Letters to the Editor: A Collection of Letters

At the tender age of twelve, V.P. Dhananjayan entered the world of dance, at Kalakshetra. More than fifty years later he can look back with pride on a life dedicated completely to the arts. As a strict Guru, a renowned dancer with a rare blend of virile energy and great sensitivity, a choreographer and composer, a writer, a passionate advocate for the rights of dancers, Dhannanjayan combines of dancers, Dhananjayan combines in himself many different facets. His previous book, Dhananjayan on Indian Classical dances, is in its third edition. He lives in Chennai with his wife and partner in dance, Shanta Dhananjayan, where by turn Bharatkalanjali, an academy for Bharatnatyam and allied subjects. Dhananjayan believes that an artists cannot remain isolated from society and the larger world. Keenly interested in politics and its effect on the common man, aware of the competitive environment in which a dancer must struggle, engaged with crucial issues such as the "modern" or the "contemporary" in the arts, Dhananjayan's thoughts on diverse subjects are brought together for the first time in this book. Since these writings range over a period of time, one can see the growth of the artist himself, in his approach to and understanding of various issues such as ways to combat terrorism, the linking of rivers of the creation of a united Bharata.