NEW DELHI: Noted artiste and eminent cultural figure Leela Samson, who heads the Kalakshetra in Chennai, is set to take over as the chairperson of Sangeet Natak Akademi, according to a report in Times of India.

Samson is already a member of the Academy. Her appointment to the top slot of hte Academy is beleived to have already been cleared by the Prime Minister, Mr. Manmohan Singh. Sangeet Natak Akademi is the country's premier national academy for music, dance and drama. It is set up by the Government of India.

Despite a delay in taking charge as chairperson, Samson is expected to soon take up her new responsibility and head the premier cultural body which promotes the fine arts.

Considered one of India’s energetic and engaging Bharatanatyam artistes, Leela Samson is known for her in-depth knowledge and impeccable style. She is a distinguished alumna of Kalakshetra, where she spent her formative years learning the nuances of Bharatanatyam under the tutelage of the late Rukmini Devi Arundale. The rudiments that she picked up in Kalakshetra did not restrict her from exploring further and expanding the frontiers of her learning.

"Leela Samson has travelled extensively and performed at dance festivals in India and abroad. Her personal style is unostentatious, characterized by a certain serenity and ease,'' says Kalakshetra in a profile put out in its website. She has also choreographed many group and solo Bharatanatyam performances which have won critical acclaim. She has also trained many students who are now teachers in their own right. Leela Samson is the recipient of the Sanskriti Award in 1982, the Padmashri Award in 1990, the Nritya Choodamani Award in 1997 and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2000.

She has been the subject of two documentary films, ‘Sanchari’ by Arun Khopkar and ‘The Flowering Tree’ by Ein Lall.