With the passing of Birju Maharaj, an era has ended – this is not the usual cliche, but rooted in the fact that he was one of the last greats of a particular generation of kathak exponents. A recipient of many awards, he remained rooted and his greatest pleasure was taking his dance to audiences. Besides this, he loved teaching and mentoring young dancers,
Saswati Sen, one of his foremost disciples, knew Maharaj-ji, as he was called, for more than four decades. A reluctant student at first, she came to see divinity in him, an ‘aura’, as she writes in the short preface to a book she wrote about the maestro in 2013. With evocative pictures, the book is a document of the history and art of the master exponent of kathak.
A young Birju.
Birju Maharaj with Usha Mangeshkar (on his right) and Asha Bhonsle.
Depicting a vibrant mood.
At the recording studio with Satyajit Ray and Ruma Guha Thakurta.
A special duet with Saswati. Photo: Avinash Pasricha
A touching performance in New Delhi with Kelucharan Mohapatra. Photo: Avinash Pasricha
All images were first published in Birju Maharaj: The Master Through My Eyes by Saswati Sen, published by Niyogi Books in 2013, and are republished here with permission.