. Kapila Vatsyayan (English: Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan, born: 25 December 1928, Delhi; died – 16 September 2020, Delhi) was a leading scholar of Indian art. Awarded with ‘Padma Vibhushan’ and former nominated member of Rajya Sabha, Kapila Vatsyayan was the wife of famous litterateur Sachchidananda Hiranand Vatsyayan Agyeya. She was the first president of ‘Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts’. Kapila Vatsyayan was living a lonely life after separating from her husband since the sixties. She had devoted her entire life to the promotion of literature, art and culture.
Kapila Vatsyayan was born on 25 December 1928 in an aware family. Father Ramlal was a well-known lawyer and mother Satyavati Malik was a good writer and art-music lover. This family was also deeply associated with the freedom struggle and many prominent English writers of that time used to participate in the seminars held in their house.
She did her MA in English from Delhi University and then MA in History from Michigan and later did research in history, archaeology and architecture as a special student under the guidance of scholars like Vasudev Sharan Agarwal at Banaras Hindu University. Her marriage to famous English writer Sachchidananda Hiranand Vatsyayan ‘Agyeya’ was also a notable event in her life. But this bond lasted only for thirteen years from 1956 to 1969. After the divorce, Kapila ji went to Agyeya’s house only after his death (1987). Apart from learning Kathak from Achchan Maharaj, Kapila Vatsyayan also learned Bharatnatyam, Manipuri and modern western dances.[1]
She started Kathak from her childhood. In a conversation she said- “I remember, at the age of ten I did Ardhanarishwar. Then Achhan Maharaj called me. Nirmala Joshi asked me to touch the feet of such a great Guru. She said you are a very good dancer, but you need training.”
Kapila ji also studied Sanskrit to understand ancient forms and archaeology. The reason for her passion was that she wanted to understand the essence of all traditions and find their unity. After gaining independence, it was a natural effort to identify one’s own culture. Kapila ji said in a conversation that – “Even though we were naive, we were completely idealistic and dedicated to the concept of a country that had recently gained independence. We had some ideals in front of us. My mother and Kamala Devi Chattopadhyay and some others.”
Kapila Vatsyayan’s books on Indian dance, dance images in art, Natyashastra and nature are considered important. She also did a beautiful translation of Jaydev’s ‘Geet Govind’ in English. She also had a deep love for English literature and knew English very well. The special thing is that while analyzing antiquity, there was no narrowness in her vision, rather there was an urge to see the tradition in a modern way. As much as she liked the Lasya part of Indian dance, she was also an advocate of modern western dance art. She used to say that ‘Western dance gave me the vision to understand my body.’
Vatsyayan was an extraordinary personality for her services to the nation and in the field of culture, art and education. She became an institution in herself due to her contribution and dedication, especially in the field of tribal art. For this she received the national decoration of Padma Vibhushan. Kapila Vatsyayan kept Indian culture alive, which strengthened the civilization. She was a great Karmayogi, who worked with full spirit of the heart. Apart from many other institutions, the credit for establishing the country’s largest institution ‘Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts’ goes to Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan. In view of her commendable contribution in various fields, she was nominated to the Rajya Sabha.
Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan started her career in the teaching profession but due to her vast knowledge and experience she was taken to the Ministry of Education and Culture. At a time when education facilities were at a rudimentary level, Kapila Vatsyayan made a significant contribution in expanding education facilities. She was associated with great personalities like Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, Dr. Zakir Hussain, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Dr. KL Shrimali, Prof. VKRV Rao, Dr. C.D. Deshmukh, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Dr. Karan Singh, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.[2]
Perhaps after Pupul Jayakar, Kapila Vatsyayan was the second such personality who got many opportunities to work in the institutions running and developing art and culture. She held high cultural positions in the government, was nominated as a member of Rajya Sabha twice and when in 1985 the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi established the ‘Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts’ in memory of his mother, Kapila ji was made its founder director. This huge complex of the art center was started with very ambitious objectives to research, exhibit and develop the classical and folk forms of art and culture and their interrelationships. It remained somewhat active for a long time, then Kapila Vatsyayan resigned due to increasing government interference.
Kapila Vatsyayan died on 16 September 2020 in Delhi. Culture Minister Prahlad Singh Patel tweeted, ‘I was deeply saddened to hear the news of the death of Padma Vibhushan Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan. Dr. Vatsyayan made significant contributions to various institutions of the Ministry of Culture. I offer my humble tribute to him.'[3]
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla tweeted, ‘The demise of Padma Vibhushan-awarded eminent artist of the country and former Rajya Sabha member Mrs. Kapila Vatsyayan is an irreparable loss for the art world. She was a scholar of culture, art, architecture and history. May God give a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet. Heartfelt tribute.’
Writer Prabhat Ranjan also tweeted, ‘Indian art connoisseur Kapila Vatsyayan has passed away. I had seen her in many programs. Her presence had its own light. I had read one of her books ‘Traditional Indian Theatre: Infinite Streams’, translated by Badiuzzama. The follower of India’s infinite tradition has merged into the infinite. Respectful tributes!’