Sunil Kothari (20 December 1933 â 27 December 2020) was a noted Indian dance historian, scholar and critic. He was also former Uday Shankar Professor at Ravindra Bharti University, Kolkata.
He completed M. A. in 1964 and PhD in 1977. Professionally, Sunil Kothari was a chartered accountant. He started his career with The Times of India. He also taught at Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics. He freelanced as a writer. He lived in Asian Games Village in Delhi.
He died on 27 December 2020 due to a cardiac arrest caused by COVID-19 complications.
He received Padma Shri award in 2001. He also received Sangeet Natak Akademi award in 1995 for overall contribution to the Indian classical dance. He was awarded Kumar Chandrak in 1961 and Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak in 2012.
He has written 12 books on different forms of Indian classical dance and allied art-forms.