Sitting cross-legged with her nimble fingers vigorously dancing over her acoustic sitar, beautiful and petite Anoushka Shankar presents a serene picture.

It was Christmas Eve, the year was 2004. I still vividly remember the events of that day.

Beautiful imageries, fine lines, subtle nuances and much more, defined Indian dance in 2011. With new ideas brimming and finally emerging out of that creative closet to some brilliant traditional repertoire, choreography surely went a step ahead.

The year 2011 has been a year of highs and lows for Indian music. While at one end it was eventful and fast-paced — music festivals gave music aficionados another chance to travel and experience the “real” taste of music — hardly leaving any space to breathe, it also saw the year spearheading the growth of music on the Web. The video sharing portal YouTube has emerged as an alternative stage for independent musicians in India, many of whom not only stream their music on their YouTube channels, but also earning revenue.

Think Farooque Shaikh in Chashme Baddoor or Naseeruddin Shah in Sparsh or even Shabana Azmi in Saaz — if these characters still remind you of the golden age of the Hindi film industry, then you have S

Odissi, which is perhaps the only form of classical dance to have been mentioned in the Natyashastra, has come a long way.

From being a welder to an international reggae artiste, Apache Indian aka DJ Steven Kapur has come a long way.

It’s been more than a year since Angela Johnson shot for the 2011 Kingfisher calender, time in which she has been linked up with everybody from Ranbir Kapoor to Sidhartha Mallya.

For those who believe that dance is a way of life, the Natyashastra by Bharata Muni is the Holy Grail.

For a few moments before Imogen Heap begins her concert at the recently concluded Bacardi NH7 Weekender in Pune, there is restlessness and excitement among the scores of people cheeri