Neila Sathyalingam
Neila Sathyalingam நீலா சத்யலிங்கம் | |
---|---|
Born | Neela Balendra 8 February 1938 Classical Indian dancer, choreographer and instructor |
Known for | Receiving the Cultural Medallion for dance (1989) |
Title | Srimathi |
Spouse | Sathyalingam Suntharalingam |
Children | 5 |
Website | www.apsarasarts.com |
Neila Sathyalingam (8 February 1938
In 1983, Neila was appointed the dance instructor and choreographer for the Indian Dance Group of the
Neila's interactions with choreographers and dancers of different cultural backgrounds and traditions in Singapore inspired her to create new Indian dance steps based on classical foundations; for instance, her dance-drama Kannagi, staged for the Singapore Festival of Arts in 1998, was said to have stretched tradition to its limits and offered something to a range of audiences far wider than a traditional dance-drama would have done. Up to 2007, Neila had choreographed dance segments for the last 13
Early life and education
The second of four daughters of a well-to-do dental surgeon and a housewife,
At 18, she enrolled in
Neila met her husband, Sathyalingam Suntharalingam,[6] at Kalakshetra. The son of a Sri Lankan politician, C. Suntharalingam, he had graduated from the University of Madras with a Sangitha Sironmani (Degree in Music) and from Kalakshetra in 1955 with a Diploma in Music,[5] and was then teaching Indian classical music theory and the playing of the Indian drum and cymbals at the academy. After a two-year courtship, they married in 1956 and moved back to Sri Lanka where they lived in a 40-ha farm just outside Colombo. Sathyalingam then taught dance in schools while raising her children, the first of whom was born in 1957.[2]
In May 1958,
Career in Singapore
In 1974, Neila moved to Singapore after American company Uniroyal Chemicals,[7] for which her husband worked as an area sales manager, was posted there.[2]
In Singapore, Neila was exposed to dancers of different cultural backgrounds and traditions, inspiring her to create new Indian dance steps based on classical foundations.[4] In 1977, Neila and her husband founded performing arts company Apsaras Arts under the auspices of the Kamala Club, an organisation for Indian ladies promoting Indian dance and music. Starting with 20 students, the company expanded in size and significance, and has staged numerous arangetrams (dance débuts) and performances in Singapore and abroad, including Australia,[8] Indonesia[9] and Vietnam.[10]
Apsaras Arts, now based at the
In 1983, Neila was appointed the dance instructor and choreographer for the Indian Dance Group of the
Neila was awarded the Cultural Medallion for her contributions to dance in 1989.[2][4] She became a Singapore citizen in 1994, her husband and children following suit in subsequent years.[2] Also in 1994, she was honoured by Bharat Kalachar, a music and dance school in Chennai,[12] with the Viswa Kala Bharathi, an award given to non-resident Indian artistes who have helped to propagate Indian arts in foreign lands,[13] for her artistic contributions throughout the world.[11]
Together with fellow Cultural Medallion holders Som Said and Yang Choong Lian, Neila was a choreographer for the Lion City Angels, a multiracial children's dance troupe formed in 1988. The group performed in the Children's Folklore Festival in France in 1995 and the International Children's Folklore Festival in Spain in 1996. Other major achievements of Neila's include the dance-drama Kannagi, staged for the Singapore Festival of Arts in 1998, and the "Fire" segment of the performance The Rhythm of Life staged by the People's Association Cultural Troupe in November 2001; the former was said to have "stretched the bounds of traditions to its limits and succeeded in offering something to a range of audiences far wider than what a traditional dance-drama would have done".
On 14 and 15 September 2007, Neila staged at the Victoria Theatre what has been termed her "last mega-production", an Indian epic dance drama called Sivagami written by Kalki Krishnamurthy (1899–1954), which involved 65 dancers from Apsaras Arts and from India. Thereafter, she has said that she intended to "slow down" by focusing on her teaching, although she has remarked: "There is really no such thing called a swan song, and I won't like to keep still after being so active. ... I will keep dancing as long as my body will say yes to me".[2]
Personal life
Neila and her husband, Sathyalingam, had three daughters and a son. Of her daughters, her eldest, Mohana (born 1957), sings for Apsaras Arts' performances; while Nandana (born 1960), runs an Indian performing arts school also called Apsaras Arts in Canberra, Australia. Her daughter, Shaan (born 1962)[15] is a legal adviser for the National Library Board of Singapore. Her younger son Skanda (born 1963) contracted encephalitis at six months and became severely mentally and physically disabled.[2] Neila's younger sister, Anusha, who lives in Zambia, is a Bharatanatyam dancer and teacher.[3][2] She died, aged 79, on 9 March 2017.[16]
Notes
- ^ "TAN, Richard Swee Guan 陈瑞源". Archived from the original on 28 March 2018. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Tay, Michelle (20 August 2007). "The Monday Interview : A Dance with Destiny". The Straits Times (Life!). p. L4.
- ^ a b Neila's mother's name was Manonmany Balendra: Peiris, Roshan (30 August 1998). "Dancing Since Seven". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 20 October 2010. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
- ^ a b c d e f g Nureza Ahmad (25 August 2004). "Neila Sathyalingam". Singapore Infopedia, National Library Board. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
- ^ a b c "About Us". Apsaras Arts. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
- ^ According to a 20 August 2007 article in the Straits Times, Sathyalingam Suntharalingam was 78 years old in 2007: Tay, Michelle (20 August 2007). "The Monday Interview : A Dance with Destiny". The Straits Times (Life!). p. L4.
- ^ It is not known whether this company is related to the United States Rubber Company, which was renamed Uniroyal Inc. in 1961.
- ^ Ruffell, L (6 June 2001). "Apsaras Puts Fresh Beat in Singapore Swing". The Canberra Times. Apsaras Arts also toured Sydney and Canberra in 2002, and Darwin in 2003: Nureza Ahmad (25 August 2004). "Neila Sathyalingam". Singapore Infopedia, National Library Board. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
- ^ Khrisna, Nandhini (22 September 2005). "Classical Indian Dance Provides Captivating Spectacle". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007.
- ^ Hoang, Dan (9 August 2004). "Singapore Arts Troupe Comes to Vietnam". VietNamNet Bridge. Archived from the original on 16 March 2007. Retrieved 29 October 2007.
- ^ a b "Neila Sathyalingam, Resident Choreographer, Indian Dance Group". PA Talents. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
- ^ See the official website of Bharat Kalachar Archived 21 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on 24 August 2007.
- ^ See Iyengar, Geetha. "Mrs. YGP of Bharat Kalachar: A Commitment to Indian Culture". Carnatica.net. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 24 August 2007.
- ISBN 981-04-6737-0. Archived from the originalon 28 September 2007..
- ^ According to a 20 August 2007 article in the Straits Times, Neila's children Nandana and Shaan were respectively 47 and 45 years old in 2007: Tay, Michelle (20 August 2007). "The Monday Interview: A Dance with Destiny". The Straits Times. p. L4.
- ^ hermesauto (10 March 2017). "Pioneer dancer Neila Sathyalingam dies". straitstimes.com. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
References
- Nureza Ahmad (25 August 2004). "Neila Sathyalingam". Singapore Infopedia, National Library Board. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 26 August 2007.
- Tay, Michelle (20 August 2007). "The Monday Interview : A Dance with Destiny". The Straits Times (Life!). p. L4.
- "About Us". Apsaras Arts. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
Further reading
- "Dramatist, Dancer among Cultural Medallion Winners". The Straits Times. 17 February 1990. p. 3.
- T. Sasitharan; B.C. Goh (4 May 1990). "Winners All". The Straits Times. pp. 1–2.
- "A Special Night for New Singaporeans". The Straits Times. 16 September 1994. p. 1.
- Gan, Hui Cheng (2002). "Dancing Bodies : Culture and Modernity" (PDF). In Kwok, Kian Woon; Mahizhnan, Arun; T. Sasitharan (eds.). Jati Diri: Citra Seni di Singapura [Selves : The State of the Arts in Singapore]. Singapore: ISBN 981-04-5217-9. Archived from the original(PDF) on 27 March 2009.
- "FY2005 : Cultural Medallion Grant Recipients Initiate New Projects". National Arts Council Singapore. 4 May 2006. Archived from the originalon 28 September 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
External links
- Profile, swhf.sg; accessed 11 March 2017.
- Neila Sathyalingam profile, lifeskillslifestyle.org.sg; accessed 11 March 2017.