Kala Vandanam Dance Company-Meet Suchitra Sairam

Meet Suchitra Sairam

Suchitra Sairam has trained in the Kalakshetra style of Bharatanatyam for over 20 years, and has been principally trained by Padmini Chari, director of the Nritya School of Bharatanatyam in Houston, TX. Suchitra has pursued advanced training in Bharatanatyam and nattuvangam under the renowned couple Sri M.V. Narasimhachari and Smt. M. Vasanthalakshmi of Chennai, India since 1993. She has also had the privilege of intensive training under other great masters of the Kalakshetra tradition, Padma Bhushan awardees The Dhananjayans and Sri Adyar K. Lakshman, all of whom have been great inspirations to her as a student, teacher and arts presenter. Suchitra founded Kala Vandanam Dance Company in 2003 in St. Paul, MN with the vision of creating and presenting Bharatanatyam works that celebrate the ancient tradition while embracing our changing world. Through Kala Vandanam, she also teaches a small group of students, and is an emerging Indian arts presenter in the Twin Cities

Suchitra has performed extensively as a soloist, and a lead dancer in several of Nritya's productions, including her performance as the kurathi (gypsy) in Nritya's 2006 presentation of Varunapuri Kuravanji, received with critical acclaim. To mark the 20th anniversary of her Arangetram, Suchitra presented "Dakshina - An Offering" in 2009, through which she raised over $6000 for the Bexar County Family Justice Center in San Antonio, TX. She has also performed as a guest artist in productions by Madhusri Sethuraman (Navarasa) and Monica Cooley (Megha Sandesha and Subhaashitam), and was a cast member, dance captain and associate choreographer of Zaraawar Mistry's theater adaptation of Haroun and the Sea of Stories, staged in Minneapolis in 2000. As a choreographer, she staged her first full-length work, Love Lyrics, in 2004 at the Minnesota Fringe Festival, which included the debut of several original group and solo choreographies. Suchitra also performs nattuvangam, having accompanied soloists and dance companies.

Suchitra holds a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from MIT, and an MBA from the University of Texas-Dallas. She currently is a part of the executive team at Ergotron Inc. in St. Paul, MN. She served on the Board of Directors for the Center for Independent Artists in Minneapolis for over 6 years, including 5 years as Chair. She also volunteers her time for Twin Cities arts groups and organizations supporting women's professional development.




Meet Suchitra Sairam Suchitra Sairam has trained in the Kalakshetra style of Bharatanatyam for over 20 years, and has been principally trained by Padmini Chari, director of the Nritya School of Bharatanatyam in Houston, TX. Suchitra has pursued advanced training in Bharatanatyam and nattuvangam under the renowned couple Sri M.V. Narasimhachari and Smt. M. Vasanthalakshmi of Chennai, India since 1993. She has also had the privilege of intensive training under other great masters of the Kalakshetra tradition, Padma Bhushan awardees The Dhananjayans and Sri Adyar K. Lakshman, all of whom have been great inspirations to her as a student, teacher and arts presenter. Suchitra founded Kala Vandanam Dance Company in 2003 in St. Paul, MN with the vision of creating and presenting Bharatanatyam works that celebrate the ancient tradition while embracing our changing world. Through Kala Vandanam, she also teaches a small group of students, and is an emerging Indian arts presenter in the Twin Cities Suchitra has performed extensively as a soloist, and a lead dancer in several of Nritya's productions, including her performance as the kurathi (gypsy) in Nritya's 2006 presentation of Varunapuri Kuravanji, received with critical acclaim. To mark the 20th anniversary of her Arangetram, Suchitra presented "Dakshina - An Offering" in 2009, through which she raised over $6000 for the Bexar County Family Justice Center in San Antonio, TX. She has also performed as a guest artist in productions by Madhusri Sethuraman (Navarasa) and Monica Cooley (Megha Sandesha and Subhaashitam), and was a cast member, dance captain and associate choreographer of Zaraawar Mistry's theater adaptation of Haroun and the Sea of Stories, staged in Minneapolis in 2000. As a choreographer, she staged her first full-length work, Love Lyrics, in 2004 at the Minnesota Fringe Festival, which included the debut of several original group and solo choreographies. Suchitra also performs nattuvangam, having accompanied soloists and dance companies. Suchitra holds a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from MIT, and an MBA from the University of Texas-Dallas. She currently is a part of the executive team at Ergotron Inc. in St. Paul, MN. She served on the Board of Directors for the Center for Independent Artists in Minneapolis for over 6 years, including 5 years as Chair. She also volunteers her time for Twin Cities arts groups and organizations supporting women's professional development.
Copyright 2010