Google Doodle honours Mrinalini Sarabhai on her 100th birthday: Indian classical dancer was Padma Bhushan recipient

On Friday, Google honoured legendary Indian classical dancer and Padma Bhushan recipient Mrinalini Sarabhai on her 100th birth anniversary with a doodle. The Google doodle, illustrated by Delhi-based graphic designer and illustrator Sudeepti Tucker, features Mrinalini with her signature parasol in the auditorium of the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, which she founded in 1949 with her husband and well-known Indian physicist Vikram Sarabhai. Her students are depicted dancing on the stage. The doodle celebrates Mrinalini’s technique, spirit, and strength. Mrinalini began training to be a dancer from a young age, studying both the South Indian classical dance form of Bharatanatyam and the classical dance-drama of Kathakali. [caption id=“attachment_4465085” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Google celebrates the 100th birth anniversary of Mrinalini Sarabhai. Google[/caption] She was one of the few classical dancers who trained in more than one form. Over the span of her multi-decade career, Mrinalini witnessed the continuous evolution of dance forms. Despite this, she was inspired to choreograph more than three hundred dance dramas with a strong base of classical tradition behind them. Driven by the desire to share her passion for the craft with future generations, Mrinalini founded the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts in 1949 with her husband. Her institute in Ahmedabad is considered to be a leading centre in training different forms of dance, drama, puppetry, and music. Mrinalini is known to have instructed over 18,000 students in Bharatanatyam and Kathakali. The academy has now transformed into a study centre for diverse art forms. It has also grown into an institute that employs the power of arts to bring about a positive change to critical issues facing the society. Mrinalini was trained in Bharatanatyam under Meenakshi Sundaram Pillai and Kathakali under the legendary Guru Thakazhi Kunchu Kurup. She was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1992 and the Padma Shri in 1965 for her contribution to arts.