Meera is one of the finest Odissi dancers of India today and is widely acclaimed for her authentic renderings of the great Indian classical dance form.  Odissi hails from the Estern state of Orissa in India and is well known for is sculpturesque beauty, lyrical movements, fine expressions and typical dressing style.

Meera is the founder and pricipal of the Gunjan Dance Academy at Cuttack in India.

Biography

Starting early in life, Meera had taken to dance and music rather instinctively. As a child-artiste, while she excelled in bandha Nrutya-- a folk dance form involving acrobatic movements-- under the tutelage of Guru Gangadhar Nayak, it was the love of music that brought Meera to the Odissi Research Centre.

The intrinsic talents of Meera flourished under the great masters like Padmabhusan Kelucharan Mohapatra and Guru Gangadhar Pradhan. Soon Meera joined the chosen few of the Odissi repertoire company of the Odissi Research Centre to perform in many prestigious programmes throughout the country.

Sponsored by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations [ICCR], Meera has performed in North Korea in 1990 and in Germany during the Indian Festival 1992. She has also performed in Indonesia in the Festival of Kalinga Bali Yatra 1993.

Now a distinguished name in the reference panel of artistes of ICCR, and also as a dance executive of the Odissi Research Centre, Meera is fully dedicated to her cultural mission. She is imparting advanced level training to groups of students while presenting Odissi recitals -- solo as well as with her troupe-- in India and abroad.

Reviews

Meera has been widely reviewed by connoisseurs.  Some of the excerpts are:
* The danseuse from Bhubaneswar, who has an attractive stage presence, showed all round excellence in all the segments of Odissi. -- Evening News
* An exceptionally graceful Odissi dance bringing to the Capital's audience the sensuous charms of Odissi...
* That she had mastered her art was evident throughout her recital, as each and every posture and in-between movement had the impression of quiet confidence and unhurried perfection.
* The brilliant dance kept the large audience enthralled.
* Meera has an instinct feel of the performing space and moves with ease. -- Times of India
* Both teacher and researcher in the Odissi Research Centre, Meera brings to a presentation the resilience of youth and the beauty of the sculptures from ancient Oriyan temples. -- National Herald
* Meera Das can be trusted with the Odissi culture into the next century. She exudes self-confidence and commitment to aesthetics and Indian Culture. -- National Herald
* Best among the second generation Odissi dancers in Orissa, Meera is also one of the young dancers capable of appearing distinctly on the national horizon. -- Eastern Times
* The recital of young Meera Das from among the Konark ballet group, markedly stood out and missed nobody's attention ... reflected with intangible grace and perfect movements. -- Economics Times

Awards

Meera has received many awards including Dance Academy award in 1999, the Mahari Award in 2002, teh Urvashi award in 2003, Padmashree Smjuktha Samman in 2004 for her contributions to dance.