Meet Our Faculty
Smt. Keetha Mohan and Smt. Sashi AravinthInstructors and Academy DirectorsCO-FOUNDERS AND ARTISTIC DIRECTORS OF ARUNODHAYA DANCE ACADEMY, MRS. KEETHA MOHAN AND MRS. SASHI ARAVINTH (NÉE SELLATHURAI) ARE LIFELONG STUDENT OF THE CLASSICAL INDIAN DANCE, BHARATHANATYAM. THEIR GURUS INCLUDE SHREE C. S. THOMAS AND SHREEMATI VASUNDHARA THOMAS, TWO OF KALAKSHETRA’S FINEST TEACHERS. IN 2003, SASHI SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THE MONTREAL BASED KALABARATHI’S BHARATHANATYA TEACHER TRAINING COURSE.
GIFTED DANCERS AND CHOREOGRAPHERS, BOTH SISTERS HAVE PERFORMED IN SRI LANKA, CANADA AND THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THEY HAVE MANY AWARDS FOR CHOREOGRAPHY, COSTUME DESIGN, DIRECTION AND PERFORMANCE TO THEIR CREDIT FROM MANY OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS. THEY ALSO HAVE TO THEIR CREDITS A SEMI-CLASSICAL DANCE VIDEO PRODUCTION “DARISHANAM”, AND A SPECTACULAR LIVE STAGE SHOW “RANGEELA”. BOTH KEETHA AND SASHI ARE RECIPIENT OF SEVERAL SPECIAL AWARDS FOR COMMUNITY SERVICE AS AN ARTISTS, TEACHERS AND CHOREOGRAPHERS. KEETHA AND SASHI’S WORK WITH ARUNODHAYA IS AN OUTGROWTH OF THEIR DEDICATION TO THE PRESERVATION AND PERFORMANCE OF THE INDIAN DANCE TRADITION IN ALL ITS MANY FORMS. THEIR TALENTS AS DANCERS, DEVOTION TO BHARATHANATYAM, AMIABLE QUALITIES AND TEACHING ABILITIES HAVE ATTRACTED MANY STUDENTS TO THEM. UNDER THEIR GUIDANCE, ARUNODHAYA'S PERFORMERS EXPLORE THE FULL SPECTRUM OF INDIAN DANCE FROM THE CLASSICAL ELEGANCE OF BHARATHANATYAM, AND COLORFUL EXUBERANCE OF TRADITIONAL FOLK PIECES, TO THE THOROUGHLY CONTEMPORARY EXPRESSION OF MODERN CREATIVE CHOREOGRAPHY. |
Smt. Vasundhara Thomas and Smt. Suhasini ThomasVisiting Instructors and ExaminersWe are honoured to have Smt. Vasundhara Thomas and Smt. Suhasini Thomas from Chennai India as our Visiting Instructors and Examiners. Smt. Vasundhara Thomas is a Retired Faculty member from Kalkshetra and her daughter Smt. Suhasini Thomas is a performing artist and a past faculty and Alumini of Kalakshetra Foundation.
Smt. Kanista SenInstructorSmt. Kanista Senthan has been with Arunodhaya Dance Academy for 18 years learning under the guidance of guru Smt. Sashi Aravinth. She joined the school as an intermediate student having learnt the Kalakshetra style at the age of 12. Now, she is a faculty instructor teaching our junior groups and choreography pieces for our advanced level students. She is devoted to increasing her own interest by e-learning with renowned retired faculty member from Kalakshetra, guru Smt. Vasundhara Thomas. She has gained knowledge and practical experience in the dance form from Smt. Sureka Radhakrishnan mam of Vahini Nirthiyalaya, Smt. Rukmini Vijayakumar akka of LshVa, and Smt. Shruti Gopal akka, Shri Adithya anna, Shri Parshwanath Upadhye anna of Upadhye Dance School. Recently, she successfully completed teaching 10 weeks of Bharatanatyam and Bollywood dance at French4Tots École Montessori. In addition, Kanista is working towards her online Diploma with Alagappa Performing Arts Academy.
She is engaged in community organizations: Gurupeedam, as a Service Lover and Arunodhaya Foundation, as a Board Member. She is the owner and creative director at GP Poetic Events. She has serviced a variety of events in the Greater Toronto Area. She is certified in Event Planning and Coordination through Wedding Planners Institute of Canada. Kanista is also a licensed Paralegal with the Law Society of Ontario. She graduated from Seneca College in 2015. She worked at various firms before making the decision to open her own Event Services Company. We are delighted to see Kanista’s dedication and interest to explore and increase her knowledge in this art form. |
Bollywood Dance Instructor
My name is Sneha Shah and I am the instructor for Bollywood dance.. I am pretty excited to teach you all. I am the disciple of Smt. Radhika shurajit, have learnt Bharatanatyam for 15 years.. I have performed many shows around the world.. Have performed many Bollywood dances as well.. looking forward to meet you all..
