B. A. Suresh, Editor and Publisher

Bheemanattumadathil Ananthanarayanan Suresh, advocate and media man, had his schooling in his home-town Perinthalmanna, and did his B.A in Economics at the M.E.S. Kalladi College, Mannarghat. He then pursued his LLB at the Government Law College, Barton Hill, Thiruvanathapuram and started his career in Law.

Born and brought up amidst the swaying coconut trees and greenery of Kerala, Suresh was fascinated by the wondrous performances of Kathakali and Koodiyattam that he used to regularly watch spell-bound, right from his childhood days. Since it was not a convention in their family to train children in performing arts, Suresh could not pursue his passion then, and trained instead as a lawyer like his father and forefathers. Always drawn towards creative pursuits, Suresh soon moved over to print media following his heart.

Deep within, Suresh still harboured his childhood desire to reconnect with performing arts. Getting married to Vidya was really a godsend in this direction, since it helped him view both art and artistes from a closer and insider perspective, which eventually led to the birth of Skanda Publications.

His respect and regard for performing arts has seen him adorn the mantle of a huge supporter of the cause of documenting and popularising our traditional performing art forms. Thanks to his zeal and mentoring, Skanda’s books have offered readers an amazing depth of information on our rich and varied culture for more than 21 years.

The couple with daughter Mahitha Suresh, son-in-law Vijay Subramaniam K and twins Harshitha Suresh and Nipun Suresh. Mahitha and Vijay are Chartered Accountants and ACCA members. Harshitha is a B.A. (Economics) student at Stella Maris College, Chennai and Nipun is a student of B.Tech (Electrical Engineering) at IIT-Madras.

Vidya Bhavani Suresh, Author

Bharatanatyam exponent, musicologist, researcher, choreographer, orator, author - these are but a few attributes of the multi-faceted personality Vidya Bhavani Suresh. Vidya began her formal training in Bharatanatyam under the eminent guru, V.P. Dhananjayan. She continued and completed her tutelage under the renowned guru K.J. Sarasa. After a continuous and strenuous learning experience of 12 years, Vidya had her Arangetram (first formal performance) at the age of 16 years. From then on, Vidya has been an active and innovative performer and researcher. Her performances have always stood apart for their profound research-based content and uniqueness. It has always been Vidya’s attempt to take Bharatanatyam very close to the common viewer.

Vidya is also an accomplished Carnatic music singer, having undergone systematic training in the form. She continues to enrich her repertoire by continuing her association and training with her guru, the reputed Vidushi, A.P. Komala. Vidya’s deep knowledge of Carnatic music has enabled her to specialise as a musicologist.

Vidya also sets the musical score for all her dance productions. She has conceptualised, set to tune and choreographed a collection of 50 items for Bharatanatyam from ancient Tamizh literature titled, Tamizh Illakiyamum Bharatamum. This collection includes respected Tamizh works like Tirukkural, Paripaadal, Tirumurugatrupadai, Tiruppugazh, Meenakshiammai Pillai Tamizh, Nalavenba etc. This, she considers one of her most important contributions to Bharatanatyam since it brings out the best thoughts of our poets of yore, through one of the most powerful media of visual presentation, namely, Bharatanatyam. These items, while staying well within the grammatical framework of Bharatanatyam, offer the viewer a different and novel viewing experience.

Being an excellent public speaker as well, Vidya comperes her programmes very effectively making the audience understand and appreciate every aspect of the performance. Vidya also conducts lecture demonstrations and workshops on Indian Dance and Music for schools, colleges and corporates.

Vidya holds an M.A. in Folklore, from St. Xavier’s College, Palayamkottai (Tirunelveli), the only college in the country offering this rare course then. She is also the recipient of the Research Fellowship in this discipline from the Department of Culture, Government of India. Vidya is a Fellow member of The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (F.C.S.). Vidya also holds a Degree in General Law.