KP Bhaskar
IHF-SG Excellence Award For Performing Arts
The late K P Bhasker’s love for Singapore started in 1952 when he briefly did a stopover on his way to Australia. He was completely floored by the sheer beauty of the garden city. Soon what was to follow was the Bhaskar’s Academy of Dance and he started teaching dance in Singapore and Malaysia. Along with his new wife Santha, a talented dancer and choreographer they together built up a name for himself and the institution by performing all over the island and Malaysia.
Born on 1 July 1925 in the south Indian state of Kerala, the late K P Bhaskar began his dancing career learning Kathakali at the Royal Dance School of Travancore. Through the years he had the benefit of learning from several gurus and along with it, other dance forms such as Manipuri and Kathak. He also learnt ballet when in Bangalore and the Kandian dance.
Of his gurus, one name stood out. It was Uday Shankar the brother of sitar legend Ravi Shankar. Bhaskar’s involvement in the community bestowed him the honour of heading a cultural mission to India in 1962/63. An active voice in the arts community, he was the pioneering chairman of the Dance Advisory Committee overseen by the Ministry of Culture. In addition, he was a member of the People’s Association, the National Theatre Trust, the Kreta Ayer People’s Theatre, the National Theatre Club and the Singapore Arts Federation. He was also president of the Singapore Kathakali Yogam for 20 years.
With a firm grip of the happenings of the arts world, Bhaskar remained the president of Nrityalaya Aesthetics Society and CEO of Bhaskar’s Arts Academy till his passing at age 87.