Pandit Birju Maharaj | |
|---|---|
 Maharaj performing in Pune, April 2012 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Brijmohan Nath Mishra |
| Born | 4 February 1939 Handia, United Provinces, British India (present-day Uttar Pradesh, India) |
| Died | 17 January 2022 (aged 83) Delhi, India |
| Genres | Indian classical |
| Occupation(s) | |
| Years active | 1951–2016 |
| Website | Webpage |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Relatives |
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Pandit Birju Maharaj (born Brijmohan Nath Mishra; 4 February 1938 – 17 January 2022) was an Indian dancer, composer, singer, and exponent of the Lucknow "Kalka-Bindadin" Gharana of Kathak dance in India. He was a descendant of the Maharaj family of Kathak dancers, which includes his two uncles, Shambhu Maharaj and Lachhu Maharaj, and his father and guru, Acchan Maharaj. He also practised Hindustani classical music and was a vocalist.[1] After working along with his uncle, Shambhu Maharaj at Bhartiya Kala Kendra, later the Kathak Kendra, New Delhi, he remained head of the latter, for several years, until his retirement in 1998 when he opened his own dance school, Kalashram, also in Delhi.[2]
Birju Maharaj was a recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honor, in 1986.
- ^ Kaui, Banotsarg-Boghaz (2002). Subodh Kapoor (ed.). The Indian encyclopaedia: biographical, historical, religious, administrative, ethnological, commercial and scientific. Volume 3. Genesis Publishing. p. 198. ISBN 81-7755-257-0.
- ^ Massey, p. 29