New Delhi. : IIAS Shimla organized the 8th Rabindranath Tagore Memorial Lecture in collaboration with Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi today. On this occasion, Padma Vibhushan and iconic cultural personality of India, dance guru, choreographer, scholar, writer and Rajya Sabha MP Dr. Sonal Mansingh was the key-note speaker and gave the lecture on The Many Faces of woman: Ashta-Naayika and Tagore. The lecture was held at Baba Saheb Ambedkar Auditorium, IGNOU, Maidan Garhi, New Delhi.

Vice Chancellor of IGNOU, Professor Nageshwar Rao who is also the Acting Director of the Institute delivered the welcome address. The Chairperson of the IIAS, Shimla, Professor Shashiprabha Kumar gave the introduction of the keynote speaker Dr. Sonal Mansingh and also provided a brief of the program.

Welcoming the key-note speaker Dr. Sonal Mansingh, Prof. Nageshwar Rao, VC IGNOU said that we all look upon her not as a cultural brand ambassador of India and Indian Dance forms but someone who has been a philosopher, a mentor, and a guide to all those who have been or are student of Art & Culture as a discipline. Expressing his pleasure in jointly organizing the lecture, he said that it has brought the two great institutions viz., IGNOU and IIAS closer and can lead to more such  collaborations in different fields.

Professor Shashiprabha Kumar, Chairperson IIAS in her address presented a comprehensive sketch of the key-note speaker. Giving the genesis of the Tagore Centre for the Study of Culture and Civilization which was established at the Institute in the year 2012, she said that among the academic programmes organized as part of the activities of this Centre is the annual Tagore Memorial Lecture.

Dr. Sonal Mansingh in her key-note explained the shades and nuances of the ‘ashta nayika' as found in the lyrics of Tagore. Describing the ‘Ashta Nayika’, she said they are the eight ‘nayikas’ exhibiting the eight emotions or ‘bhavas’ as narrated by Tagore in his poetry and these emotions are best described in the context of ‘Radha - Krishna’ as lovers. She enthralled the audience with the depiction of the ‘nayikas’ through a very involving lecture without performing dance, Dr. Mansingh transcended and  managed to make the audience feel those emotions.

The lecture was collectively done as part of the series by IGNOU to commemorate 75 Years of Independence “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahaotsav” and the annual Tagore Memorial Lecture by IIAS.

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