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Performers
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| Gurukul Dance Company (Kuchipudi) |
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| Kamala Devam |
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| Malini Srinivasan and Dancers (Bharatanatyam) |
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| Rachna Sarang Academy of Performing Arts (Kathak) |
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| Rahul Acharya (Odissi) |
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| Rama Vaidyanathan (Bharatanatyam) |
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| Rani Khanam (Kathak) |
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| Vijayalakshmi (Mohiniyattam) |
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| Gurukul Dance Company |
| Kuchipudi |
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Samarpita Bajpai:The artistic director of Gurukul trained in Bharatanatyam, Odissi, Kathak and Manipuri before going on to specialize in Bharatanatyam under the tutelage of Guru Thankamani Kutty of Calcutta Kalamandalam. After five years, she started training in Mohiniyattam simultaneously under the same Guru. It was her burning passion for the vibrant style from Andhra Pradesh, that finally directed her towards Kuchipudi, and Gurus Smita Shastri, Jayarama Rao and Vanashree Rao. Samarpita has experience in many folk dance forms of India. She has performed both in India and the US. |
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Kirstie McDermott: Gurukul Dance Company member Kirstie McDermott received both dance and academIc scholarships to attend Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri where she earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts with a Major in Dance. During her time at Stephens, Kirstie studied both ballet and modern techniques under the direction of Elizabeth Hartwell, Jan Miller, and Deborah Carr. In addition to Gurukul, Kirstie also performed with Störling Dance Theater & Imago Dei Arts. |
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Krystal Bryan: Gurukul Dance Company member Krystal Bryan graduated from Stephens College, Columbia, Missouri with her B.F.A. in dance where she studied primarily under Deborah Carr (Modern), Elizabeth Hartwell (Ballet and Pointe), and Jan Miller (Ballet and Pointe). She also has had the privilege of learning many other styles of dance including Irish Step, African, Kabuki Japanese, Flamenco, Musical Theater, Hip Hop and Circus Arts. While she was at Stephens she was a part of Dimensions Pre-Professional Dance Company, where one of her own works was chosen to be taken to the American College Dance Festival. |
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Kamala Devam
Modern/Bharatanatyam |
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Raised in San Francisco under the spiritual guidance of Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, Kamala trained in Bharatanatyam for twelve years with Kalakshetra graduates Katherine and K. P. Kunhiraman. She studied intensively with the Dhananjayans in 1994 and Kalakshetra K. P. Yeshodha in Chennai in 2002. Discovering a passion and curiosity for modern dance as an adult, she received her B.A. in Choreography & Performance at San Francisco State University in 2001. She has performed Indian dance professionally in Malaysia, India and the United Kingdom and toured the US and Mexico with the California Contemporary Dancers. In the UK, Kamala has performed for the London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony with Akram Khan Company, toured internationally with Shobana Jeyasingh Dance, Sadhana and Atma dance companies and worked with independent choreographers Luca Silvestrini and Stephanie Schober. She has also performed for the English National Opera and Akademi South Asian Dance UK, as well as rehearsal directed for several London based dance companies. |
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Malini Srinivasan and Dancers
Bharatanatyam |
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Malini Srinivasan: Malini Srinivasan is a third-generation Bharatanatyam dancer, choreographer and teacher, and the disciple of Guru Sri C.V. Chandrasekhar. A critically-acclaimed soloist, Malini also performs with her company, Malini Srinivasan and Dancers, and with groups including Ragamala, Rajika Puri and Dancers, and Thresh. Malini has performed at prestigious venues worldwide including The Music Academy (Chennai), The New Victory Theater (NYC), The Joyce Soho (NYC) and the Schaubühne am Lehniner Platz (Germany) She was recently awarded the NYC Fringe Award for Excellence in Choreography (2012) and the QCA Individual Artist Grant (2012 & 2010). Based in Queens, NY, Malini is a Lecturer at the Asian & Asian-American Studies Department at SUNY Stony Brook and is on the dance faculty of the Young Indian Culture Group and Anamika-Navatman. |
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Kadhambari Sridhar: Kadhambari Sridhar has been learning Indian classical dance for the past fifteen years and is currently training in Bharatanatyam under Guru Malini Srinivasan. She performs with Malini Srinivasan and Dancers in venues globally. Most recently, she was part of Being Becoming, a Bharatanatyam production which premiered in the International Fringe Festival in New York City and toured Switzerland and Chicago. Growing up in India, Kadhambari trained in Kuchipudi under Guru Shailaja Prasad in Hyderabad. She also choreographed and presented performance art, monologues, and storytelling in and around New York City. Kadhambari works in the field of global public health in Virginia. |
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Umesh Venkatesan: Umesh Venkatesan has studied Bharatanatyam for the past twenty years. He has appeared in cultural events both in the United States and internationally, including India and Australia. A freelance dancer and choreographer, Umesh continues to study under his mentor, Praveen Kumar, during visits to India. Professionally, he is a doctoral student in clinical psychology at The Pennsylvania State University. |
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Rachna Sarang Academy of Performing Arts
Kathak |
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Guru Rachna Sarang, is the choreographer, founder and artistic director of Rachna Sarang Academy of Performing Arts, RSAPA.
Barkha Patel: Barkha Patel is a professional Kathak dancer and has been training under Guru Rachna Sarang and her Kathak school, the Rachna Sarang Academy of Performing Arts (RSAPA), for the last fifteen years. Barkha travels to India for performances and thus far has performed at festivals such as the Siddhivinayak Maghi Mahotsav. She currently teaches and trains young dancers in Kathak at her Guru’s academy in New York.
Nikita Manilal: Nikita Manilal, a senior student of Guru Rachna Sarang, started her Kathak training at the age of 6. The practice of Kathak for Nikita is both a culturally and spiritually enriching experience that influences her life far beyond the scope of the dance itself and is reflected in her genuine love of the art form. Nikita currently works within the Jewelry department at Sotheby’s, New York.
Ashna Kothari: Ashna Kothari has been studying Kathak with Guru Rachna Sarang for 9 years. She is a senior at Trevor Day School in New York City. Ashna has always been passionate about Kathak and her latest endeavor includes a milestone performance with her peers at Symphony Space in New York City.
Ashna Mehta: Ashna Mehta is a student at Columbia Grammar and Preparatory in New York City. She has been training with Guru Rachna Sarang for 9 years, and has also taken part in many different theatrical debuts. Ashna has always had a keen interest in the arts and recently had a graduating performance with her peers at Symphony Space, NY.
Alisha Kothari: Alisha Kothari is a junior at Trevor Day School in New York City and has been training with Guru Rachna Sarang for 9 years. Her deep interest in the arts brought her to the milestone performance with her peers at Symphony Space, NY as well as an opening performance with her senior, Barkha, at Roop Kumar Rathod’s daughter’s musical debut in Bombay. |
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Rahul Acharya
Odissi |
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At twenty-nine, Rahul who started studying Odissi at age four, is inspired by the Late Guru Debaprasad Das and his teacher, Guru Durga Charan Ranbir. At home, he has been an active participant in the most celebrated dance festivals of India like Khajurao, Konark, Mukteshwar, and Ananya. Other than dance, Rahul is an avid devotee of Lord Jagannatha and is well versed in Sanskrit. He enjoys reading and researching on Shastras (Scriptures) and bringing them to the forefront through his dance. Abroad, he has performed in several prestigious international festivals. |
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Rama Vaidyanathan
Bharatanatyam |
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Rama Vaidyanathan, is a disciple of the legendary dancer Yamini Krishnamurthy and the renowned Guru Saroja Vaidyanathan. She is also trained in Carnatic music. Deeply committed the classical bharatanatyam, Rama has evolved her own choreographic and performance style to arrive as one of India's top exponents of Bharatanatyam. For Rama, dance is a means to expressing her inner quest for self-realization even as she addresses contemporary and especially cross-cultural issues. Rama has been performing regularly for the past fifteen years in India and abroad in national cultural centers. Alastair Macaulay, Chief Dance Critic of The New York Times described her performance thus, "The slap of her bare foot on the ground always made a full impact, and, especially in the second half, she had marvelous long moments of balance, held with full energy." Rama is the Director of Ganesa Natyalaya in New Delhi. |
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Rani Khanam
Kathak -Lucknow gharana
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Rani Khanam studied kathak intensively under Great Guru Pt. Birju Maharaj and Smt. Reba Vidyarthi for 15 years. Her deep knowledge of Islamic verses (being a follower of Chishtiya Silsila) enables her to innovate an unusual repertory of Sufi dance compositions called Sufiana which lead audiences to an ecstatic state of Oneness. For the past two decades, Rani Khanam has performed frequently at both national and international festivals around the world. Through her performances, she has espoused and made visible the causes of equality & social justice for Muslim women, women in general, persons with disabilities and HIV / AIDS. Her courageous pioneering work in Kathak dance has earned her several honors including National Women Excellence Award 2012, Asian Cultural Council Fellowship, The Government of India's Fellowship and the India Foundation's Award. She is the Director of Aamad- Kathak Dance Center in Delhi where she carries on the traditions of the Lucknow Gharana and creatively works to empower young women to dance as a profession. |
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Vijayalakshmi
Mohiniyattam
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Vijayalakshmi, daughter and premier disciple of Guru Bharati Shivaji, has endeavored to take Mohiniyattam to higher levels by constantly exploring uncharted territories and expanding traditional boundaries through innovative choreography inspired from a pan-Indian and global perspective. Her productions include Unniarcha, inspired from Kalaripayattu, the ancient martial art form; Swan Lake, inspired from the great Russian composer Tchaikovsky's music; and Paryapti, which draws upon the rich cultural ethos and music of Bengal. Vijayalakshmi has performed at some of the most prestigious venues in India and around the globe including the Lincoln Center, the Bolshoi Theatre, the Cervantino International Festival and the Edinburgh International Festival. Vijayalakshmi is acknowledged as one of the most eminent exponents of this dance form today with various national awards. |
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| The Indo-American Arts Council is a 501 ©3 not-for-profit secular arts organization passionately dedicated to promoting, showcasing and building an awareness of artists of Indian origin in the performing arts, visual arts, literary arts and folk arts. For information please visit |
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