Chennai, 07th October 2026: Celebrating 25 years of nurturing dancers, preserving traditional repertoire and carrying forward the rich legacy of Bharatanatyam, Padmalaksshme Suresh’s Padmalaya School of Bharatanatyam, is set to mark its silver jubilee with Padmalaya 25, a year-long celebration of dance, tradition and learning. The celebrations will commence with Sri Lalithaa Ranga Padmam, a special curtain raiser, featuring performances by the junior and senior disciples of Padmalaya School of Bharatanatyam on Friday, October 9, 2026, at 6 p.m. at Narada Gana Sabha, Alwarpet, Chennai.
The curtain raiser will be graced by Thenisai Thendral Sri Deva, film music director, as the Chief Guest, and Sri B. Hemanathan, Deputy Director, Department of Art & Culture, as the Guest of Honour. The programme will bring together 72 students of Padmalaya in a special presentation marking the institution’s 25-year journey. Sri Lalithaa Ranga Padmam draws its name from Padmalaya’s artistic lineage, bringing together the names of Smt. Padmalaksshme Suresh’s Grand Guru, Smt. Lalitha; her Guru, Smt. Ranganayaki Jayaraman; and Padmalaksshme herself. The presentation will feature compositions from this lineage, continuing Padmalaya’s tradition of preserving and presenting these original choreographies.
Extending beyond the curtain raiser, Padmalaya 25 will feature 25 activities across the silver jubilee year, including performances, workshops, lecture-demonstrations and other cultural engagements. The year-long programme will bring together students, artistes, teachers and audiences through a series of engagements centred on Bharatanatyam, learning and cultural exchange. The celebrations will culminate in a special ticketed charity production next year, extending the silver jubilee into an initiative with a larger social purpose.
Speaking about the milestone, Kalaimamani Smt. Padmalaksshme Suresh said, “Twenty five years of Padmalaya is a journey that I hold very close to my heart. It has been shaped by the blessings of my Gurus, the love and dedication of my students, and the support of the family and many well-wishers who have stood by us through the years. As a Guru, my greatest joy is to see my students grow through this beautiful tradition and carry it forward in their own way. Padmalaya 25 is therefore not just a celebration of an institution completing 25 years, but a celebration of the journey we have shared and the tradition that we continue to nurture together.”
Event Details : Sri Lalithaa Ranga Padmam – Padmalaya 25 Silver Jubilee Celebration
Date: Friday, October 9, 2026
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Venue: Narada Gana Sabha, No. 314, T.T.K. Road, Alwarpet, Chennai – 18
Chief Guest: Thenisai Thendral Sri Deva, Film Music Director
Guest of Honour: Sri B. Hemanathan, Deputy Director, Department of Art & Culture
About Kalaimamani Smt. Padmalaksshme Suresh:
Kalaimamani Smt. Padmalaksshme Suresh is the senior-most disciple of Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee Smt. Ranganayaki Jayaraman, Director of Sri Saraswathy Gana Nilayam. She is a Kalaimamani awardee and an ‘A’ Grade Doordarshan artiste. She holds an M.Phil and is a Gold Medallist from the University of Madras. She is also a panel member of IRCEN, Delhi, and serves as an Executive Committee Member of ABHAI. Her artistic and research interests have extended to projects such as the Sapta Vidanga Sthalams, while her productions Chidambara Kuravanji and Bharata Swatantra Kuravanji have received government grants. Over the course of her career, Smt. Padmalaksshme Suresh has represented Indian classical dance internationally as a cultural ambassador across the USA, Malaysia, Australia, Singapore, Colombo, Dubai, Muscat and other destinations. Through the Padmalaya Foundation, she has also extended support to artists and underserved communities.
About Padmalaya School of Bharatanatyam:
Founded in 2001, Padmalaya School of Bharatanatyam has served as a space for learning, practice and propagation of Bharatanatyam. Under the artistic direction of Kalaimamani Smt. Padmalaksshme Suresh, the institution has trained generations of dancers while preserving traditional repertoire and encouraging artistic exploration.
