I watch the classical dance programme telecast by DD Bharati in afternoons every day. Whenever i like a particular presentation, i note down the name of the artiste and later, i watch her/his dance numbers on You Tube and sometimes, find out more about the dancer from Google. One day, in a programme produced by Door Darshan, Mumbai, Subhada Varadkar was the danseuse. I very much liked her presentation.
Here is one:
Subhada first started learning Bharatnatyam. Then she learnt Odiss dance under the tutelage of the legendary Odissi dance Guru Kelu Charan Mohapatra of Odisha. She was amazed by the nuances and subtleness of Odissi dance.
From Google i came to know that she had survived an attack of ovarian cancer! The following is extracts from this.
Source: Google - The Times of India
During a performance in London in November 2006, Shubhada began to feel uneasy. "I was bleeding but assumed it was a regular menstrual problem since there was no pain." She flew back to India the next day and underwent a sonography. Her doctors were surprised that she had danced with such a large tumour, not even complaining of pain. She was 40 at that time.
Subhada's grandfather, Dr V R Khanolkar was the first dean of Tata Memorial's Cancer Research Institute.
Although she was not allowed to practice, she conceptualised her dance, lying in bed.
The reports came and these showed that she had two tumours, one in the ovary and another in the uterus. Fortunately, both were in the primary stage.
In January 2007, she started chemotherapy. She would schedule performances keeping the chemotherapy and radiation sessions in mind. She used to lock the dates for performances three weeks after chemo, because, by then the blood count would be back to normal.
While undergoing weekday radiation sessions, she used to perform on weekends.
She tried to bring in positive rhythms in her body and mind. "Cancer treatment isn't just about access to the best drugs or therapy. It's also about how positively your body responds to treatment. Your state of mind plays a huge role its cure," Subhada adds.
The four chemotherapy sessions she underwent between January and April 2007, left her vulnerable.
Being a dancer meant that she had to be physically fit and look presentable. She was losing her hair, and even her eyebrows. The medication made her hands and feet go numb. While dancing, balancing the mukoot on a wig with nothing to latch on was a challenge. Her mother crafted a special toupee that could be tied behind the ears.She was determined that she would dance and afraid that if the truth about her health became known, she might not get any performance.
Later, months after her last chemotherapy session and when she was recuperating, Subhada stopped hiding her cancer-survivor status. In 2008, she met another cancer patient who was finding it hard to accept the truth. The impact she made on the other, encouraged her to take up awareness as a cause, especially among other artists. She spreads such awareness about the disease.
"Early in 2008, I met a fellow cancer patient who was having a hard time accepting the truth. I tried to motivate her by using myself as an example. The impact I was able to make on her encouraged me to take up awareness as a cause, especially for the artist community," she adds. With dance being her only language of mass communication, she now routinely gives performances to spread awareness about the disease, communicating that although the cancer-treatment is difficult, it is curable.
She has written a book titled 'Mayurpankh' narrating her struggle and ultimate triumph.
My post titled 'Goddess of Odissi Dance' dated 29.09.2012, is about the legendary Odissi danseuse Sanjukta Panigrahi of Odisha who made Odissi dance what it is today. When she was at the height of her dancing career, she was diagnosed with cancer and succumbed to it in 1997 at the age of 53.
Here is another of Subhada's dance recitals:
Here is one:
Subhada first started learning Bharatnatyam. Then she learnt Odiss dance under the tutelage of the legendary Odissi dance Guru Kelu Charan Mohapatra of Odisha. She was amazed by the nuances and subtleness of Odissi dance.
From Google i came to know that she had survived an attack of ovarian cancer! The following is extracts from this.
Source: Google - The Times of India
During a performance in London in November 2006, Shubhada began to feel uneasy. "I was bleeding but assumed it was a regular menstrual problem since there was no pain." She flew back to India the next day and underwent a sonography. Her doctors were surprised that she had danced with such a large tumour, not even complaining of pain. She was 40 at that time.
Subhada's grandfather, Dr V R Khanolkar was the first dean of Tata Memorial's Cancer Research Institute.
Although she was not allowed to practice, she conceptualised her dance, lying in bed.
The reports came and these showed that she had two tumours, one in the ovary and another in the uterus. Fortunately, both were in the primary stage.
In January 2007, she started chemotherapy. She would schedule performances keeping the chemotherapy and radiation sessions in mind. She used to lock the dates for performances three weeks after chemo, because, by then the blood count would be back to normal.
While undergoing weekday radiation sessions, she used to perform on weekends.
She tried to bring in positive rhythms in her body and mind. "Cancer treatment isn't just about access to the best drugs or therapy. It's also about how positively your body responds to treatment. Your state of mind plays a huge role its cure," Subhada adds.
The four chemotherapy sessions she underwent between January and April 2007, left her vulnerable.
Being a dancer meant that she had to be physically fit and look presentable. She was losing her hair, and even her eyebrows. The medication made her hands and feet go numb. While dancing, balancing the mukoot on a wig with nothing to latch on was a challenge. Her mother crafted a special toupee that could be tied behind the ears.She was determined that she would dance and afraid that if the truth about her health became known, she might not get any performance.
Later, months after her last chemotherapy session and when she was recuperating, Subhada stopped hiding her cancer-survivor status. In 2008, she met another cancer patient who was finding it hard to accept the truth. The impact she made on the other, encouraged her to take up awareness as a cause, especially among other artists. She spreads such awareness about the disease.
"Early in 2008, I met a fellow cancer patient who was having a hard time accepting the truth. I tried to motivate her by using myself as an example. The impact I was able to make on her encouraged me to take up awareness as a cause, especially for the artist community," she adds. With dance being her only language of mass communication, she now routinely gives performances to spread awareness about the disease, communicating that although the cancer-treatment is difficult, it is curable.
She has written a book titled 'Mayurpankh' narrating her struggle and ultimate triumph.
My post titled 'Goddess of Odissi Dance' dated 29.09.2012, is about the legendary Odissi danseuse Sanjukta Panigrahi of Odisha who made Odissi dance what it is today. When she was at the height of her dancing career, she was diagnosed with cancer and succumbed to it in 1997 at the age of 53.
Here is another of Subhada's dance recitals:
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