Bala Devi Chandrashekar

Bala Devi worked in public administration and as a management consultant but later became a full-time dancer.^[1][2]

She has studied Bharatanatyam under Padma Subrahmanyam and performs using the style of Padma's school.^[3] She dances in the Vazhuvur style.^[4] Bala Devi has choreographed Bharatanatyam performances and performed for the Madras Music Season.^[5] She has performed with music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.^[6]

Bala Devi has been artist-in-residence at the Carl A. Fields Center, Princeton University.^[2] She has taught Princeton students.^[7]

Bala Devi was awarded the Kalaimamani for Bharatanatyam for 2012.^[8]

She teaches at Shree Padma Nrityam Academy, New Jersey.^[2]

Bala Devi is based in Princeton, New Jersey, is married to Chandrashekar and has two sons.^[2][9]

She has choreographed and performed over ten major solo thematic Bharatanatyam productions that blend scholarship, temple architecture, classical texts, and music into operatic presentations across prestigious venues worldwide. Notably, she holds the unique distinction of being the only Bharatanatyam exponent to have presented at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris (2018, 2024) and to have performed at India House during the Paris 2024 Olympics.^[10]

Bala Devi Chandrashekar’s notable productions include:

• Padmavati – An Avatar (2023), staged at Symphony Space, New York, described as “a captivating operatic Bharatanatyam production” based on Jayadeva’s poetry.^[11]

• Brihadeeswara – Form to Formless (2019), presented at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris during World Heritage Week, focusing on the architectural and spiritual dimensions of the Thanjavur temple.^[12]

• Karna: Destiny’s Child (2019), performed at the Attikon Theatre in Cyprus, exploring the Mahabharata character Karna through Bharatanatyam.^[13]

• Maa – The Eternal Truth (2023), premiered at R.K. Swamy Hall, Mylapore, Chennai, as an operatic production on motherhood and nature, later reviewed in the Indian press.^[14][15]

• Nandanar Charithram, based on the 19th-century Tamil devotional narrative of Nandanar, included among her major thematic productions.^[16]

• Vishwam: The Omnipresent, a thematic work interpreting philosophical texts through Bharatanatyam.^[17]

• Uddhava Gita: Lord Krishna’s Last Message, a dance production centered on the final teachings of Krishna.^[18]

• Tripura – Divine Feminine, dedicated to the goddess Tripura and the concept of Shakti.^[19]

• FujiHima – Eternal Peaks, juxtaposing Indian philosophy with the symbolism of Mount Fuji and the Himalayas.^[20]

Her repertoire also includes productions such as MLV Favorites and Krishnaarpanam, along with dance workshops and films documented in international archives.

• Indians in the New York City metropolitan area