Sanjukta Panigrahi -the original Ardhanariswara in Odissi

Ardhanārīśvara,  'the half-female Lord' is depicted as half-male and half-female, equally split down the middle. The union of male Purusha (Shiva) and female Prakriti (Shiva's energy, Shakti) generates the universe. Ardhanarishvara signifies "totality that lies beyond duality", "bi-unity of male and female in God" and "the bisexuality and therefore the non-duality" of the Supreme Being. It conveys that God is both Shiva and Parvati, "both male and female, both father and mother, both aloof and active, both fearsome and gentle, both destructive and constructive" and unifies all other dichotomies of the universe. Choreography by Padma Vibhushan Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Sanjukta Panigrahi, unarguably the greatest-ever female Odissi dancer, helped classical Indian dance re-position itself as one of the world’s oldest dance traditions She was the first girl to pursue Odissi dance as a career, trained under the tutelage of Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra, besides being trained in Bharata Natyam for six years with the master Rukmini Devi, and built its international profile at the highest cultural podiums of the world. “the dancer for the Gods” “Her dance remains engraved in the memory of all those present as a magical apparition”