LKE India 19: Uday Shankar India Culture Centre

DATE: 1932-1973

LEVEL: SubSeries

Legal and administrative correspondence and other records relating to the establishment and oversight of the Uday Shankar India Culture Centre and the India Culture Trust established in 1937 to support it.

The Elmhirsts first became aware of the Indian dancer Uday Shankar through Margaret Barr in 1933. He was invited to perform at Dartington in June of that year. He was, at this time in partnership with Alice Boner as part of an organisation called ' Compagnie Uday Shankar - Danses and Musique Hindoues'. This partnership was dissolved in 1939 whereupon the Elmhirsts set up, alongside Beatrice Straight, funding via the Elmgrant Trust to support the 'Uday Shankar India Culture Centre' a school in Almora, India in 1937. The schools aims were to train young Indian dancers and musicians in the traditions of folk forms of Indian culture. It was successful for five years until Shankar became interested in making a film, which the Elmgrant Trust did not fund as it was considered to be outside the interest to the original agreement. In February 1944 Shankar closed the school without consulting the Trust. A reorganisation committee for the school was set up in 1944 with Uday on its board in the hope of re-settling the school elsewhere. In 1954 LKE persuaded Uday to resign as a Trustee. In 1958 the remaining funds were reinvested under the moniker of the 'India Culture Trust', and the money was made available to Indian artists for the promotion of Indian culture.

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