Dance as becoming – Padmini Ravi
Padmini
Ravi is a name familiar to the world of dance. Her journey, spanning over forty
years as a performer, choreographer, teacher, and lifelong student, has been
marked by both recognition and reflection. While awards and titles have
accompanied her path, she places greater value on the choices she has made
along the way. Trained under K.J. Sarasa, the doyenne of the Vazhuvoor bani of
Bharatanatyam, Padmini’s life in dance offers a considered view of an artist
shaped as much by pauses as by performance.
What
brought you to the world of dance?
My mother’s
sister was a student of Subbaraya Pillai, but there was otherwise no family
background in dance.
I began learning at the age of nine, at a time when my father’s death had made
me withdrawn. A friend of my mother suggested dance as a way to engage with
other children and find some emotional balance. That was in 1966, and my
teacher was K.J. Sarasa at Sarasalaya.
I went to dance class after school hours seven days a week. One would start with the adavus, and any piece that teacher wanted us to practice that day.
