SHALINI PARTHIBAN
Shalini born in Sydney started learning Bharatha Natyam in 1998 at the age of five under the tutelage of Smt.Dhamayanthi Balaraju, completing her Arangetram in 2007. To further develop her commitment to her cultural heritage she undertook classes with the renowned dancing couple the Dhananjayans in Chennai between the years 2008-2009. 2010 saw Shalini join the Lingalayam Dance Academy, and she has never looked back. Shalini’s love for the classical Indian dance form Bharatha Natyam is innate, and at Lingalayam she found her niche and thrived on the healthy camaraderie that existed within the Academy. The complexity of the choreographic vocabulary even for the Academy productions challenged Shalini, but it was a challenge she undertook with discipline and a commitment to an art form she greatly respects. Shalini’s initial debut with the Company was in 2015 when she performed in Lingalayam’s collaboration with Apsara Arts Singapore in Dances of Divinity. 2016 saw her join the cast of Chi Udaka, Lingalayam’s ongoing collaboration with Taikoz on its International Tour to India. She was one of three Dancers who performed in the Virtual Reality work undertaken with CuriousWorks for their production of Laka in 2018. Shalini also takes class for the youngest generation of the Academy students. The diversity of the choreography Shalini has imbibed over the past few years, has seen her blossom into a dancer that delivers unquestioningly on the dance form she reveres.