School ends at 4pm. Her mother is already outside, waiting near the madrassa.
Jamsheena Jamal steps out in her purdah and heads straight to dance class. She walks in as she is, keeps her things aside, slips off the purdah. Already in her dance class uniform, she joins the training session.
This is how Jamsheena remembers her entry into the world of classical dance as a child.
She began learning Bharatanatyam at the age of three under Kalamandalam Geetha. By Class 7, she moved to Mohiniyattam. She grew passionate, and gradually made it her own.
Today, she is in her final year of MA in Mohiniyattam at RLV Government College of Music and Fine Arts, Tripunithura, where she had earlier completed her degree as a rank holder in 2022.
At home, she recalls, art was always around her. Her father T A Jamal, a theatre artist, noticed early how his little daughter responded to rhythm, how her feet moved along with songs.
Her mother Sheeba Jamal also had learned Bharatanatyam in her childhood. Together, they supported Jamsheen throughout her journey.
“I was fortunate that my family and my surroundings never questioned my choices. There was no moment where I had to explain or justify what I was doing,” says Jamsheena.
That support, she points out, did not remain limited to her home. She remembers a moment from her school years when she was in Class 10 and secured second prize in Kerala Natanam at the state level. Soon after, the Juma Masjid in her hometown displayed her photograph on a flex board outside.
“We keep hearing stories from different places about restrictions, about things being disrupted. But my experience was not like that. For me, it was always encouraging. That kind of support makes a difference,” she says.
Her training has been shaped by multiple teachers over the years, and she now continues under Padma Shri Kalamandalam Kshemavathy.
While Mohiniyattam remains her primary focus, she has not stayed within a single form. She has learned Kerala Natanam and, during her graduation years, took up Kathakali more seriously, going on to perform arangettam (debut) in Krishna vesham in Guruvayur.
“It was on October 26 last year, at the famed Melpathur Auditorium. For me, and for my sir, Kalamandalam Vaisakh Rajashekharan, it was something we both had been wishing for. The piece was from ‘Duryodhanavadham’, and it focused on that moment of Panchali’s sorrow during ‘vastrakshepam’, and the exchange between them,” she gushes.
“We had always felt that if we were to present Krishna vesham, there is no place greater than Guruvayur. I am also someone who has a strong devotion to Krishna, so that made it even more special for me. That whole experience… it was surreal.”
For Jamsheena, performance is a space where everything else recedes. “When I step onto the stage, I don’t think about anything beyond it. The distractions, the noise… everything fades. It’s just the art and the moment. It almost feels like stepping into another world,” she says.
That sense of immersion brought her recognition early on, from school festivals to larger platforms. Earlier this year, she performed at the Khajuraho Dance Festival in Madhya Pradesh. “It’s a stage every dancer hopes to reach at some point. Being there felt significant for me, and I know it wouldn’t have happened without my teacher’s guidance,” says Jamsheena.
She has also performed at platforms such as Bhaav National Dance Festival, Tribhangi, Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi’s National Dance Festival and Yuva Nrithyolsav. Her work has earned her the Yuvaprathibha Award from Kerala Kalamandalam, and she is a graded artist with Doordarshan.
Alongside dance, she has appeared in films including ‘Valiyaperunnal’, ‘Paapam Cheyyathavar Kalleriyatte’, ‘Pravu’ and ‘Manasavacha’. But dance remains her priority.
Her personal life, too, moves within the same space. She is engaged to Kathakali artist Harikrishnan Gopinathan, son of Kalanilayam Gopinathan and Kalamandalam Prasheeja Gopinathan.
“I want to keep performing, keep finding more stages, and reach more people through my work,” she says. “If I can grow to a point where my name is recognised widely in Mohiniyattam, that would mean I have done justice to what I have learned.”
Jamsheena is aware that her journey will be read in different ways. “‘Bahujanam palavidham’. People will always have different ways of looking at things, and that’s not something we can control or change all at once,” she says.
“There will be those who understand it, and those who don’t. But for me, art is the space I have. Through that, I can still express something, carry certain ideas, and reach people in my own way. I want to create more productions, take up themes that are socially relevant, and use my work to do something meaningful.”