor whose films are both box office hits and received critical acclaim. Her works with Manirathnam, A R Rahman and other stalwarts from the Indian film industry and Media remain as iconic projects across time.
- The revival of contextualised articulations of dance (Sadir), restoring admission of subaltern narratives of custodians
- Investigating ideas of custodianship, expanding it to include stakeholders from various communities and cultures vis-à-vis nomadic and settled tribes of India, Sultanate, Mughal and other Persianate communities and cultures, colonial cultures
- Interrogating postcolonial and western theoretical frames used within the study of culture and art, for loss in translations and other forms of decolonisation, under the “decolonising dance history” project
- Reconstruction of performative traditions and histories of Early modern South India
- Intersection of law and culture including legal frameworks, creative industries and cultural economies, IP and art policies
Swarnamalya’s present works intervene as a historiographical study of extant literatures and commentaries, orientalist texts and socio political narratology of performing arts. Both roots and routes that upend collectives, stigma, notions of purity, discrimination and exclusion, particularly with regards to women and nation-statehood. Her oeuvre is geopolitical diplomacy, cross cultural dialogue and inter-faith harmony through culture and art.
Dr Swarnamalya Ganesh has published books and book sections in major publications, and continues to write and publish critical essays and research articles in peer-reviewed journals from around the world. She has been published by renowned publishing houses such as The Oxford University Press (OUP), Cambridge Scholars Publishing, National Crafts Council of India, The Central Sangeet Natak Akademi, SISHRI, SDHS, India International Center, NCPA (National Center for The Performing Arts), and SNS Oriental Studies Publication, to name a few. Below are some select listings of her publications so far.
Books and Book Sections
- Major Breakthrough in Minor Drama Forms – Understanding Uparupakas through Places, Performances and Indigenous Custodians: Uparupakas In India Performing Arts; published by The Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, New Delhi: Nov 2023.
ISBN 978-93-91622-83-1
- Through the Glitter of Gold and Sheer of Gossamer – Costumes and Jewels Of Sadir From Early Modern Era That Reflect Multicultural Translations: “GANIKA – In the Visual Culture of 19th-20th Century India”; Ed by Seema Bhalla, The National Crafts Museum and Hastkala Academy, New Delhi; 2024. ISBN 978-81-962837-8-0
- Oxford Handbook for Indian Dance: Transnational Routes; published by Oxford University Press; 2025 – Book Section (Forthcoming)
- The Dance Heritage is Us! Understanding Dance Sculptures Through Delinearised Reading of Time; The Central Sangeet Natak Akademi, (Forthcoming)
- Nammai Marandarai Naam Marakkamattom. Bi-lingual (English and Tamil) book on Silappadikaram; published by South Indian Social History Research Institute (SISHRI); 2014. ISBN 978-81- 910023-2-4
- Womanity – selfhood and tenacity as keynotes of Sangam women, Book Section in “Voyages of the Body and Soul– Selected Female Icons of India and Beyond”; Ed by Ketu Katrak & Anita Ratnam, Cambridge University Press, 2014. ISBN-13: 978-1443856447
- Sadiril Illayarajavin Isai: book section in “Isai Asaivugal”: Ed by Tamil Mudalvan and Prof Mammuthu, Arivuchamugam Publication, Jan 2023
- Raghunathabhyudayamu- transliteration and translation- a Telugu Yakshaganamu work written byKing Vijayaraghava Nayaka in the 17th century; South Indian Social History Research Institute (SISHRI) (forthcoming)
Research Articles (peer-reviewed) and other publications – Selected
- Performing Histories of Abhyudayamu and Yakśagānamu – Reading Performance and Performative Literatures of Early Modern South India as Historiography: Dance and the Political; published by South Asian Dance Intersections (SADI) (double peer-reviewed journal); University of North Carolina, Charlotte, USA, Vol 1 (No 1); 2022.
- Many Realities about Hearing the Unspoken/ Lost In Translation, The Logical Indian, Jan 2023
- The Emotive Raja, Google Arts and Culture
- Sadir Lives in the Present, not the Past, The Live Mint, Feb, 2022
- Kshetrayya and the legacy of erasing women’s voices from erotic poetry, The News Minute, Feb 2020, Chennai
- Whose aesthetic is it anyway? Why classical arts must become more inclusive, The News Minute, April 2019, Chennai
- Through the Sheer of Gossamer – Costumes of Sadir from Early Modern era reflect multicultural translations, ON STAGE, National Center for Performing Arts, NCPA, Vol 10. Issue 10, May 2021
- Dance History enshrined and decoded – Bharatanrityam and Bharatanatyam; published by Nartanam Dance Journal, Hyderabad. 2016
- Daughters of Pandanallur – the other story (Dance and history of the 28 Kilometer From Pandanallur to Kumbhakonam), The Kalakshetra Journal Vol IV, 2015
- Sex and Gender in Performance- Locating Power and Resistance as Discursive arguments, SNC Journal of Intercultural Philosophy, Chennai. Vol 28, Oct 2015; pp 45-54
- Disrespecting the Devadasi: What the MS Subhalakshmi debate has exposed, The News Minute, Chennai. Jan 2018
- Writings as operations of en(dis)franchisement, investigating manuscripts and choreographer’s notes from the 16th-19th centuries. Advantages and problems in reconstructing from the papers” as part of “Writing dance and dancing writing” conference proceedings of Society of Dance History Scholars, USA
- Notions of “Classical” in Bharatanatyam; a cultural operation of the classes- arguments of cosmopolitan Margi and indigenous Desi, repertoires of the Nayak period; Kalakshetra Journal, Issue 2. ISBN 978-81-921627-4-4
- Mired in Dravidian Politics: Were Tamil Nadu’s Isai Vellalars always socially backward?, The News Minute, Chennai. Feb 2016
- Rasa, Dhvani, Bhava, History of Varnam, Trance, Bhakti, Srngara, Sadir Maratha Histories – Lecture series on You Tube
- Decolonising dance History – Devadasi Factoid Series, OJAS, You Tube
- Timeless dance traditions of Devadasis in South India, Lecture for CICD, UK
- Past performing practices of the Nayak period as vestibule to today’s Bharatanatyam, The Madras Music Academy Journal; Vol 84, 2013, pp 10-118
- How the art of the Devadasi is appropriated to create the world of Bharatanatyam, The News Minute, Chennai. Feb 2017
- What’s In a Name; Sadir and its Arguments, Journal for India International Center, New Delhi, Oct 2015
- Regular contributor for OJAS – Oriental Journal of Asian Studies, SASTRA University, department of Oriental studies-Peer Reviewed (ISSN 2319-717X)
- Stripling rogue at the shrine of the neat herd – a review of the Karana panels at the Sarngapani temple, Kumbhakonam – 2012 (December), pp 47-61
Keynote Addresses and Lectures
- Keynote address on Hereditary Transmissions and Urban Validations- the need for Jati-s and Bani-s in Modern Bharatanatyam at The National Academic Seminar Alagappa University, Dec 19; 2022
- Keynote speaker on The Law, Arts and Culture, Dr Ambedkar Law University School of Excellence, March 2024
- Sadir Kalacharangalin Kappal: Tamil Isai Kalam, Jan 29; 2023
- Presented research paper Past Performing Practices of the Nayak period-Research and Reconstruction at the P.R. Institute of Indological Research: 2017
- Talk on Womanity – Selfhood and Tenacity as keynotes for Sangam women, OJAS, 2013 (March)
- Presented a series of talks on Bharatanatyam – continuity, conformity and change for the Tamil Heritage Trust, 2011
- Presented “Reconstruction of Nayak period repertoire” at The Madras Music Academy’s academic session 2012
- Ravana Hatta, Ravana hasta and the Modern Violin, CARVA Academy of Violin, 2010 Rasa theory and Sigmund Freud – a psychological interpretation- Journal of the University of Madras, 150th year special issue, 2008
- Editor – the monthly Newsletter for Association of Bharatanatyam Artistes of India (ABHAI); issues – 25 issues, 2005, 2006
- Founder editor of “Tha Dhim”, the journal of the Department of Indian Music, University of Madras, 2007
- Lectures on Dance history and aesthetics at various forums, including Tamil heritage group, Indian School of Philosophy and Indian Institute of Management (IIT)
- Submits articles and research papers for academic journals and annals on dance history including for the Society of Dance History Scholars (SDHS) USA
