Charu Sija Mathur is a name that is synonymous with which dance form?

The correct answer is Manipuri. Charu Sija Mathur was a noted exponent and teacher of Manipuri dance, and she spent her life performing, teaching and popularising the art form beyond Manipur. Questions about her test whether you can link well-known artists with their dance forms.

Manipuri dance, the classical dance of Manipur, is known for its soft, graceful movements, its devotional mood and its themes from the life of Radha and Krishna, especially in the Ras Leela. In the 20th century, it spread beyond Manipur and found new students and performers across India. Rabindranath Tagore played a major role in this. After watching a Manipuri performance in Sylhet in 1919, he invited Manipuri teachers to Santiniketan and made the dance part of the curriculum there. Later, institutions such as the Jawaharlal Nehru Manipur Dance Academy in Imphal, founded in 1954 and now run by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, became major centres for training in Manipuri dance.

Other famous names in Manipuri dance include Guru Bipin Singh, often called the father of modern Manipuri dance; the Jhaveri sisters (Nayana, Ranjana, Suverna and Darshana), who brought Manipuri to the national and international stage; Rajkumar Singhajit Singh and his wife Charu Sija Mathur, who together worked to spread the art; and Guru Amubi Singh.

About the other options:

• Kathak is associated with artists such as Pandit Birju Maharaj, Sitara Devi, Shambhu Maharaj and Kumudini Lakhia.
• Odissi is associated with artists such as Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra, Sanjukta Panigrahi, Sonal Mansingh and Kumkum Mohanty.
• Kuchipudi is associated with artists such as Vempati Chinna Satyam, Yamini Krishnamurthy, and Raja and Radha Reddy.