Uplift & Celebration
WONDERFUL INDIA FESTIVAL
WEEK ONE: April 4 – 7, 2024
Experience the uplift of community celebration through the auspicious launch of the festival on opening weekend.
Featuring gallery opening and reception, an evening of satsang, and presentations and performances by community leaders and groups.
Friday, April 5, 2024
5pm to 8pm, Community Hall
Opening Night Reception
Be among the first guests to enjoy the gallery at Wonderful India Festival, a month-long exhibition and celebration of the artistic and cultural wonders of India through art, music, dance, and cultural performances.
Join us opening night and allow yourself to be captivated by artwork from local visual artists and performances by individual dancers and groups showcasing India’s artistic and cultural traditions. Light refreshments will be provided.
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RSVP required to attend, with a pay-what-you-can suggested donation of $10 per person.
Venue Details: 3806 Cherrywood Rd, Austin, TX 78722
Parking: Free parking available streetside and in Maplewood Elementary School lot at 3809 Maplewood Ave.
6pm to 7pm, Gallery Hall
Sreeram Venkat, Vocalist
Carnatic Classical Concert
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Sreeram Venkat has been learning Carnatic Music since the age of 5. He started learning from Smt. Shyamala Krishna in Kansas and later was under the tutelage of Smt. Geetha Ganesh in Cary, Sri Malladi Suribabu, and Smt. Malladi Vasavi in India. Currently, he is learning from Sri. Madurai R. Sundar in Detroit. He has given concerts and lecture-demonstrations throughout the USA and in India during the December Music Season. Sreeram graduated from NC State with degrees in Physics and Applied Mathematics. He is now doing his PhD at UT Austin in Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics.
Shwetha Ramachandran has been under Vidushi Dr. R Hemalatha’s tutelage since 2009. She is also a Carnatic vocalist and is a student of Vidwan N Vijay Siva. She has performed in venues across Chennai, and has won prizes in competitions conducted by various sabhas. She is currently a software engineer at NXP Semiconductors in Austin.
Krish Mohan is an eighth grader in Cedar Valley Middle School. He has been learning Mridangam under the tutelage of Dr. Ravi Balasubramanian who is a renowned Ghatam artist. Krish did his mridangam arangetram accompanying Sai Sisters (Kiran and Nivi). Krish has performed at several events at Portland, Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio. He has participated and won prizes in music competitions conducted by prestigious organizations.
7pm to 8pm, Gallery Hall
Indian Dance Performances
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About the Performers
Natyalaya School of Dance
Students from Natyalaya School of Dance, Hema Ramaswamy, Sangeetha Shanmugam, and Kanmoni Prijoe, have been undergoing training under Guru Gayathri Iyer and mentoring under Guru Vineetha Subramanian. Hema, Sangeetha, and Kanmoni successfully completed the Bharatanatyam Margam (dance curriculum) in 2022. They have been performing in various events in and around Austin, and they are now preparing for their Arangetram later this summer.
Narthana
Sandhya and Praveena of Narthana have been performing mohiniyattam together for several years now. Mohiniyattam is an Indian classical dance form originating from the state of Kerala in southern India. This dance form projects the essence of feminine grace as lasya, through delicate footsteps, undulating body movements, and subtle yet poignant facial expressions. For Sandhya and Praveena, dance is an art of mindfulness, letting the body lead the way as move through the world one step at a time.
Devi School of Dance
Saturday, April 6, 2024
12:30p to 1:30p, COMMUNITY HALL
Visual Arts Workshop
The Exquisite Tradition of Warli Art
Warli art is renowned for both for its simplicity and profound storytelling capabilities. Utilizing basic geometric shapes such as circles, triangles, and squares, Warli artists intricately weave narratives of rural life, spirituality, and community bonds onto canvas. The minimalist style, characterized by white motifs on a mud or charcoal background, imparts a timeless elegance to each creation.
In this workshop, Sowmya will demonstrate the foundational elements of Warli art and lead attendees through a hands-on step-by-step process to create their Warli art piece that they can take home with them. No previous arts experience is required to participate. This is an all-ages, family-friendly workshop for all levels of experiences and abilities.
Limited tickets are available.
RSVP required to attend, with a suggested pay-what-you-can donation of $12 per person.
Please reserve free tickets for community members who cannot afford to attend otherwise.
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2P TO 3P, COMMUNITY HALL
Music Lecture-Demo
Exploring Mathematics in Carnatic Music
Mathematics plays a key role in several of the improvisational schemes used in Carnatic music. Many compositions also have complex mathematical components in their structure, and Carnatic percussionists use a plethora of mathematical patterns while accompanying or playing solo.
In this engaging presentation, Sreeram Venkat will introduce foundational elements of Carnatic music (raga, tala) and describe how mathematical patterns can be used when improvising in a song. He will address how basic mathematical concepts (for example, modular arithmetic) relate to Carnatic music and demonstrate each of the concepts through live musical examples with his accompanists.
Limited tickets are available.
RSVP required to attend, with a suggested pay-what-you-can donation of $12 per person.
Please reserve free tickets for community members who cannot afford to attend otherwise.
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Sreeram Venkat has been learning Carnatic Music since the age of 5. He started learning from Smt. Shyamala Krishna in Kansas and later was under the tutelage of Smt. Geetha Ganesh in Cary, Sri Malladi Suribabu, and Smt. Malladi Vasavi in India. Currently, he is learning from Sri. Madurai R. Sundar in Detroit. He has given concerts and lecture-demonstrations throughout the USA and in India during the December Music Season. Sreeram graduated from NC State with degrees in Physics and Applied Mathematics. He is now doing his PhD at UT Austin in Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics.
Accompanying Artists
Sreeram will be accompanied by mridangam artist Krish Mohan and violinist Vedavarshini Raghavan.
Krish Mohan is an eighth grader in Cedar Valley Middle School. He has been learning Mridangam under the tutelage of Dr. Ravi Balasubramanian who is a renowned Ghatam artist. Krish did his mridangam arangetram accompanying Sai Sisters (Kiran and Nivi). Krish has performed at several events at Portland, Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio. He has participated and won prizes in music competitions conducted by prestigious organizations.
Vedavarshini Raghavan began learning Carnatic violin at the age of ten from her guru Sri Kalyan Gopalakrishnan, coming in the Lalgudi bANi, and Carnatic vocal music since the age of eight from her guru Smt. Kamakshi Kalyanasundaram. She also played western flute for her school band. She has won many prizes in competitions from established organizations in the U.S. Veda was blessed to perform her first concert accompanying her guru Smt. Kamakshi Kalyanasundaram, and she has performed in various festivals and events. She is currently a graduating senior at the University of Texas at Austin majoring in Biochemistry.
4pm to 8pm, GALLERY Hall
Open Gallery Hours
Be among the first guests to enjoy the gallery at Wonderful India Festival, a month-long exhibition and celebration of the artistic and cultural wonders of India through art, music, dance, and cultural performances.
Join us opening weekend and allow yourself to be captivated by artwork from local visual artists and performances by dancers and groups showcasing India’s artistic and cultural traditions. Stay for the evening satsan session that begins at 6pm!
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RSVP required to attend, with a pay-what-you-can suggested donation.
Venue Details: 3806 Cherrywood Rd, Austin, TX 78722
Parking: Free parking available streetside and in Maplewood Elementary School lot at 3809 Maplewood Ave.
4pm to 5:30pm, Gallery Hall
Bharatanatyam Showcase
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About the Performers
Akshainie Kamma
Akshainie Kamma has been training as a Bharatnatyam dancer for 11 years now, initially under Smt. Smitha Rajan of Nrityakshetra Temple of Dance in St. Louis, Missouri and currently under Smt. Vinitha Subramanian and Smt. Gayathri Iyer of Natyalaya School of Dance here in Austin, Texas. Some of the dancers who have had the greatest influence on her apart from her gurus are eminent dancers such as Sri Parshwanath Upadhye, Smt. Shruti Gopal, and Kum. Harinie Jeevitha. She has had the opportunity to perform on several stages, including for VTSeva, IFA, Kala Darpan, as well as various local temples, and will be completing her Bharatanatyam Arangetram this summer.
Shanmugapriya Murugakathiresan
Shanmugapriya Murugakathiresan is a technical lead at an MNC who continues to pursue her passion for classical dance. She commenced her journey in Bharathanatyam at the tender age of four under the able guidance of Guru. Smt. Ramalakshmi Elango and Guru. Smt. Roopashree Aravind. She has completed a course on Natyashastra and Karanas under the mentorship of Guru. Vithya Arasu. She has been learning Odissi from Guru. Smt Barnalee Sarkar for four years now. She has performed at various prestigious temples and shows in India and the USA. She has been a part of many dance productions in India and the USA and also staged two of her own productions, “Mayurika-The Tales of a Mystic Bird” a presentation with her friend, and “Skandhayah”, a solo presentation.
Sumangala Varun
Sumangala Varun is a Bharatanatyam dancer. She has trained under her Guru Smt. Rekha Dinesh for the last fifteen years and has been performing as a soloist for the last eleven years. She holds the Visharad degree from the Gandharva board and a master’s degree in Bharatanatyam from Jain University. She is a graded artist with Doordarshan. She has attended workshops of senior dancers including Guru Bragha Bessel, Guru Shankar Kandaswamy, Dr. CV and Jaya Chandrashekar among others. Having recently moved to the US, she has performed at several prestigious events in Austin, Houston, and Los Angeles.
Sinchana Hebbar
Sinchana Hebbar is a trained bharatanatyam dancer with over 10 years of experience under the tutelage of prolific Gurus. From a young age, her first Guru, Smt Shubangini Sudheendra, gave her wonderful opportunities to perform at various prestigious platforms including Doordarshan, Tirupati Brahmotsavam, Mantralaya Aradhana, Delhi Cultural Fest. When she became older and started performing more frequently, she met her mentor and inspiration Smt Rukmini Vijaykumar, who extended Bharatanatyam sessions into strength training and Yoga Practice. Sinchana relocated to the U.S. in 2022 and has continued her training online. She has performed at several high profile events in Austin and San Francisco, including Navika Kanna World Summit 2023 and Marghazi.
Pavithram Dance School
Pavithram Dance School is one of the premier institutions for learning the divine Indian classical dance form of Bharatanatyam in Austin, Texas. Smt. Pavithra Ramadoss is the founder and director of Pavithram Dance School in Austin, Texas. Having been initiated into Bharathanatyam at the age of four under Guru Smt. Nalini Balakrishnan, she performed her arangetram under the guidance of Guru Priyadarshini Ramchand, a senior disciple of Smt. Chitra Visweswaran. Pavithram Dance School’s performances are highly lauded for their emphasis on Abhinaya and beautiful Sancharis, particularly in the Varnam. Pavithra has several arangetrams to her credit and under her able guidance, Pavithram Dance School has blossomed into a highly sought-after institution for learning Bharathanatyam.
6pm to 8pm, Gallery Hall
Evening of Satsang
On this special Saturday evening, gather with other community members in an uplifting and auspicious evening of group kirtan singing in celebration of the festival opening. No prior experience with kirtan is necessary; all are welcome to participate and experience the uplift of this community gathering with singing led by Art of Living Band. Singing will begin around 6pm.
Attendees are encouraged to bring their own yoga mats and/or blankets to experience this event through the traditional practice of sitting on the floor. (We will have a few mats available, and chairs will be available for those who prefer alternative seating.)
RSVP required to attend, with a suggested pay-what-you-can donation of $12 per person.Please reserve free tickets for community members who cannot afford to atend otherwise.
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About the Greater Austin Art of Living Band
The satsang by the Art of Living band is a musical journey into Kirtan music sung primarily in Sanskrit, an ancient language known for its healing vibrations. Art of Living Band musicians fuse their diverse backgrounds in rock, soul, world and jazz music with their love for meditation and yoga to bring expression to this beautiful form of meditative singing.
The band has performed in several locations in Austin in front of a crowd of hundreds. All band members actively volunteer on community service projects and use their music to help harmonize, heal and uplift the people around them.
The Art of Living band is inspired by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, a renowned spiritual leader and humanitarian whose mission of uniting the world into a stress-free, violence-free family has inspired millions of people worldwide.
The band is composed of
Ganesh Vishnwanathan – Vocals/Guitar,
Yamuna Selvanathan – Vocals,
Niru Rajagopal – Vocals,
Katherine Boswell – Harmonium,
Nitish Mehta – Drums,
Selva Kumaraswamy – Drums.