Biography
Sushmita Banerjee is one of the most distinguished Kathak exponents in India. She started her talim at the tender age of four in the Lucknow Gharana and has matured into an artiste who has performed all over Europe, Africa, North America, South - East Asia and India. She has centers in Kolkata, Kerala and Geneva. She trained under Guru Pandit Ramnarayan Mishra, Shrimati Maya Chatterjee and Pandit Vijay Shankar. Sushmita has revived the Katha Shaili of Kathak under the tutelage of Birju Maharaj.
Sushmita has won many dance competitions and has received rave reviews from the media and contemporary artistes. She was amongst the few to secure distinction in Nritya Prabhakar Examination.
She has taken active part in many debates and talks held by The All India Radio, Kolkata.
At present she is a member of the Board of Judges of the Inter Collegiate Dance Competition organised every year by Calcutta University.
Besides being an excellent Kathak dancer, Sushmita after completing her graduation from Loreto College, Calcutta has majored in English Literature from Calcutta University. She is also an avid golfer.
Choreographic Works
Africa - A piece based on Tagore's "Africa"
Abhishar - A piece based on Tagore's "Abhishar"
Pratiksha - The eternal wait
Sita - An episode from the "Ramayana"
Tal - Tarang - An eclectic fusion of North and South Indian percussion instruments
Chakravuyha - Adapted from the Mahabharata
Kumarsambhavam - Written by Kalidasa, produced on request of Princess Chakri of Thailand
Hanuman - Adapted from the Ramayana
Gauhar Jaan - A tribute to the songstress, dancer entertainer par excellence
All of the above choreographic works/productions have been aided by Ministry of Culture and Human Resources
Sushmita is doing extensive research in reviving old compositions of WAJID ALI SHAH, the Nawab of Oudh. This will enrich Kathak and will give it a new dimension.
Sushmita has recently been awarded the Emeritus Fellowship by the Government of India for the excellent research work carried out on above.
Awards
Emeritus Fellowship - Ministry of Clture & Human Resources
Sringarmani from Sur Sringar Sansad,Mumbai
Arya Natya Samaj - West Bengal
Reviews
'Sushmita Banerjee offered a stunning example of how personal initiative could take a Tagore sbject in interesting directions when she staged Avishar,a collage of music,poetry and dance.' - Kolkata K Plus,The Statesman
'Vidushi Sushmita Banerjee an her troupe present Rabindranath Tagore's Avishar at Gyan Manch to a packed audience.' - The Times of India
‘Her footwork as executed in Layakari was flawless’ . - Dr.Sunil Kothari The Economic Times
‘Sushmita has good footwork as well as acumen in Abhinaya. Her Abhinaya in Ghalib’s ghazal had a refreshness both in its imagery and presentation.' - The Statesman
‘Sushmita unleashed her superb tayyari with confidence and ease. Her movements were replete with nazakat and khubsurati which are the salient features of Lucknow gharana’. - The Telegraph
‘Her ladi exhibited deft footwork in combined laya patterns’. - National Herald
‘She went through the tayyari and concluded with Makhan Chori which she enacted with apt mime’. - The Times of India
‘Sushmita’s footwork was exquisite’. - The Bangkok Post
‘Sushmita Banerjee is a very talented and hard working artist.’ - Ustad Amjad Ali Khan
‘It was wonderful to see you again in Calcutta and we enjoyed your performance’ - The Rt. Hon. The Lord Paul of Marylebone, London
‘Tulsidas's Ramcharitmanas was creatively interpreted by Sushmita through her own choreography.Thereafter she presented her piece de resistance, Kumarsambhavam of Kalidasa which has not been previously attempted in the Kathak idiom.’ - The Statesman
‘Sushmita created a distinctive mode in her Ekahari Shaili of Kathak at the Kathak Kalakshetra Festival in Rabindra Bharati in Hyderabad. She perfectly balanced between expressional items and rhythmical variations and her Tehais and Parans had a spontaneous spirit’. - The Hindu
‘Sushmita opened a case of old style Kathak Taleem at the Habitat Centre. Her control over rhythm makes possible all those details of neat arrivals on the Sama and Upaj possibilities that show a dancer's talent. Shanta Serbjeet Singh.’ - The Hindustan Times, New Delhi