Mrinalini Sarabhai, legendary dancer and wife of Indian physicist Vikram Sarabhai, died on Thursday. She passed away at 10 am at her home in Ahmedabad. According to reports, the 97-year-old Padma Bhushan awardee had been admitted to hospital a day before.
Her son Kartikeya Sarabhai founder of Centre of Environment Education and daughter Mallika Sarabhai were by her side. “My mother just left for her eternal dance,” her daughter, also leading danseuse, actor and activist, said in a Facebook post announcing the death, reported The Hindu.
“She had an infection which led to her health deteriorating. Her condition is critical. We are by her side. She is 97 years old and is fighting her condition bravely,” Kartikeya, told Hindustan Times.
Trained in Bharatnatyam, Kathakali and Mohiniyattom, she was educated at Shantiniketan under Rabindranath Tagore.
The noted danseuse is being grieved for on social media:
RIP Mrinalini Sarabhai (1918-2016), dancer, choreographer, institution-builder: radiant embodiment of our Tagorean & Nehruvian legacies.
— Ranjit Hoskote (@ranjithoskote) January 21, 2016Pained to hear about the passing away of Mrinalini Sarabhai. She played a vital role in popularization of Indian arts. It is a great loss!
— Ahmed Patel (@ahmedpatel) January 21, 2016Condolences to MallikaSarabhai and #Sarabhai family at the loss of noted danseuse PadmaBhushan #MrinaliniSarabhai pic.twitter.com/j8oq1oXhWL
— Oommen Chandy (@Oommen_Chandy) January 21, 2016RIP Mrinalini Sarabhai. Legendary dancer of such enormous grace and charisma.
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) January 21, 2016Condolences to family and friends of Mrinalini Sarabhai who passed away today. She was a true pioneer in dance
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) January 21, 2016She belonged to an enchanted era & family that straddled science, art, business & social causes. Mrinalini Sarabhai, danseuse, activist, RIP
— Madhavan Narayanan (@madversity) January 21, 2016Recently, a commemorative postage stamp had been issued by the Indian Post for founding father of ISRO, which also featured Mrinalini.
Father of Indian space program #VikramSarabhai with wife, renowned classical dancer #MrinaliniSarabhai & their son. pic.twitter.com/zdM3u5u6D2
— Prasar Bharati (@prasarbharati) December 30, 2015Watch her in action:
(All images sourced from Twitter)
