Madame Menaka Explained

Madame Menaka
Other Names:Leila Sokhey
Birth Name:Leila Roy
Birth Date:October 15, 1899
Birth Place:Barisal, East Bengal
Death Date:May 30, 1947
Occupation:Dancer
Spouse(S):Sahib Singh Sokhey

Madame Menaka (October 15, 1899 – May 30, 1947) was the professional name of Leila Roy, Lady Sokhey, an Indian dancer and choreographer in the Kathak tradition.

Early life and education

Leila Roy was born in Barisal, Bengal Presidency, the daughter of Pyare Lal Roy and Lolita Roy. Her father was a Bengali lawyer trained in England, and her mother was British.[1] She attended the Loreto Convent in Darjeeling and St Paul’s School in London.[2] She trained as a violinist in England, but pursued dance as a career, with encouragement from Russian ballet dancer Anna Pavlova, whom she met in London in 1927.[3] Her Kathak dance teachers included Pandit Sitaram Prasad and Achhan Maharaj.[4]

Career

Sokhey gave dance recitals in Bombay in 1928,[5] [6] and began choreographing and teaching dance to students at the Haffkine Institute. She danced in Paris in 1930,[7] and her Menaka dance company toured Europe from 1935 to 1938.[8] They entered the Berlin Dance Olympiad,[9] in conjunction with the Summer Olympics in Berlin in 1936, and won several trophies.[10] She met modern dancer Mary Wigman during her time in Germany.[11] Her company and choreography appeared in at least two European films, the German-language Der Tiger von Eschnapur (1938) and a British documentary in color, Temples of India (1938).

In 1941, with her husband's financial support,[12] Menaka opened a residential school outside Bombay in Khandala,[13] named Nrityalayam.[14] [15] One of her students was her adopted daughter, dancer Damayanti Joshi,[16] who later published a book of photographs and memories of Menaka.[17]

Personal life

Leila Roy married Sahib Singh Sokhey, a biochemist.[18] Their large home at the Haffkine Institute in Parel included her dance studio and was frequently host to visiting scientists and artists.[19] "Imperious, unconventional, sympathetic, big-hearted, she charms all with her intelligence and understanding," wrote a contemporary. "Her artificialities of vivid make-up and finery in dress are superficial and skin-deep, so to speak; she is, at heart, genuinely natural and simple."[20] Following her husband's knighthood in 1946, she became Lady Sokhey. She died from Bright's disease in 1947, aged 47 years.[21] [22] The University of Mumbai awards a Menaka Trophy for excellence in Kathak dance.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2011-04-01. Culture: Giants Who Reawakened Indian Dance. 2021-11-24. Hinduism Today. en-US.
  2. Book: Kabadi Waman P.. Indian Whos Who 1937-38. 1937. 743. Newspapers.com.
  3. Web site: Khokar. Ashish Mohan. 8 February 2011. The Dance History Column: The role and contribution of pioneering gurus and foreigners in the revival of classical Indian dances (1900s-50s). 2021-11-24. Narthaki.
  4. Web site: Kothari. Sunil. 2019-11-11. The magnetic Madame Menaka and the Tiger of Hastinapur. 2021-11-24. The Asian Age.
  5. News: 29 December 1928. Indian Art Revival: 'Menaka's Programme at Excelsior. 15. The Bombay Chronicle. November 24, 2021. Internet Archive.
  6. Vakil. Kanaiyalal H.. February 1928. Dancing in India: A New Era. The Modern Review. 689–692. Internet Archive.
  7. "Foreign show News: Indian Dancers are 1 Too Many in Paris" Variety 100 (20) (Nov 26, 1930): 55. ProQuest
  8. News: 22 April 1938. Indian Dancers' Triumphs Abroad; Menaka Troupe's Success in the Capitals of Europe. The Bombay Chronicle. November 24, 2021. Internet Archive.
  9. News: Khokar. Ashish. 2018-05-31. Menaka, Mrinalini and Maya, the dancing trendsetters. en-IN. The Hindu. 2021-11-24. 0971-751X.
  10. News: 8 September 1936. Menaka at the Dance Olympiad. 5. The Bombay Chronicle. November 24, 2021. Internet Archive.
  11. Warren. Vincent. 2006. Yearning for the Spiritual Ideal: The Influence of India on Western Dance 1626-2003. Dance Research Journal. 38. 1/2. 97–114. 10.1017/S0149767700007403. 20444666. 193774298. 0149-7677.
  12. Book: Palit, Maj Gen DK. Musings & Memories: Vol (I). 2004. Lancer Publishers. 978-81-7062-275-8. 170. en.
  13. News: Swaminathan. Chitra. 2018-05-17. Madame Menaka choreography movement to highlight process of visualisation. en-IN. The Hindu. 2021-11-24. 0971-751X.
  14. Ganapathi, K. "Sahib Singh Sokhey 1887–1971" Indian National Science Academy Biographical Memoirs: 148-149.
  15. Book: Walker, Margaret E.. India's Kathak dance in historical perspective. 2016. Routledge. 978-1-315-58832-2. London. 119. 952729440.
  16. Web site: 2018-12-05. Damayanti Joshi. 2021-11-24. Sruti Magazine.
  17. Book: Joshi, Damayanti. Madame Menaka. 1989. Sangeet Natak Akademi. en.
  18. Web site: Sahib Singh Sokhey (1887-1971). 2021-11-24. The University of Edinburgh. en.
  19. News: Shah. D. C.. May 17, 1933. Interview with Menaka; True Art Must Transcend Technique. 11. The Bombay Chronicle. November 24, 2021. Internet Archive.
  20. Book: Venkatachalam, G.. Dance In India. Nalanda Publications. Bombay. 35-39; quote on p. 37. Internet Archive.
  21. Book: Katrak, K.. Contemporary Indian Dance: New Creative Choreography in India and the Diaspora. 2011-07-26. Springer. 978-0-230-32180-9. 36. en.
  22. News: 2 June 1947. Menaka, the Pioneer. 4. The Bombay Chronicle. November 24, 2021. Newspapers.com.

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