Manishikha Baul

🪔 About

Manishikha Baul is an Odissi dancer, performer, choreographer, and researcher, born and brought up in India, primarily in Delhi and Kolkata. Her journey in dance began at the age of eight in Kolkata, where she trained under Shrimati Sutapa Talukdar. During her childhood, she had opportunities to perform due to her association with Gorky Sadan (Russian Institute). In her high school years, she took a break from dance to pursue English Literature and later worked at GE Healthcare services. She credits her husband, an Urdu poet, animal lover, photographer, and engineer, as her biggest motivator in her return to dance. Her training has also included tutelage from Mandira B. Singh, Madhavi Mudgal, Rahul Acharya, and Navtej Singh Johar. Manishikha aspires to be an independent performer-maker and has experience managing arts organizations and working in the corporate sector. She is currently exploring non-normative transformation through theatre studies. Inspired by the various 'walks' of people in cities, she developed and is working on her debut project, "Project Chaari." This visual and performative exploration investigates walking as an Odissi dancer in Delhi, aiming to create new movements and vocabulary within the traditional Odissi form to engage it in contemporary discourse. She has also performed creative pieces, such as reimagining the character Manjulika through Odissi for a Young Indians Halloween celebration.