About Tune 'N' Taal Dance Academy - TTDA in C.R. Park, New Delhi

Uday Shankar Style of Creative Dance

Uday Shankar was an Indian dancer and choreographer, best known for creating a fusion style of dance, adapting European theatrical techniques to Indian classical dance, imbued with elements of Indian classical, folk, and tribal dance, which he later popularised in India, Europe, and the United States in 1920s and 1930s.

During this time some of his dance partners were the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, French pianist and dancer Simon Barbiere, French dancer Simkie, his wife Amala Shankar and actor Zohra Sehgal.

He was a pioneer of modern dance in India. He was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship for lifetime achievement, and in 1971, the Govt. of India, awarded him with its second highest civilian award the Padma Vibhushan.

He embarked on a seven-year tour through Europe and America with his own troupe. He performed in the United States for the first time in January 1933 in New York City, after which Shankar and his troupe set out on an 84-city tour throughout the country.

His dance performances were held at the Champs-Elysees Theatre in Paris, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, and the Royal Festival Hall in London and at the Edinburgh festival.

In 1938, he made India his base, and established the 'Uday Shankar India Cultural Centre', at Simtola, 3 km from Almora, in Uttarakhand Himalayas, and invited Sankaran Namboodri for Kathakali, Kandappa Pillai for Bharatanatyam, Ambi Singh for Manipuri and Ustad Allauddin Khan for music. Soon, he had a large assemblage of artists and dancers, including Guru Dutt, Shanti Bardhan, Simkie, Amala, Satyavati, Narendra Sharma, Ruma Guha Thakurta, Prabhat Ganguly, Zohra Sehgal, Uzra, Lakshmi Shankar, Shanta Gandhi; his own brothers Rajendra, Denbendra and Ravi Shankar also joined him as students.

After his death in 1977, Amala Shankar took over the Kolkata School, which continues to offer training in folk and classical dance, improvisation, costume design, etc. She was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1991. Ananda Shankar's wife, Tanushree Shankar, also continues to teach and perform his style of Indian modern dance, through the 'Tanushree Shankar Dance Company', also based in the city.
In December 1983, his younger brother, sitar player Ravi Shankar organised a four-day festival, Uday-Ustav Festival in New Delhi, marking the 60th anniversary of his professional debut in 1923, highlighted by performances by his disciples, films, an exhibition and orchestral music composed and orchestrated by Ravi Shankar himself.
The centenary celebrations of his birth were formally launched at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris on 26 April 2001, where dancers, choreographers and scholars from all over the world assembled to pay homage to the master.

For further details refer to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uday_Shankar