Vanaja Dasika

Artist Name: Vanaja Dasika

Place: Canberra, Australia

School/Organization:

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Email : vanaja716@yahoo.com

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Profile & Pictures posted with permissions from the artist.

Vanaja Dasika is an accomplished Indian classical dance instructor, performer, choreographer and vocalist. She is the second daughter of Dasika Jagannadha Rao and Dasika Savithri.She is the niece of Padmabhushan Dr.Vempati Chinna Satyam, who hails from the village Kuchipudi where this classical dance form was initially established and propagated. In 2001 she completed her Masters degree in Music from Madras University, India, where she did a thesis on music in the Kuchipudi dance form. She also holds a Bachelor's degree in Economics from Madras University, India 1994.

Vanaja has a multifaceted involvement in fine-arts. She received vigorous vocal training since 1995 from Guru Bhagavatula Sitarama Sarma at Kala Peetham, Chennai, India. She also conducts vocal music lessons for many aspiring students. She has been the main vocalist for most of Kuchipudi Art Academy's dance concerts that are presented all over India. As a freelance vocalist, Vanaja has also provided vocal support for Bharatanatyam dance performance held in Singapore and USA for the students of Kalapeetham, music and dance institute which is established in Chennai, India and has branches in Singapore and USA.

Vanaja as a freelance vocalist has done recording projects for Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam and Lakuma Swantham organized by Alekya Punjala (Hyderabad India). As a lead vocalist she has performed in all major choreographies of Dr. Vempati Chinna Satyam for the Kuchipudi Art Academy, Chennai, India. She provided vocal support for Kuchipudi artists at the Konark dance festival 2002 and Khajuraho dance festival 2003 in India.

She started her career as an instructor at the Kuchipudi Art Academy, Chennai in 1998. Vanaja offers workshops as well as sessions with her unique style of creative teaching technique, insights into music, choreography and dance technique. Vanaja worked as an assistant instructor at the workshops held in Trissur, Kerala, India 2006 and Shornur, Kerala, India 2007. She has also conducted many ballet  rehearsals at the Kuchipudi Art Academy, Chennai. Vanaja has conducted many dance workshops for Sivam Inc. USA since 2007 and summer workshop 2009 for Kuchipudi Dance Academy USA

Applying her skills at dance choreography, Vanaja has to her credit many solo dances that were performed in Mumbai. She also choreographed dance to the compositions of Samavedam Shunmukha Sarma called Sivapadam. All of these received numerous accolades.

Known for her unique style Vanaja has to her merit many successful Kuchipudi dance dramas and vocal concerts. She began dance training at very young age and has been undergoing intensive training in Kuchipudi style of dance under the direct tutelage of Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam at the Kuchipudi Art Academy.

As a performer, Vanaja has toured all over the world with the troupes of Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam. She donned key roles in these dance dramas and ballets.

One of the dance dramas she performed during a US tour was at the Kennedy Center, Washington DC. She has participated in major dance festivals in India namely, Music Academy, Chennai; Kuchipudi Mahotsav, Mumbai 1993, 1994; Siddhendra yogi Mahotsav, Kuchipudi 2006, 2007 and Jala Vihar Festival, Department of Culture, Hyderabad 2005; Sangeet Natak Academy, Bombay; Chidambaram, Tamilnadu 2006; Surya Festival, Trivendrum.

Vanaja also performed in the prestigious Paris Quartier D'ete festival in 2001, the Indo-Australian convention at Chennai, India in 2003 and the Swathi Tirunal Festival, Trivendrum in 2008

Vanaja aspires to establish an institution for learning Kuchipudi dance and Karnatic vocal music. She intends to teach aspiring students by

1. Conducting workshops and regular lessons in dance and music.

2. Offer lessons in theory of dance based on the Natya Shastra, Abhinaya Darpanam and other texts.

3. Offer lessons on makeup for dance

4. As a freelance vocalist provide vocal support to dancers performing in the Kuchipudi as well as Bharatanatyam styles.

5. Perform in various dance and music performances and festivals.

6. Create own music albums and also provide vocal support for various recording projects

Fine arts like dance and music are interrelated. A student who is interested in learning dance should also gain knowledge in music. This will help him/her to better understand and enjoy the emotion and rhythm in the dance through the melody and tempo of music. The knowledge of the theory of dance and music will enable the student to understand the dance style and choreograph music and dance in future and take them to an advanced level.