Arangetram Season 2024

Meet the Dancers:

Meera Shreedhar
Saturday, August 10
Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts. Smothers Theatre. Pepperdine Univ.
24255 Pacific Coast Hwy, Malibu, CA 90263
Performance 4:00pm
Followed by dinner
RSVP link

Meera is a junior in high school, and began dancing when she was six years old – marking ten years at Shakti this year! Besides dance, she is an active member of her high school speech and debate team, and loves to read, paint, and spend time with friends and family. Meera is incredibly excited to be performing her arangetram!

Viranshi Vira
Sunday, August 11
Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts
Smothers Theatre. Pepperdine Univ.
24255 Pacific Coast Hwy, Malibu, CA 90263
Reception 2:00pm | Performance 3:00pm
Followed by dinner
RSVP link

Vira is 18 years old and has been dancing for the last 9 years. She recently graduated from Geffen Academy at UCLA and will attend Case Western Reserve University in the fall. She is very excited for her Arangetram!

Amiya Ana Sheth
Saturday, August 17
Glendale Community College Auditorium
1601 E Mountain St., Glendale, CA 91206
Seating 2:30pm
Performance: 3:00pm
Followed by dinner
RSVP link

Amiya Ana Sheth is sixteen years old and began dancing with Shakti at the age of 5. In addition to Bharata Natyam and Bengali folk dances, Amiya also dances competitively in styles including contemporary, ballet, tap, hip hop, and jazz. Amiya is a junior at Burbank High School, where she enjoys engineering and is a member of the robotics team.

Anoushka Sane
Saturday, August 24
Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts. Smothers Theatre. Pepperdine Univ.
24255 Pacific Coast Hwy, Malibu, CA 90263
Reception 2:30pm
Performance 3:00pm
Followed by dinner
RSVP link

Anoushka is 16 years old and is entering her junior year of High School in Seattle. She has been dancing Bharata Natyam for the past 11 years and been with Shakti for the past 4.5 years. Aside from dance Anoushka enjoys Mock Trial, Singing, Swimming, and Art!

Sarayu Snehansh
Saturday, August 31
James R. Armstrong Theatre
3330 Civic Center Dr, Torrance, CA 90503
Seating 3:30pm
Performance 4:00pm
Followed by dinner
RSVP link

Sarayu is a rising junior in high school and has been a part of Shakti for almost 10 years, since she was 7! In addition to dance, she loves music, volleyball, going to the beach, and hanging out with her friends and family. She is excited to continue growing in her dance journey!

Radha Desai
Sunday September 1
James R. Armstrong Theatre
3330 Civic Center Dr, Torrance, CA 90503
Seating 2:30pm
Performance 3:00pm
Followed by dinner
RSVP here

Radha Desai is 19 and has been dancing with Shakti since she was five years old – 14 years! She is going into her second year of Santa Monica College studying psychology. Radha is very excited to share this part of her dance journey with everyone!

Sree Manya Pappu
Sunday September 8
Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts. Smothers Theatre. Pepperdine University
24255 Pacific Coast Hwy, Malibu, CA 90263
Reception 3:00pm
Seating 3:30pm
Performance 4:00pm
Followed by dinner
RSVP link

Manya is 16 years old and has been dancing since she was 6. Outside dance, Manya enjoys traveling, drawing, and catching up on the latest movies. Manya is very excited for her Arangetram!!

“Arangetram”

The word Aranga means raised stage. Etram means climbing. Arangetram means – reaching the stage. It is a rite of passage ceremony where the Guru presents her disciple to the public. After several years of training and preparation students perform a solo dance performance on stage for the public with live music accompaniment by master artists. The Arangetram celebrates a milestone in the students training in the dance and signals the beginning of a new chapter of discovery and deeper engagement in the artform.

Learn More About Arangetram