October 21, 2008
Revanta has his mother's dance genes
by Chitra Nair / TNN, Times of India, Pune
Revanta Sarabhai held the audience hostage with his riveting performance, his first as a solo Bharata Natyam artist [in Pune], at a programme organised by the Poona Music Society on Sunday.
Octopber 15, 2008
Destiny's Child
by Ashwin Khan, Pune Mirror, Pune
There are expectations when one carries the tag of a Sarabhai, but Revanta is on his own journey to make a mark.
August 1, 2008
A License to Dance
by Aarti Aney, photographer Amit Thakur, Elle India, Mumbai
Revanta Sarabhai believes in the power of performance and communication. His thoughts are conveyed through his website, his skills as a graphic artist, stints in acting – all as he takes forward his illustrious Bharatanatyam lineage.
April 1, 2008
About a Boy
by Swaati Chattopadhyay, First City, Delhi
Of being momma and nani's boy. Of loving the "exuberance" of Bharatanatyam. the thrill of contemporary choreography, messing with the performer-audience lakshmanrekha. And the inevitable feeling of wanting to run to the loo just as he's about to step onstage. FIRSTCITY on a brekkie date with Revanta Sarabhai, heir apparent to the legacy of his activist-artist-scientist family.
March 14, 2008
A new Sarabhai ready to scorch the dance floor
by Aastha Kapoor, Mail Today, Delhi
In Hindu mythology, Revanta is the son of Surya, the sun god and Saranya, the goddess of dawn. In reality, Revanta Sarabhai Shah has an equally impressive lineage. The Sarabhai name is synonymous with dance and its promotion in India. Revanta is the third generation dancer of the family following the footsteps of his grandmother, Mrinalini and mother, Mallika Sarabhai. Even in conversation, with his elegant hand movements and expressive eyes, it is clear that Revanta was born to dance. Revanta, 23, grew up at the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, in Ahmedabad. The Academy, started by his grandmom has been his home and work place.
March 17, 2008
Great Expectations
Dipanita Nath, Delhi Newsline, Delhi
Whichever factory churns out star-sons didn’t break the mould for Revanta Sarabhai. The 23-year-old son of dancer-activist Mallika Sarabhai and grandson of Mrinalini Sarabhai is celebrity material all right, with an Abhishek Bachchan hairstyle and a six-foot frame toned by pumping irons. But he is comfortable in a Bharatnatyam costume rather than on Page Three.
February 13, 2008
Dance With Me
Anindita Ghose, Times Rouge, Mumbai
Revanta Sarabhai
is a dynamic aesthete who isn’t afraid of treading new terrain. He talks of dance, drama and carving his own niche BY ANINDITA GHOSE.
Revanta gestures dramatically as he talks. As he supervises the stage craft for an evening performance by the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts at the ongoing Kala Ghoda Festival in Mumbai, his voice resonates with the power that seasoned theatre artistes are synonymous with.
Meet Dancer, Choreographer and Multimedia Artist, 23-year-old Revanta Sarabhai. Primarily a Bharatanatyam dancer, he has trained in various other Indian classical, folk and contemporary forms and toured across the country as well as Australia, China, Europe, the UK and the US. In recent years, Revanta has also started experimenting with choreography—combining aspects of classical dance with innovative contemporary movement.
Read more...
November 16, 2007
The Sarabhai legacy continues
Rupa Srikanth, The Hindu, Chennai
With his lanky frame, expressive eyes and dashing looks, Revanta has an undeniable presence on stage.
The star attractions at 20th Anniversary celebrations of ABHAI (Association of Bharatanatyam Artists of India) were the renowned dancer Mrinalini Sarabhai who was awarded the title ‘Natya Kalanidhi’ and her grandson, Revanta Sarabhai, who was dancing in Chennai for the first time. Due to ill health, the former could not make it, but Chennai got to see the dashing, third-generation Sarabhai dance.
As 23-year old Revanta came on stage to perform the opening ‘Garland of Kauthuvams,’ one felt a sense of déjà vu seeing those beautiful, big eyes that he has inherited from his mother, dancer and social activist Mallika Sarabhai. With his lanky frame, expressive eyes and film star looks, Revanta has an undeniable presence on stage. He also has the style and the involvement, the fitness and the timing- important ingredients for any dancer. But there is a slackness in the finish; in both the arm movements and in the footwork, that mars the picturesque landscape.
Supported by a full-throated Jayam Nair, vocal and nattuvangam, Palanivel, mridangam, T.K.Padmanabhan, violin and B.N.Ramesh, the recital had strength in the music and dance departments. The choice of items for Revanta’s brief debut in Chennai stuck to well known and rhythmically inclined compositions; four kauthuvams followed by ‘Natanam Adinar’ in Vasantha, Ata tala and ‘Sankara Sri Giri’ in Hamsanandhi (Adi). There was continuous action on stage without a break; a pity really because one did not get to see more of Revanta’s promising bhava.
Read more...
July 6, 2007
Revanta performs at the Jaya Smriti Festival, Mumbai
Organized by Hema Malini in memory of her mother Jaya Chakravarthy, Jaya Smriti is a festival to promote young Indian classical dancers and provide a platform to showcase young talent. This year's festival saw Arunima Kumar perform Kuchipudi, Sanjukta Sinha perform Kathak and Revanta Sarabhai, who performed Bharata Natyam.
Revanta started with a series of kautwams to Ganesha, Kartikeya, Devi and Shiva and went on to perform Natanam Adinaar, a piece that demonstrates the majestic and masculine dance of Nataraja, Lord of Dance. Following that up with a Hindi bhajan that spoke of Shiva's dance at the Chidambaram temple, Revanta ended the evening with a thillana, exemplifying the intricate footwork and exuberant movement that characterizes Bharata Natyam.
Hema Malini speaks to SCREEN magazine about Jaya Smriti
March 16, 2007
Choreography, Bollywood eshtyle
From contemporary movement inspired by India's classical dance heritage, Revanta this time turned towards Bollywood to choreograph Mallika Sarabhai's latest production, Unsuni: Unheard Voices. Unsuni is a musical-theatre piece telling the story of five of India's millions of voiceless people. Since Bollywood is a culture that connects the masses of India, Sarabhai chose to parody popular hindi-film songs, with alternate lyrics to tie-in each story with the next. Unsuni was recently showcased as part the 31st Vikram Sarabhai International Arts Festival in Mumbai. The festival also saw Revanta dancing in Dianne Reid's Indo-Australian collaborative multimedia performance, Unfixed.
See more examples of Revanta's performance work
December 22, 2006
One more on the shelf
Working as a freelance graphic designer in Ahmedabad since his return from university in Philadelphia, Revanta now has 5 books under his belt, the newest of which will come out in print next month. Working with leading publishers of quality books on art - Mapin Publishing, Revanta has designed coffee table books and catalogues for contemporary Indian artists like Krishen Khanna, Iranna GR, and New York based modern painter Judith Murray. Also to his credit are recently completed projects for the National Institute of Design (NID), and Darpana's annual Vikram Sarabhai International Arts Festival.
Coming up are more exciting projects such as a catalogue for Indian painter and sculptor Himmat Shah, and a Cultural Guide to Ahmedabad
See more examples of Revanta's graphic design work
Download Revanta Sarabhai’s Resume
June 6, 2006
BFA with honors, and the President’s Award!
Four years of persistent hard work and Revanta has come out on top, graduating this May with a BFA in Multimedia, and honors. Revanta also won the President's Award for Academic Achievement and Excellence at the University of the Arts, Philadelphia, USA. Revanta is now back in Ahmedabad, India where he is at the onset of many new things.
Having been involved with activities at Darpana for many years, Revanta is now spearheading their new DAES initiative that will, come January, start attracting groups of foreign students on study abroad programs related to Indian arts and culture. Revanta is also set to rejoin Darpana's Performance Group at the beginning of their 2006-07 season, which starts with a showcase of its production India: Then, Now, Forever at the Athen’s Festival in Greece this August and September. Revanta will also continue working as a multimedia artist and a freelance designer.
May 12, 2006
Shanti arrives in Bethlehem
Shanti: A Journey Of Peace, the acclaimed choral multi-media dance production that took Cincinnati by storm earlier this year, is scheduled to be performed at Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA on May 20th. For time and venue information, visit www.shantichoir.org.
May 2, 2006
Heads Transposed in Philadelphia
After months of working on the development of his new piece, Revanta Sarabhai showcased two performances of The Transposed Heads at the University of the Arts Drake theatre on April 30th. The performance was recieved by a moved audience with a standing ovation. Among the audience was University President, Miguel Corzo who was "fascinated by the show."
Performing with Revanta was fellow artist and collaborator Eric Cupo, with the lighting by Angelo Anastasio. The performance was part of a series of works by students of the graduating Senior Multimedia Class at The University of the Arts, Philadelphia. The senior show titled MMVI will be up at the Sophi Gallery from May 5th through May 17th. More information about the exhibition can be found at www.mmmmvi.com.
March 29, 2006
Revanta performs for Shanti at the Aronoff
Shanti: A Journey Of Peace is an expansive, collaborative community event that explores the meanings and message of peace, joy and the interconnectedness of us all through the dance, music and images of India. This acclaimed multi-media event - which premiered to a sold-out audience on May 1, 2004 at the University of Cincinnati’s Great Hall - was recreated for a performance on March 25, 2006 in the Aronoff Center’s Procter & Gamble Hall in Cincinnati with a 140-member choir from the Greater Cincinnati Indian Community Choir, St. John’s Universalist Church Choir and Martin Luther King Coalition Choir; a Western chamber orchestra and an ensemble of Indian instruments and authentic Indian dancers.
Shanti was created and directed by Cincinnati based musician, composer and music educator Kanniks Kannikeswaran. The combined community choir was led by Catherine Roma (Artistic Director, MUSE). Shanti is scheduled to be performed again in Allentown, PA on the 20th of May 2006. Details on the venue, and ticket availability will be posted soon.
February 27, 2006
Nritya Pratibha at Sangeet Natak Akademi, Jhodpur
India’s national academy for music, dance and drama has an annual festival to promote and encourage young dancers that show promising careers. At their 2006 festival held in Jhodpur, Rajasthan, Revanta was invited to perform a 25 minute solo Bharata Natyam solo repertoire. A rare male in a sea of women Bharata Natyam dancers, Revanta performed a series of pieces devoted to Shiva Nataraja, the lord of dance.
