T. Balasaraswati, who received the Sangita Kalanidhi from the Madras Music Academy in 1973, was an exponent of:

Explanation

Tanjore Balasaraswati (1918-1984), usually known as T. Balasaraswati or simply Bala, was one of the greatest Bharatanatyam dancers of the 20th century. She is often called the "Empress of Bharatanatyam". In 1973, the Madras Music Academy honoured her with the Sangita Kalanidhi, its highest award, and she was the first dancer to receive it.

Balasaraswati was born in Chennai into a famous hereditary family of musicians and dancers of the devadasi tradition, which had served at the temples and courts of Thanjavur for many generations. Her grandmother, Veena Dhanammal, was a legendary veena player and singer. Balasaraswati began learning dance at the age of four from the great nattuvanar K. Kandappa Pillai and gave her first public performance at the age of seven. She was famous above all for her abhinaya (expression). She could express a single line of a song in many different ways, with great depth of emotion and subtlety. She also sang while she danced. At a time when the devadasi system was being attacked and many people wanted to change the dance, she insisted on preserving the traditional style and its spiritual and emotional depth. She performed and taught around the world, including in the United States, where she taught at universities and influenced many dancers. She received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1955), the Padma Bhushan (1957) and the Padma Vibhushan (1977).

Why not the other options?

• ✗Kathakali is the dance-drama of Kerala.
• ✗Kuchipudi is the classical dance of Andhra Pradesh.
• ✗Mohiniyattam is the classical dance of Kerala, performed by women.
• ✗Good to know
• ✗Balasaraswati was not mainly known for any of these.