Dancers & Musicians
Born in Sri Lanka and having lived in Indonesia, Singapore and Papua New Guinea, Kavita started learning Bharatha Natyam at the age of four under Smt. Neila Sathyalingam in Singapore. Migrating to Australia in 1986, Kavita was one of Anandavalli’s very first students and the first graduate of the Lingalayam Dance Academy to perform her Arangetram (dance debut) in 1994. Having performed in all the Dance Academy productions, she has been a member of the Lingalayam Dance Company since its inception in 1996. Kavita has an unwavering, grounded love for this ancient art form.
Saipriya was initiated into the art of Bharatha Natyam at the tender age of five, while living in Nigeria. Furthering her training in Sri Lanka she performed her Arangetram in 1992 at the age of ten. After migrating to Australia, Saipriya came under the tutelage of Anandavalli in 1993 as a student of the Lingalayam Dance Academy. Joining the Lingalayam Dance Company in 2001, the intervening years saw her blossom into a disciplined and dedicated dancer.
Having accomplished Canberra's first Arangetram in the Bharatha Natyam style with Nandana Chellappah in 1998, Jennifer's love for Indian classical dance saw her move to Sydney in 1999 to further her tutelage under Anandavalli. Her passion and dedication for this art form saw her mature into a fervent performer, creating her own special niche within the Lingalayam Dance Company.
Migrating to Australia in1989, Mini joined the Lingalayam Dance Academy in 1990 at the age of eleven. Her undiluted love for this art form and its capacity to allow her to lose herself within its perimeters saw this introvert teenager grow into an uninhibited, passionate performer at her Arangetram in 2002. Mini undertook an intensive course in the fundamentals of Kuchipudi at the Kuchipudi Art Academy, Chennai, South India in 2003. Her first season with the Lingalayam Dance Company was also in 2003, performing in Tempest in the following year.
Abi came under the tutelage of Anandavalli in 1987, at the age of six. One of the first students of the Lingalayam Dance Academy, she presented her Arangetram in 2004. Her initial season with the Lingalayam Dance Company was in Earth & Fire in 2003, and she proudly presented her first solo performance in Bangalore, India in January 2005. Abi was one of five dancers involved with coordinating and presenting Tarangini, a concert for charity, in April 2006.
Swati’s dance classes under the tutelage of Anandavalli started at the tender age of four, due to the persistence of her grandmother, who wouldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. The following decade and more, saw Swati develop a genuine interest for Bharatha Natyam and having gained an immense amount of stage experience performing with the Lingalayam Dance Academy, she presented her Arangetram in March 2003. Her first season with the Lingalayam Dance Company was in Earth & Fire in 2003 and she has since been performing in the Company seasons.
Introduced to the art of Bharatha Natyam at the age of eight while living in Zambia, Swetha joined the Lingalayam Dance Academy in 1996 when her family migrated to Australia. Both her Arangetram and initial season with the Lingalayam Dance Company occurred in 2003. From the early years, Swetha portrayed that intuitive ability to interact and be involved with her dancing, a rare quality that blossomed when she performed the role of Shakuntala in 2005, and as the loved and rejected Sita in the re-staging of Earth & Fire in 2007.
Based in Singapore, Aravinth is a brilliant musician, who specializes in playing the Veena (a stringed instrument similar to the sitar). A Bharatha Natyam dancer in his youth, this knowledge enables him to compose music for dance with an acute understanding of the choreographers’ vision. Aravinth composes music for many productions in Singapore, which have also been used by foreign companies. He has performed in India, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, United Kingdom, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Australia.
Aruna Parthiban is an accomplished and well recognised musician in the Sydney Indian music arena. A singer of considerable repute, Aruna has gained the reputation of being one of the top musicians through her enormous talent, versatility and her melodious singing style. Aruna commenced her musical training at a very young age under the tutelage of renowned musicians such as Radha Ramji and Seerkazhi V. R. Subramaniam. She pursued her advanced music training at the Music Academy, Chennai, under the expert guidance of Padma Sri Sangeetha Kalanidhi B. Rajam Iyer, a great doyen of Carnatic music.
Varalakshmi Sritharan is an exponent and teacher of Veena. She obtained the Sangeetha Vidwan title for Veena and Vocal and also a Postgraduate Diploma in Music Teaching at the Tamil Nadu Government Music College, Chennai, South India. Varalakshmi has the enviable record of having accompanied on the Veena almost all the Bharatha Natyam Arangetrams here in Sydney, over the past five years. She has also been an accompanist for many full-length dance-dramas produced by different dance institutions in Sydney.