The art of Kathak is one of the eight major classical Indian dance styles, with its origins traditionally attributed to the traveling bards of ancient Northern India called Kathakars, or "storytellers." Today, we still tell their stories through the subtle art of Kathak dancing. This eight-week course will focus on a variety of aspects of Kathak dancing, teaching the student about the nuances of footwork, hand gestures, essential postures. The enrolled student will learn facial expressions which in turn help in developing the thought process for choreography.

This beginner course by Shruti Patki will also introduce the students to basic taalas, which is a form of rhythmic beat or measure of time made by clapping or the use of cymbals or other percussion instruments. They will also be taught about basic abhinaya, the art of expression through the face and the body to further engage with an audience to provoke a particular feeling in them. Students will get acquainted with the language of Kathak, tabla, pakhawaj, etc.

About Ms. Shruti Patki: With over ten years of experience, Ms. Shruti Patki trained in the Banaras and Lucknow gharana styles for 19 years under reputed Kathak Danseuse & Guru Mrs. Shambhavi Dandekar and Guru Pta. Maneesha Sathe from Pune. Currently, she is learning the Jaipur gharana style under Guru Pt. Rajendra Gangani ji. Training for the past 22 years, she is also a visiting Faculty at Lalit Kala Kendra (Gurukul) Savitribai Phule Pune University.

Shruti has proven her passion many times over. She was recently presented with the Navonmesh Nritya Sadhana Puraskar by Dr. Sujata Natu and Ganawardhan in July 2019. She has also won a variety of district, state, and national level competitions. She was awarded the Rabindra Puraskar in 2015 and the Gold Medal in Masters in Performing Arts in Kathak 2014. She has also secured the First Rank all over India in the postgraduate level Nritya Alankar examination conducted by Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, Mumbai in 2012.