The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art welcomes the internationally acclaimed and award-winning dance production ‘WITHIN’, presented by repertory members of the Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company & the Drishtikon Dance Foundation. Choreographed by Aditi Mangaldas, the production brings together the captivating energy of Kathak and the expressive intensity of contemporary dance. It uses elements like sound, light and costume to draw the audience in with theatrical effects, while keeping them on their toes with its rhythmic complexity. 

One of the most daring and dynamic dancer-choreographers of our times, Mangaldas’ works are often based on philosophical ideas. In ‘WITHIN’, she is inspired by the thoughts of the philosopher J Krishnamurti, the mystic- poet Kabir and sufi poet Hazrat Shah Niaz. The production is a provocation to look within ourselves, and recognise our deepest, most complex emotions. It seeks to explore our innermost spaces where humanity and brutality, masculinity and femininity, good and bad seem to lie in half embrace, waiting to be disentangled, to be recognised beyond the binaries and to find expression in ways that shape our lives, our actions, our selves.

Is there another way to discover the sky, the eternity within us? 

Where does one seek inspiration for this journey?

WITHIN is in two parts

Knotted: Contemporary Dance Based On Kathak - 40 minutes. 

Unwrapped: Classical Kathak - 45 minutes. 

There is a 20 minute intermission between the two parts.

Choreographer’s Note

“Choreographing ‘WITHIN’ has been a very different experience from my last few works. It has been about delving into these and exploring our deepest emotions, however disturbing they maybe. Needless to say, the process of creating it has sometimes been almost too close for comfort. That is the journey I invite you to take with us. When I began conceptualizing the piece, I re-visited mythological stories in the context of the social turmoil of our times. Eventually these have become the subterranean stream that feeds the work. Leaving ‘WITHIN’ both, ‘knotted’ up in our emotions, and ‘unwrapped’ of them. In doing so, I found myself inspired by the emptiness and eternal space of the ‘sidhha’ sculpture.”-Aditi Mangaldas

About Aditi Mangaldas

Aditi Mangaldas is a leading dancer and choreographer in the classical Indian dance form of Kathak. With extensive training under the leading gurus of Kathak, Shrimati Kumudini Lakhia and Pandit Birju Maharaj, she is today recognised for her artistry, technique, eloquence and characteristic energy that mark every performance. Besides dancing and choreographing classical productions, both solo and group, she has broken new ground by using her knowledge and experience of Kathak as a springboard to evolve a contemporary dance vocabulary, infused with the spirit of the classical, and is unafraid to confront social and present-day concerns. 

Aditi has recently won the UK Theatre Awards 2024 in the category of ‘Achievement in Dance’ for MEHEK, a duet with her co-choreographer and dancer Aakash Odedra. Aditi was nominated in the category of ‘outstanding performance (classical)’ by the National Dance Awards UK - Critics Circle in 2017 for INTER_RUPTED as well as, more recently, for ‘outstanding female modern performance’ by the National Dance Awards UK - Critics Circle in 2023 for FORBIDDEN, and for the Eastern Eye Arts, Culture, and Theatre Awards 2024 (ACTAs), UK for MEHEK, which was also ranked as 'Top five dance shows of 2024' by The Stage, UK. Aditi has won many prestigious awards in India including the Gujarat Sangeet Natak Academy award, India 2007 as well as the National Sangeet Natak Akademi award, India 2013, both of which she declined to accept owing to compelling reasons.

Aditi Mangaldas is empanelled with ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations, Government of India) in the ‘outstanding artist’ category. She heads the Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company & the Drishtikon Dance Foundation.

About the Company

Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company & the Drishtikon Dance Foundation has been established with a vision to look at tradition with a modern mind, to explore the past to create a new, imaginative future. The dance company aims to achieve excellence and virtuosity in the rich classical Indian dance form of Kathak, as well as encourage the spirit of innovation. In doing so, the dance company seeks to challenge established norms and develop the courage to dance our own dance, while at the same time being informed about the heritage, cultures, influences and language of other dance styles and forms, viewpoints and ideas.

Credits 

Concept and Choreography - Aditi Mangaldas

Mentor - Morag Deyes

Stage Design - Manish Kansara

Light Design - Fabiana Piccioli

Dramaturgy - Vani Subramanian

Special Mentoring and Dramaturgy - Farooq Chaudhry

Research - Ragini Pasricha and Aditi Mangaldas

Technical Director and Sound Engineer - Yogesh Dhawan

Light Adaptation and Execution - Govind Singh Yadav

Dance - Aditi Mangaldas, Anindita Acharjee, Dheerendra Tiwari, Aamrapali Bhandari, Diksha Tripathi, Gaurav Bhatti, Siddhant Purohit, Harendra Bhushan, Gaurav Javda, Deepannita Sarkar and Gaurav Shridhar 

Musicians playing live (Unwrapped) - Tabla: Mohit Gangani, Pakhawaj: Ashish Gangani, Vocal and harmonium: Faraz Ahmed and Sarangi: Shahnawaz Khan 

Coordination and Administration - Sangeeta Rana, Kusum Arora and Manish Sharma

For KNOTTED

Music Composition - Ish Shehrawat + diFfuSed beats (Sound Reasons)

Recording Musicians - Tabla: Mohit Gangani, Pakhawaj: Ashish Gangani, Cello: Saskia Rao De Haas

Costume Design - Kimie Nakano (Realisation: Sandhya Raman)

Script - Vani Subramanian

For UNWRAPPED

Music Composition - Mahesh Vinayakram | With the exception of “Aajra din dooba…”: Original Composition and Lyrics by Pandit Kumar Gandharva (With thanks to Kalapini Komkali for granting consent to use the above)

Spoken Words - ‘Wrapped up in Yourself…’, Lal Děd, translated from Kashmiri by Ranjit Hoskote 

Sung Literature - ‘Is ghat antar...’, Sant Kabir / ‘Yaar ko humne…’ Hazrat Shah Niaz

Costume Design - Aditi Mangaldas

Production - Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company & the Drishtikon Dance Foundation |

About KNMA

The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA), founded in 2010 by renowned art collector Kiran Nadar, is a distinguished private museum dedicated to exhibiting modern and contemporary art from the Indian subcontinent and beyond. With two museums, one in Saket and the other in Noida, KNMA has become a vital platform for diverse artistic practices, and showcased numerous critically acclaimed exhibitions. Kiran Nadar’s contributions to the arts have earned her prestigious honors, including the Padma Shri and Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur, establishing her as a globally influential figure in contemporary art.

In the coming years KNMA is set to evolve into a landmark cultural destination, with a new location near the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi. It will feature multiple exhibition spaces, auditoriums, an archive center, a library, restaurants, and a members room. The new space will expand the cultural role played by KNMA in the national capital as a dynamic hub for both visual and performing arts, and a promoter of artistic innovation and cultural dialogue. 

Credits

Sound Engineer - MT Aditya Srinivasan

Graphic Design - Tripti Bhatter

Please Note: This performance includes mild flashing lights that could affect individuals who are sensitive to such visual stimuli. Viewer discretion is advised.