Company Staff & Dancers – Abhinaya Dance Company of San Jose

Mythili Kumar – Artistic Director

An accomplished artist, Mythili Kumar performed extensively in India before moving to the U.S. in 1978 and founding Abhinaya Dance School in 1980. Her artistic ability and the high quality of her dance choreography have been recognized in the U.S where she has been awarded several Choreographer’s Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts. Mythili has taught at Stanford University and San Jose State University, and currently teaches a fall semester course at University of California at Santa Cruz. In 2002 the Shiva Vishnu Temple of Livermore awarded her the title, ‘Abhinaya Kala Ratna’ for her dedicated service to dance. Bharath Kalachar in Chennai awarded her the title ‘Viswa Kala Bharati’ in 1999. In 2010 she was honored by World Arts West with the Malonga Casquelord Lifetime Achievement Award and received a Sustained Achievement Award from the Bay Area Isadora Duncan Award committee in 2011. Most recently, she received the 2015 Legacy Laureate Award from SVCreates for her sustained dedication to dance.

Photo credit: Viggy Mokkarala

10496261_890094401029888_2510778205825231802_o

Rasika Kumar – Principal Dancer & Choreographer

Rasika Kumar is a Bharatanatyam performer and choreographer, steeped in tradition but with contemporary sensibilities. She studied under her mother Mythili Kumar, Artistic Director of ADC, and other renowned teachers. Since 2005, Rasika has been a soloist, principal dancer, and choreographer for all of ADC’s performance seasons. Her choreography has been featured in the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival and SF WestWave Festival and has earned her an Arts Council of Silicon Valley Performing Arts Fellowship (2008). Rasika’s collaborative rhythmic arrangement with Franco Imperial of San Jose Taiko garnered an Isadora Duncan Award (2011). She won the Lakshmi Viswanathan Award from Sri Krishna Gana Sabha (Chennai, India) for her solo performance in the 2014 season.

Photo credit: Jane Hu (janehu.com)

Malvika Kumar Walia- Principal Dancer, Choreographer & Nattuvangam

Malavika Kumar Walia is the daughter and student of Mythili Kumar. As a senior company dancer, choreographer, and teacher, she has been teaching, dancing and performing nattuvangam for arangetrams, solo recitals of Mythili & Rasika, and for company productions since 2000. In a 2004 performance in Chennai, she was lauded by a critic as ‘the star of the show’ for her ‘precise, well-intoned nattuvangam’. She has performed in many of Abhinaya Dance Company’s productions with key roles and has toured with the company to India and around the U.S.A. She also coaches students towards their Arangetrams (solo debut performances). She has also composed numerous jathis and choreographed items for solo and group performances.

Anjana Dasu
Anjana Dasu has been learning Bharatanatyam under Mythili Kumar for over ten years and performed her Arangetram in 2005. Since then and all through her undergraduate years, she has performed in several Abhinaya productions and toured with the company to New York, New Jersey, Los Angeles, Utah, St. Louis, Boston, and Indianapolis. Additionally she has danced with the company at the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival in 2007, 2008, 2010, and 2011. Critics have praised her as “exquisite” and “a nuanced dancer with glowing stage presence.” She was awarded the first prize in the Papanasam Sivan competition held in 2008, and gave a solo concert under the auspices of Yuva Bharati in February 2009, as well as a very well-received solo performance in Hyderabad in December 2011. In 2009, Anjana presented her own group choreography at the annual Yuva Bharati ‘Kalpana’ concert. She has mentored several students towards their arangetrams.

Vaishali Ramachandran

Vaishali Ramachandran has been a student, performer, and teacher of Bharatanatyam for over 20 years. She began her training at the age of four in Mumbai, then trained for 16 years in Bengaluru with Guru Dr. Padmaja Suresh. She has performed in many major dance festivals in India and USA and is a resident of Fremont California, USA, where she continues to teach and perform. She is currently the Administrative Manager at Abhinaya.

Lakshmi Venkatesan
Lakshmi Venkatesan learned Bharatanatyam for over ten years from Mythili Kumar, and performed her arangetram in 2005. She has participated in several Abhinaya’s dance productions since her arangetram. Some of the notable productions she has danced in, are ‘Rivers- A mystical Journey’, ‘Prithvi-the Earth’ and the 30th anniversary performances in 2010. She has performed for various local community organizations and events, schools, and temples. She has been teaching classes for Abhinaya for over five years and regularly assists with coordinating and leading student performances at local community events.

Gayatri Venkatesan
Gayatri Venkatesan learned Bharatanatyam for over ten years from Mythili Kumar, and performed her arangetram in 2009. She has participated in several Abhinaya’s dance productions since her arangetram, including Nritya Sangati,Natya Samarpan, and Sadhika. She is a student at San Jose State University and has been teaching classes for Abhinaya for over three years.

Pooja Sohoni
Pooja Sohoni (Dancer) trained under Mythili Kumar and performed her arangetram in 2007. She participated in Abhinaya’s 30th anniversary series in 2010. In 2017, she returned to the Bay Area and has performed in productions such as Abhinaya’s ‘Gandhi’ in St. Louis, MO , & San Ramon, CA; ‘Apoorva Katha’ (2017); in the Drive East Festival in New York in 2018 and Many performances in 2019.

Chaitanya Gotur started to learn Bharatanatyam at the age of 7 and completed her Arangetram and Vidwath(Proficiency) in Bengaluru, India from Guru Smt.Radha Sridhar. She is a graded Doordarshan (Television) artist of India. She has performed at many national and international prestigious dance festivals.

Mythili Kumar – Artistic Director

Rasika Kumar – Principal Dancer & Choreographer

Malvika Kumar Walia- Principal Dancer, Choreographer & Nattuvangam

Abhinaya Dance Company

Join Our Mailing List

Connect