Surupa Sen

Surupa Sen is an Odissi dancer, choreographer, and the Artistic Director of Nrityagram in Hessaraghatta, Karnataka. Born in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, she studied Bharatanatyam in childhood before turning decisively to Odissi after completing a degree in Economics. She joined Nrityagram as a residential student on 20 June 1990 and made the dance village her long-term artistic home.

At Nrityagram, Sen began Odissi training with Kelucharan Mahapatra and continued her learning with Protima Gauri, Ratikant Mohapatra, and Bichitranandan Swain. Her education also included abhinaya with Kalanidhi Narayanan and study of the Natyashastra with Padma Subrahmanyam. She became the first student to graduate from the Nrityagram programme and made her solo debut on 22 March 1996.

Appointed Artistic Director of Nrityagram in July 1997, Sen has developed a choreographic practice grounded in Odissi and the Natyashastra while extending the form's ensemble vocabulary for the contemporary proscenium stage. Her work brings together movement, rhythm, music, and spatial design; she has worked closely with Raghunath Panigrahi on original music compositions since 1999. Her major repertoire includes ensemble, duet, solo, and virtual works created for Nrityagram.

Sen has performed and presented choreography in India and internationally, including at the Joyce Theater, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, and the Edinburgh International Festival. She remains active as Nrityagram's Artistic Director, choreographer, and principal soloist, continuing to create work, perform with the ensemble, and sustain Nrityagram's gurukula-based Odissi training and artistic community.