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Lakshmi Vishwanathan is a renowned Bharatanatyam dancer and choreographer who has won critical acclaim in India and abroad. She has received many honours including the Tamil Nadu State Kalaimamani and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award. Her most recent appearances at the Jacobs Pillow Festival and at a workshop in the Mark Morris Dance Center in the USA are part of Lakshmi ongoing efforts to be India cultural ambassador. A trained singer as well, Lakshmi dance, particularly her abhinaya, has been described by pundits as visual music. Lakshmi holds a gold medal in English Literature from Madras University. She writes extensively on Art and Culture for The Hindu. Besides having authored a book on dance, Bharatanatyam the Tamil Heritage, she has also directed Poetry of Dance, a documentary film commissioned by the Festival of India. Lakshmi was born and brought up in Mylapore, the cultural hub of Madras and has contributed in many ways to preserving and nurturing the classical culture of South India. She is currently the Vice President of the prestigious Music Academy.