Rangashree Dances Of India

When and Where - 9:00 - 10:00 AM Beginners - 10:00 - 11:00 AM Beginners - 11:00 - 12:00 N Intermediate - 12:00 - 1:00 PM Folk Dance - 1:00 - 2:30 PM Advanced - Call for Directions - Duarte, CA 91010

When and Where - 4:00 - 5:30 PM Intermediate - 5:30 - 6:30 PM Beginners - 6:30 - 7:30 PM Intermediate - 9292 Magnolia Ave. Riverside, CA 92503

When and Where - 5:00 - 6:00 PM Beginners - 6:00 - 7:00 PM Intermediate - 7:00 - 8:30 PM Intermediate - 15213 Pioneer Blvd. Norwalk, CA 90650

The first step is to come and see a class. If you're unfamiliar with Bharatanatyam, what you see might not be what you expected. And for children, it helps to know what happens at a class. Sometimes, it's the parents that want to know first hand. To arrange a visit to a class, please contact us.

Classes at other times and locations may be arranged on an individual basis. Private training sessions are always conducted at the Home Studio location. A new location where there are enough students (typically at least fifteen) may be suitable for starting a new weekly session.

We accept children, starting at age five, through adults. There isn't an upper age limit. Students should be physically fit, at least enough to keep up with the rest of the class. Although most of our students are of Indian descent, this is by no means a requirement. Familiarity with Indian culture may make some aspects of the dances, and some of their themes, more familiar, but as long as you're interested and have an open mind, we're happy to have you join. We want to share the enjoyment of India's dance traditions with everyone, and we want to reach outside the Indian community.

Here’s how Paulomi Pandit came to establish Rangashree. Rangashree grew out of Paulomi’s twin interests in folk dance and Bharatanatyam. While she was in third standard (grade), Paulomi started Bharatanatyam lessons at the Darpana Academy in Ahmedabad. She transferred to the Nrithya Bharati institute during fifth standard, and did her arangetram at the age of fourteen, trained by Elakshi Takhore. After her arangetram, Paulomi continued Bharatanatyam activities, which included studies, performing, and eventually teaching at Nrithya Bharati. She stayed active with Bharatanatyam through high school and college. “Rangashree” is a combination of the word “rang”, which is associated with theater (rang-manch means theater in Sanskrit), and “shree”, which is used for deity. Thus, Rangashree implies a deity of the theater. At the same time, Paulomi had close feelings for the Srirangam temple in Tamil Nadu. Her grandfather adored that temple, and the beautiful story of the Tamil saint Andal took place at Srirangam. Andal’s story is like that of Mirabai in the North. “Rangashree” is also a play on “Srirangam”.Rangashree was registered as a Public Charitable Trust to facilitate charitable activities. These activities include using charitable contributions for scholarships to support students who otherwise couldn’t afford to study dance. Few parents support their children in pursuing the arts; artists often struggle to make ends meet. In India, a charitable trust also can more easily contribute to charitable causes. Rangashree eagerly performs for fundraising events to support worthy charities.

Bharatanatyam is an art form with considerable depth and scope. One can devote a lifetime to becoming expert at it. It is rare that students in the West have such time to dedicate to learning the arts, especially outside a university setting. While it’s possible to learn about Bharatanatyam at some universities, their curricula aren’t designed to create dancers. Rangashree aims to create dancers.

Folk dances are found throughout India, where they are an important part of life. There are folk dances for religious festivals, vocational celebrations, social events, and entertainment. In the U.S., people of Indian descent maintain their traditions of holding folk dances at weddings and festivals. There are also many folk dance competitions during the year, put on by various Indian associations. With all this activity, Indian folk dances are quite alive in the U.S. Learning Indian folk dances brings many opportunities. Most obvious is the opportunity to perform. But there's also the chance to be part of a team or performing group, and the satisfaction of achieving a shared purpose. Or if you're a competetive type, it's an opportunity to join dance contests. Folk dances let you learn more about India's diverse traditions. And if you're artistically inclined, folk dances give you opportunities for creative expression through choreography. Whatever your interest, read on to find out how Rangashree can offer you a first hand experience of Indian folk dances.

Fees for group lessons range from $10 to $15 per class, and are paid monthly in advance. They vary according to our costs at different locations, and other factors like the lengths of the classes. Because some of these factors aren't under our control, the fees are subject to change. For the fees for a specific class session, and for private instruction, please contact us. There are usually four or five classes per month. Months with major holidays may have only three classes, and there's usually a three to four week break during December and January.

Paulomi Pandit is an experienced dancer and choreographer. Her performances include a broad repertoire of Bharatanatyam and folk dance items. She has choreographed a number of prize-winning folk dances, as well as original Bharatanatyam compositions. Because Bharatanatyam originated from South Indian dance traditions, most compositions tend to use music or poetry in South Indian languages, even today. The exception is Sanskrit, which is often used in Bharatanatyam compositions. Paulomi has created a number of items using North Indian lyrics, from Gujarati and Hindi poetry. With Bharatanatyam now the most widespread and dominant of the classical Indian dances, composing in familiar languages helps audiences appreciate the dance items. It also helps dancers, who can better express themes when they have a feel for the language. Traditional folk dances can be extended to theme-based compositions, and to use recent poetry and music. When this is done with the original form and movements of the dance, the style of the dance carries through to the theme.

Both Bharatanatyam and folk dances require specific costumes that aren't readily available in the U.S. Having helped many dancers obtain the practice clothing, dance costumes, costume jewellery, and other accessories they need, we can provide our experience to help you. We have a selection of various dance costumes available for rent.