CarmineJansen at 17:12, 3 March 2026

2026-03-03T17:12:11Z

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{{Short description|Indian-Canadian dancer and choreographer}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2019}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Lata Pada (ಲತಾ ಪಾದ)
| native_name = Lata
| native_name_lang =
| image = File:Smt.Lata pada, and Shri.Vishnupada with Guru Kalyanasundaram couple.jpg
| imagesize =
| caption =
| birth_name = Lata
| other_names =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1947|11|7}}
| birth_place = [[Bombay]], [[India]]
| citizenship = [[Canadians|Canadian]]
| known for = [[Bharatanatyam]]
| alma mater = [[Elphinstone College]] in [[Mumbai]]
| education = Learnt under master teachers [[Kalaimamani Kalyanasundaram]], and [[Padmabhushan Kalanidhi Narayanan]].
| occupation = [[Dancer]], [[Choreographer]], Teacher and Author
| years_active =
| awards = * 2008, she was made a [[Member of the Order of Canada]], * On 18 June 2012, Pada was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
| parents =
| spouse = Vishnu pada,
Hari Ventakacharya
| website = {{URL|http://www.sampradaya.ca/}}
| signature =
}}

'''Lata Pada''',<ref>[http://narthaki.com/info/intervw/intrvw21.html Nartaki, Interview, May, 2001, Lata Pada - Choreographer]</ref> (ಲತಾ ಪಾದ) [[Order of Canada|CM]] (born 7 November 1947<ref>{{cite web|url=http://artsalive.ca/en/dan/meet/bios/artistDetail.asp?artistID=15|title=Biography|accessdate=2009-02-11}}</ref>) is an Indian-born [[Canadians|Canadian]] choreographer and [[Bharatanatyam]] dancer. Pada is the founder and artistic director of Sampradaya Dance Creations, a dance company that performs Indian dance. She is also the founder and director of Sampradaya Dance Academy, a leading professional dance training institution that is the only Indian dance school in North America affiliated with the prestigious, UK-based Imperial Society for Teachers of Dancing.<ref>Walker, Susan. "[https://www.thestar.com/article/433757 Call it South Asian dance HQ]." ''[[The Toronto Star]]''. 30 May 2008.</ref><ref name="Kopun">Kopun, Francine. "[https://www.thestar.com/article/249781 When the only thing left is hope]." ''[[The Toronto Star]]''. 25 August 2007.</ref> Pada founded the dance company in 1990; Pada said that she founded the company because she wanted to showcase Bharatantyam dance as an art form throughout the world.<ref>"[http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=453 “B2” a collaboration between Sampradaya Dance Creations and Ballet Jorgen] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200520110611/http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldroutes/festivals.cfm?id=453 |date=20 May 2020 }}." ''[[Harbourfront Centre]]''. Retrieved on 10 December 2008.</ref><ref>"
[http://www.canadacouncil.ca/canadacouncil/user/printthispage.aspx?url=%2Fdevelopment%2Fdanceontour%2Fcompanies%2Fse127488176755353750.htm&language=en Sampradaya Dance Creations] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304071421/http://www.canadacouncil.ca/canadacouncil/user/printthispage.aspx?url=%2Fdevelopment%2Fdanceontour%2Fcompanies%2Fse127488176755353750.htm&language=en |date=4 March 2012 }}." ''[[Canada Council for the Arts]]''. Retrieved on 10 December 2008.</ref> Pada is known as an influential figure in Indian style dance in Canada.<ref name="CalcuttaTelegraph">"[https://archive.today/20130203131150/http://www.telegraphindia.com/1031115/asp/calcutta/story_2572143.asp Daring and innovative]." ''[[The Telegraph (India)|The Telegraph]]''. Retrieved on 10 December 2008.</ref>

==Early life and dance career==
Born on 7 November 1947, Lata was the eldest of four children in a well-educated family.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://foreveryoungnews.com/posts/293-by-dance-reborn- |title=Resource guide, By dance reborn-By Keith Garebian |access-date=16 August 2015 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304102500/http://foreveryoungnews.com/posts/293-by-dance-reborn- |url-status=dead }}</ref> Her father was an electrical engineer in the Royal Navy, and her mother eventually had a career in insurance management.

At the age 13, Lata gave her solo debut recital known as the 'Arangetram'. Lata, who attended [[Elphinstone College]] in [[Mumbai]],<ref>"[http://www.majorcomm.ca/en/submissions/Phase%201%20-%20Lata%20Pada%20Submission.pdf P-196] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160816013747/http://www.majorcomm.ca/en/submissions/Phase%201%20-%20Lata%20Pada%20Submission.pdf |date=16 August 2016 }}." Air India Commission, [[Government of Canada]]. 17 September 2007. Retrieved on 24 June 2009.</ref> gave up her studies in science to pursue Indian dance, and trained under the gurus Kalaimamani Kalyanasundaram and Padmabhushan [[Kalanidhi Narayanan]].<ref name="CalcuttaTelegraph"/>

Pada married geologist Vishnu Pada (ವಿಷ್ಣು ಪಾದ) on 30 October 1964, when she was 17 years old. Marriage took place in Canada. Vishnu was graduated from [[McGill University]] in geology; when he came to India he saw Lata and the marriage negotiations were done.<ref>Radhika, V. "[http://www.boloji.com/wfs3/wfs321.htm Dancing To Transform] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100131062725/http://boloji.com/wfs3/wfs321.htm|date=31 January 2010}}." ''[[Boloji]]''. 4 December 2004.</ref> After coming to [[Thompson, Manitoba]], Canada, where husband worked for Inco, she became a member of a sorority, and was able to combine her domestic duties with a social life and her artistic vocation. She and Vishnu were the first Indian family in the mining town.

==Career in Bharata natyam==
Lata pada's career as a soloist began in 1965, the year after she immigrated to Canada. At this time, her work was largely traditional. However, when she lived in Indonesia for several years, Lata Pada became interested in cross-cultural collaboration and opened up her choreography to other influences. In 1979, she returned to Canada. Pada's solo dances featured bharata natyam in a traditional form and in a more contemporary style.
In 1990, Pada founded [[Sampradaya Dance Creations]] in Toronto, Ontario, and Sampradaya Dance Academy in nearby Mississauga. Sampradaya Dance Creations presents a range of solo and ensemble choreography in both a classical and contemporary repertoire. The company is also engaged in education and community outreach.

Among the dance productions of Lata Pada on various themes, two productions highlighting women and identity are praiseworthy:
* 'Triveni', which relates Sita, Draupadi and Ahalya to generations of invisible, often silent, women, ever since.
* 'Sohrab: Mirage' (Sohrab, a Dari word, means mirage), that dwells on the experiences of Afghan women under the Taliban regime.

==Personal life==
Lata and her husband, [[Vishnu Pada]] moved first to [[Indonesia]] before settling in [[Greater Sudbury|Sudbury]], [[Ontario]], nearly 40 years ago. She devoted her life in looking after her husband, two daughters, and teaching dance. She was visiting India almost every year to train with her dance guru. In 1985 Lata Pada and her family decided to take an extended vacation to India.<ref>"Explosive Evidence." ''[[Mayday (Canadian TV series)|Mayday]]''.</ref> She travelled ahead of her family so that she could practice for a scheduled performance in Bangalore, and across India. Lata was in Mumbai rehearsing for her tour, while her husband and daughters stayed behind in [[Sudbury, Ontario]] because Brinda was graduating from high school.<ref>"[http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20050710/spectrum/main1.htm The Kanishka Bombing, 20 years on Lest we forget]." ''[[The Sunday Times]]''. Sunday 10 July 2005.</ref> On 23 June, her husband and two daughters Arti and Brinda, who were due to join her, were on the Delhi-bound [[Air India flight 182]] that crashed off the coast of Ireland.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Bowden |first=Olivia |date=February 8, 2020 |title=They lost family in the Air India bombing. Now they're grieving for Iranian-Canadians - National {{!}} Globalnews.ca |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/6514750/air-india-iran-plane-crash/ |access-date=2024-01-09 |website=Global News |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Kelly |first=Deirdre |date=2007-05-26 |title=How Lata Pada rose above Air India pain |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/how-lata-pada-rose-above-air-india-pain/article686598/ |access-date=2024-01-09 |work=The Globe and Mail |language=en-CA}}</ref><ref name="Kopun"/>

Numbed with grief, she instinctively turned to her only remaining anchor, dance. On the larger canvas of universal grief, the two personal questions that ring through 'Revealed by Fire' are: "If you take away my husband, am I still a wife? If you take away my children, am I still a-mother."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.boloji.com/index.cfm?md=Content&sd=Articles&ArticleID=6188#sthash.O7G7vP0D.dpuf |title='If you take away my children, am I still a-mother' |access-date=17 August 2015 |archive-date=8 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208175849/http://www.boloji.com/index.cfm?md=Content&sd=Articles&ArticleID=6188#sthash.O7G7vP0D.dpuf |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>Mahesh, Chitra. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20031231002036/http://www.hindu.com/fr/2003/12/05/stories/2003120501680300.htm A voyage of discovery]." ''[[The Hindu]]''. Friday 5 December 2003.</ref>

Lata Pada became a spokesperson for the families of the victims.<ref>"[https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa-asks-rae-to-head-air-india-inquiry-1.559784 Ottawa asks Rae to head Air India inquiry]." ''[[CBC News]]''. Wednesday 23 November 2005.</ref> Lata Pada expressed disappointment in the Canadian government's investigation of the Air India incident.<ref>Struck, Doug. "[https://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A45168-2005Mar17?language=printer For Canada's Police Agencies, 'A Multidimensional Failure']{{dead link|date=June 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}." ''[[The Toronto Star]]''. Friday 18 March 2005. A20.</ref>

Pada received a master's degree in fine arts from [[York University]] in 1997.<ref name="books.google.co.in">{{Cite book |last=Davida |first=Dena |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Pg_aAgAAQBAJ&dq=lata+pada,+gets+masters+degree+in+dance+from++york+university&pg=PA381 |title=Fields in Motion: Ethnography in the Worlds of Dance |date=2011-10-01 |publisher=Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press |isbn=978-1-55458-377-5 |language=en}}</ref>
<ref>Carlyle, Cathy. "[http://www.yorku.ca/ycom/gazette/past/archive/2000/052400/issue.htm Michael Stevenson responds]." ''[[York University|York University Gazette]]''. Wednesday 24 May 2000. Volume 30, Number 32.</ref>

<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.boloji.com/index.cfm?md=Content&sd=Articles&ArticleID=6188#sthash.NtASFIBD.dpuf'Dancing |title=To Transform'-by V.Radhika Aug,17, 22015 |access-date=17 August 2015 |archive-date=8 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208175849/http://www.boloji.com/index.cfm?md=Content&sd=Articles&ArticleID=6188#sthash.NtASFIBD.dpuf'Dancing |url-status=dead }}</ref> In September 2000,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Interview - Lata Pada|url=https://narthaki.com/info/intervw/intrvw21.html|access-date=2021-11-24|website=narthaki.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last1=Chandaraju|first1=Aruna|date=December 21, 2008|title=A picture of grace|url=https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/entertainment/lounge/a-picture-of-grace/articleshow/22277917.cms|access-date=2021-11-24|website=Bangalore Mirror|language=en}}</ref> Lata Pada remarried Hari Venkatacharya who was later arrested for fraud in 2013.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Man Arrested at Pearson Airport in Connection with Long-Standing Fraud|url=https://www.insauga.com/man-arrested-at-pearson-airport-in-connection-with-long-standing-fraud/|access-date=2021-11-24|website=insauga|date=13 November 2018|language=en-US}}</ref>

Pada lives in [[Mississauga]], near [[Toronto]], Ontario.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Curry |first=Bill |date=2007-05-09 |title=Air India bombing could have been prevented |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/air-india-bombing-could-have-been-prevented/article20397187/ |access-date=2024-01-09 |work=The Globe and Mail |language=en-CA}}</ref>

==Awards, accolades==
* In December 2008, Lata pada was made a [[Member of the Order of Canada]] for her contributions to the development of [[Bharatanatyam]] as a choreographer, teacher, dancer and artistic director, as well as for her commitment and support of the Indian community in Canada.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gg.ca/media/doc.asp?lang=e&DocID=5601 |title=Governor General Announces New Appointments to the Order of Canada |date=30 December 2008 |accessdate=1 January 2009 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090121152728/http://www.gg.ca/media/doc.asp?lang=e&DocID=5601 |archivedate=21 January 2009 }}</ref> Lata was also recently appointed as adjunct professor in the Graduate Faculty of Dance, York University, Toronto.
* She was one of the interview subjects of the documentary ''[[Air India 182 (film)|Air India 182]]''.<ref name=AI182filmpresskit>"[http://www.airindia182.com/downloads/AirIndia182PressKit.pdf Air India 182 Press Kit]" ([https://web.archive.org/web/20160304032431/http://www.airindia182.com/downloads/AirIndia182PressKit.pdf Archive]). ''Air India 182'' (film) official website. p. 10/12. Retrieved on 22 October 2014.</ref> She was also interviewed for the ''[[Mayday (Canadian TV series)|Mayday]]'' episode on AI182.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1211606/ |title="Air Crash Investigation" Explosive Evidence (TV Episode 2008) |language=en-US |access-date=2024-07-12 |via=m.imdb.com}}</ref>
* On 9 January 2011, Pada was conferred the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award, by the President of India. This award, instituted by the Government of India in 2003, recognizes outstanding contributions by overseas Indians in the diaspora.
* Lata was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award for her exemplary contributions in the field of dance, as well as for her unrelenting efforts in seeking a public inquiry into the 1985 bombing of Air India flight 182.
* Pada is the first performing artist to be given this prestigious honour in Canada.,<ref>[http://alumni.news.yorku.ca/2009/05/01/pada-receives-oc/ New yorku, ' It's a first: South Asian Lata Pada artist receives the Order of Canada published 1 May 2009']</ref><ref>[[Pravasi Bharatiya Samman]]</ref>
* On 18 June 2012, Pada was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, for her outstanding contributions in promoting South Asian dance in Canada.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.visiontv.ca/2012/06/27/lata-pada-awarded-queen-elizabeth-ii-diamond-jubilee-medal/ |title=ZOOMERTV, Lata Pada Awarded Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, 27 June 2012 |access-date=16 August 2015 |archive-date=21 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220521163401/https://www.visiontv.ca/2012/06/27/lata-pada-awarded-queen-elizabeth-ii-diamond-jubilee-medal/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Canada|Biography|India}}
* [[Indo-Canadians in Toronto]]
* The biography of Lata pada, and her YouTube,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://dcd.ca/exhibitions/enterdancing/latapada.html |title='The biography of Lata pada, and her YouTube', The younger days pics are documented |access-date=17 August 2015 |archive-date=25 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125021617/https://www.dcd.ca/exhibitions/enterdancing/latapada.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* [http://srutimag.blogspot.in/2013/08/a-true-gem-radiates.html India's premier magazine for the performing artists By S. Jayachandran Shruti-Jayachandran, Learning from Guru Kalyanasundaram Pillai]
* [[Viji Prakash|Viji_Prakash, Wikipedia]]
* [http://www.abhai.org.in/aboutus.php Association of Bharata natyam Artists of India] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031042925/http://www.abhai.org.in/aboutus.php |date=31 October 2018 }}
* [http://airindia182.com/interviews/05.flv Interview footage of Lata Pada] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20150205024247/http://airindia182.com/interviews/05.flv Archive]) from the documentary ''[[Air India 182 (film)|Air India 182]]''

==External links==
* [http://www.sampradaya.ca/ Sampradaya]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081112053936/http://www.sampradaya-dance.com/about_director.html About the Artistic Director]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEIm0C71HO0 Kanishka crash victim's family recalls tragedy ahead of PM Modi's visit to memorial]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF8_lH-EcAA Legends Row: Introducing Lata Pada YouTube]
{{Air India Flight 182}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pada, Lata}}
[[Category:1947 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Canadian female dancers]]
[[Category:Indian female classical dancers]]
[[Category:Indian women choreographers]]
[[Category:Indian choreographers]]
[[Category:Canadian Hindus]]
[[Category:Members of the Order of Canada]]
[[Category:Artists from Bengaluru]]
[[Category:Indian emigrants to Canada]]
[[Category:Air India Flight 182]]
[[Category:Bharatanatyam dancers]]
[[Category:Dancers from Karnataka]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian dancers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian women artists]]
[[Category:Women artists from Karnataka]]
[[Category:Remarriage]]

Lata Pada - Revision history

CarmineJansen at 17:12, 3 March 2026