My Compelling Story

Nayantara Parpia is a professional Kathak dancer based out of Pune, Maharashtra. She learned Kathak at the age of seven, under the tutelage of guru Smt Yogini Gandhi, at her institute, Kalanidhi, in Pune. She is now training under the expert maestro, Padma Vibhushan Pandit Birju Maharaj, at Kalashram in New Delhi.  One of the lead dancers in the Kalanidhi troupe, Nayantara has been performing extensively at various concerts, festivals, corporate shows and lecture demonstrations across India. Performances: Sandhana Festival at Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi Pancha Tattva Festival, Mumbai Kalaa Utsavam Indian Dance and Music Festival, Esplanade Theatre, Singapore Nrityanjali, Singapore Indian Fine Arts Society (SIFAS), Singapore Enna Nadakkuthu TV show, Vasantham Channel, Singapore Prayatna Festival, Pune  World Culture Festival, New Delhi Subah-e-Benaras, Varanasi Michael Faraday School, London, UK Swar Sadhana Samiti, Mumbai  South Africa India Tourism Conference – A Collaboration with the Bombay Djembe Folas, Mumbai Nayantara has also performed Kathak in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s epic film ‘Bajirao Mastani’, under the choreographic direction of her guru, Pandit Birju Maharaj. Besides being a performer, Nayantara is a very passionate teacher and has been teaching Kathak for over ten years. After assisting her guru at Kalanidhi for five years, Nayantara went on to start her school for Kathak in Pune in 2009. In 2013, she relocated to Singapore and was based for over two years. There, she began and nurtured the Kathak department in one of the greatest and most prestigious Indian classical dance institutes in Singapore, Apsaras Arts. She has received a diploma with distinction in ‘Nritya Shastra’ (dance theory) from the Nalanda Dance Research Centre, Mumbai. Besides dance, Nayantara is also very passionate about Indian classical music and is currently undergoing tabla and Hindustani vocal training.  Awards:  Nayantara has been awarded the title of 'Nritya Shree' in 2010 by Utkal Yuva Sanskrutik Sangh at the Cuttack Mahotsav, acknowledged by UNESCO. She has won top prizes at many of All-India classical dance competitions coordinated by Swar Sadhana Samiti, Brahmanaad, and Akhil Bharatiya Sanskrutik Sangh.