]

] Prateeksha Kashi is an Indian

Kuchipudi Kuchipudi () ( Telugu: ) is one of the eight major Indian classical dances. It originates from a village named Kuchipudi in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi is a dance-drama performance, with its roots in the ancient Hindu Sa ...

dancer, a classical dance form of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. She is from the family of Dr.

Gubbi Veeranna Gubbi Hampanna Veeranna (1891 – 1972) was an Indian theatre director. He was one of the pioneers and most prolific contributors to Kannada theatre. He established the drama company, ''Gubbi Sree Channabasaveshwara Nataka Company'', which play ...

and was initiated to dance at the age of five. Ever since she has been trained in Kuchipudi, under the guidance of her mother and Guru Smt.

Vyjayanthi Kashi Vyjayanthi Kashi is an Indian classical dancer, a kuchipudi exponent. She is from the family of Dr Gubbi Veeranna who was an Indian theatre director, one of the pioneers and most prolific contributors to Kannada theatre. Vyjayanthi Kashi is a re ...

, who is a noted kuchipudi dancer, a celebrated performer and choreographer, and artistic director of the

Shambhavi School of Dance Shambhavi School of Dance was established in 1993 in Kengeri, Bangalore, Karnataka, India as a Gurukul for the study and practice of Indian classical dance and music. The Artistic Director of this school is Smt.Vyjayanthi Kashi who is an expon ...

. Vyjayanthi Kashi is also the present chairperson of Karnataka Sangeetha Nritya Academy. Kashi earned her

Computer Science Engineer Software engineering is a systematic engineering approach to software development. A software engineer is a person who applies the principles of software engineering to design, develop, maintain, test, and evaluate computer software. The term ''p ...

degree from

BMS College of Engineering B.M.S. College of Engineering or Bhusanayana Mukundadas Sreenivasaiah College of Engineering (BMSCE) is a private engineering college in Basavanagudi, Bangalore, India. It was started in 1946 by Bhusanayana Mukundadas Sreenivasaiah and is ru ...

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

. With a keen interest in spreading Kuchipudi and to inspire the youth towards it, she teaches aspiring dancers in Bangalore. In an interview to KnowYourStar, Prateeksha Kashi was quoted saying how technology has benefited the art-"In a way the tech side of me is still very relevant and comes a long way in my career as a dancer. I feel it is very important to be tech savvy and leverage the potential that technology offers; may it be to reach out wider, learn, or even implement ideas to enhance the quality of performance in terms of music, lighting, media and more. Tech revolution in India has always favoured art!".

Life and career

Prateeksha Kashi, was born in

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

to an artistic family. She is the daughter of the Kuchipudi dancer, Vyjayanthi Kashi. and Vijaya Kashi, who is a television and theatre artist. As a child, it is said that Kashi sang and danced the whole of the dance drama ''AMBE'' from the ''

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...

'' when she was just three years old. In fact, her stage debut at the age of five occurred when she ran onto the stage when her mother was performing at the Ramana Maharshi's Institute and started dancing in synchrony with the senior dancers of Shambhavi School of Dance next to whom she was only knee high. Since then, she has been trained in Kuchipudi under the guidance of her mother and Guru Smt. Vyjayanthi Kashi. At the age of thirteen, Prateeksha topped the state in the Kuchipudi dance exams with a distinction. Prateeksha Kashi Excelled in her studies as well. She got a gold medal for securing top rank in computer science in her Engineering College. Prateeksha Kashi did her Rangapooja on 20 February 2009, and since then she has been recognized as the "Rising Star". Prateeksha Kashi2

]

Notable performances

Prateeksha Kashi performed in many Indian dance festivals including * Unbound Beats of India-New Delhi * Ananya-New Delhi * Rain Drops -Mumbai * Jayasmriti-Mumbai * Ankur Utsav-Kolkatta * Dover's Lane-Kolkatta * Konark Utsav-Orissa * Devdasi-Orissa * Natarani-Ahmedabad * Dharani Utsav-Cochin * Kinkini Mahotsav-Bangalore Prateeksha kashi

* Mysore Dasara Utsav-Mysore * Antarjatika Nrutya Sangeet Samaroha 2012, Cuttack * Prativa Festival, Kolkata * Tanisha Yuva Utsav, Kuchipudi, Andhra Pradesh * MAHA MAAYA, Ravindra Kalakshetra, Bangalore. * Rasa Sanje, ADA Rangamandira, Bangalore * Nrityabharath Dance Festival, Ravindra Kalakshetra, Bangalore * Kalabharathi National Young Dance Fest 2013, Thrissur, Kerala * World Dance Day 2013 in Alliance Francaise, Bangalore * World Dance Day 2013 in Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai * Summer Festival 2013, Coonor, Ooty, Tamil Nadu * Kuchipudi Recital in Brihadeeswara Temple 2013, Tanjavur, Tamil Nadu. * Solo Kuchipudi Recital in Veena Sheshanna Bhavana, Mysore * Essence of Life (dance group), Essence of Life in Chowdiah Memorial Hall, Bangalore * Essence of Life (dance group), Essence of Life at

Vivanta by Taj Vivanta is an Indian hotel chain established in September 2010. The brand is a part of the Indian Hotels Company Limited, a subsidiary of the TATA Group The Tata Group () is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. E ...

, Hyderabad. * Natya Mahotsav-Kittappa Pillai Centenary Celebrations, Ravindra Bhavan, Goa * Pallaki Seva Prabandhamu(A Dance Opera), Narada Gana Sabha, Chennai * Annual Dance Festival of Music Academy, Chennai *Nayika-Excellence Personified- A Kuchipudi & Bharathanatyam duet performance by Prateeksha Kashi with

Rukmini Vijayakumar Rukmini Vijayakumar is an Indian dance choreographer, Bharatanatyam dancer, and actress from engaluru . Along with her performances on stage, she has appeared in films such as '' Ananda Thandavam'' (2009), ''Bhajarangi'' (2013), '' Kochadaiyaa ...

* Feel India, a cultural extravaganca, The Ashok Amphitheatre, New Delhi * Natya Vriksha Young Dancers Festival, Natya Vriksha in collaboration with UNESCO, Sangeet Natak Akademi and Ministry of Culture, celebrates World Dance Day * Soorya Music and Dance Festival, Trivandrum, Kerala * Nishagandhi Dance Festival 2016, Trivandrum, Kerala Overseas performances and workshops * US & Canada Tour for Kuchipudi Performances and Workshops * Kuchipudi Faculty at Dance India-Milapfest 2014, Liverpool Hope University, Liverpool * Mahotsav 2014, Bharathiya Vidhya Bhavan, London * Festivals of India 2014 India-China Year of Friendly Exchange, China * Sydney Dance Festival of Indian Classical Dances by Madhuram Academy of Performing Arts & Bharathiya Vidhya Bhavan, Australia. * Dance India 2012 – Milap Festival – UK * 1st International Kannada Convention – USA * Music & Dance Festival - Italy

Major achievements

* Lead the Kuchipudi Dance Group tour to Africa sponsored by ICCR. * One among the 100 Youth Delegates selected by Government of India as a part of India-China Year of Friendly Exchanges 2014 * Grade 'A' Artist of Doordarshan, (Broadcasting Media) Bangalore * 1st Rank in Junior Kuchipudi Dance Examination conducted by (Govt. of Karnataka) * Worked as an assistant tutor at the Milap International Dance Summer School, UK * Participated in the International Kuchipudi Convention, Hyderabad * Played the lead role as Akkamahadevi in the telefilm " Hejje Guruthugalu" * Playing the lead role as Mohini in a Kannada Serial "Kadambari Kanaja" telecasted in Udaya TV * Released a Kuchipudi Dance DVD named "The Magic of Kuchipudi" aiming to spread the dance form widely. * Acted in a Film "Prakruthi" which received NATIONAL AWARD FOR BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Awards and honors

Prateeksha Kashi recently got selected for Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar award by Central Sangeeth Natak Akademi, New Delhi. Prateeksha was honored with Aditya Vikram Birla Kalakiran Puraskar-2014 in the field of dance by the Government of Maharashtra. She was honored with the 37th annual Aryabhata International Award-2011 for excellence in Kuchipudi. She has the titles of Nalanda Nritya Nipuna, instituted by the renowned Nalanda Dance Research Centre and Nritya Jyoti, awarded at the Naveen Kalakar to her credits. Apart from the above-mentioned awards she was the Winner of the Dance competition conducted by Pandit Jasraj's Foundation at New York and also Recipient of the scholarship from the Ministry of Culture, Govt of India Prateeksha kashi Received "Young Dancer" award from Sanjali School of Odissi as a part of PRAVAHA 2013. In 2014, Ms. Kashi Received Kalabharathi National Young Talent Award/Kalabharathi Yuva Nrutha Pratibha Award, Naatyavedha Award 2014 as a part of "Jathis Music and Dance Festival"

Film, television and theatre

Prateeksha Kashi is going to play the female lead role in Priyamanasam, A

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

Movie based on Malayalam Poet

Unnayi Variyar Unnayi Warrier was a poet, writer, scholar, and dramatist who lived in Kerala, India during the 17th/18th century. He is best known for his chef-d'oeuvre ''Nalacharitham'' aattakatha and is known to have made significant contributions to the ar ...

. As per the news it is going to be the third

movie being produced after 22 Years in

. Priyamanasam Movie got the honour to be the inaugural movie in the International Film Festival of India, Goa Prateeksha also has the credit of being featured in many dance productions for the television media and is a graded artist of the Doordarshan Kendra. She is now dancing and playing prominent roles in almost all the dance dramas with her seniors for many national dance festivals. Prateeksha is an empanelled artist of ICCR, Govt. of India. She acted in a Kannada film Prakruthi which won the National Award for Adaptive Screenplay for the year 2013 and also special jury award in the Bangalore International Film Festival-2014 Hailed from such an artistic family prateeksha kashi showed her talent in acting as well. She played the lead role "Mohini" in a Kannada serial named Kaadambari Kanaja which is getting telecasted in Udaya TV(Kannada). She acted in telefilms including Hejjegurthugalu, which features her in the lead role Akkamahadevi. Along with her Mother Vyjayanthi Kashi, she acted in Mathana - a confluence of Drama and Dance, which got good reviews on her acting. Prateeksha Kashi acted in a short film series on social awareness named "Dwar"- Door For Transformation produced by KnowYourStar & Ravin Productions.

Productions

Shambhavi Dance Theatre produced a dance DVD "The Magic of Kuchipudi" featuring Prateeksha Kashi.The dance DVD got released by Padmabhushan Dr.

Yamini Krishnamurthy Mungara Yamini Krishnamurthy (born 20 December 1940) is an Indian dancer of Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi styles of dancing. Early life Yamini Krishnamurthy was born in Madanapalli, Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh. She was brought up in Chidam ...

as a part of "Nayika-Excellence Personified" which is organised on the occasion of Woman's Day on 8 March 2014 in Bharathiya Vidhya Bhavan, Bangalore. The Main Motto of producing this dance DVD is spreading of dance form kuchipudi as a Parampara to the younger generation, says Smt.

, who is the artistic director of Shambhavi. Prateeksha Kashi played the role of Madhavi, a courtesan in dance production "Cilapathikaram" for which she got laurels from critics. " Essence of Life (dance group), Essence of Life" is the brain child of

Dega Deva Kumar Reddy Dega Deva Kumar Reddy is an Indian educationist, film producer, and an entrepreneur. Deva Kumar is an alumnus of Rishi Valley School, a school founded by Jiddu Krishnamurti in Madanapalle, South India. He founded 'Srujana School' and produced ...

, who is a producer of south Indian films and a follower of spiritual teacher

Jiddu Krishnamurti Jiddu Krishnamurti (; 11 May 1895 – 17 February 1986) was a philosopher, speaker and writer. In his early life, he was groomed to be the new World Teacher, an advanced spiritual position in the theosophical tradition, but later rejected thi ...

Garu. In this production they want to spread the teachings of JK through the five different traditional art forms including kuchipudi with other four forms. Prateeksha Kashi has been chosen to choreograph and present the teachings of JK in this multimedia production " Essence of Life (dance group), Essence of Life". She contributed in this creative work by choreographing and performing on a concept "Can We Live Without Problems". She performed recently in Music Academy, Chennai and also in Chowdiah Memorial Hall, Bangalore. Prateeksha Kashi recently gave her performance in Ravindra Bharathi, Hyderabad as a part of Essence of Life (dance group), Essence of Life and DVD's and Audio CD's of this creative project got released. The Magic of Kuchipudi DVD release

Interviews

*Dancing Daughter's - The Tribune India *World Mother's Day Special Interview - Times of India *Dancer Who Loves Acting - The Hindu *Kuchipudi Dancer Wins Birla Award- The New Indian Express *Dancing her Way to Films *Interview with OzIndian TV Show, Sydney, Australia *Interview with KnowYourStar - *Interview with "Deccan Chronicle" - *Interview with "The Hindu" - Bangalore Edition *Interview with "The Hindu" - Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala Edition *Interview with NewIndianExpress *Webindia123 *Manipalblog.com/Virtually There V7

Reviews

Kashi has been discussed in * Inheritors of Tradition - The Hindu * When Nishagandhi Bloomed - The Hindu * Captivating Abhinaya - Times of India * ''The Hindu-Display of skill and aesthetics'' * ''Telegraph India'' * '' Narthaki.com'' * Review - "Kinkini Utsav" * Report - "Perfection redefined" * ''

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

'' - "Immaculate presentation" ** "Feats of grace, skill" * Dance review * Dance review * Dance review * Dance review * Deccan ''Herald'' ** An invocation to the divine. * A Gift worth the waist given by her dancer mother * A Pure Beginning-Sydney Dance Festival

References

External links

* Movies
Prateeksha Kashi Art based Movie "Prakruthi"
Interviews
Interview with Oz Indian TV Show, Sydney, AustraliaInterview with Sdhwaney, Sydney, AustraliaPrateeksha Kashi interview in Essence of Life Press meet BangalorePrateeksha Kashi interview during EOL DVD Launch
The Magic of Kuchipudi- Dance DVD trailer
The Magic of Kuchipudi, Trailer of Dance DVD
Awards
Prateeksha Kashi Receiving Aryabhatta International Award

Prateeksha Kashi Receiving Young Dancer's Award
Serial's & Shortfilms
Prateeksha Kashi in Kaadambari Kanaja Serial, Udaya TV

Aigiri Nandhini Performance in Udaya TV

Western Dance by Prateeksha Kashi

Ms.kashi Kadambari kanaja Team in Super Kutumba

Super Kutumba, Udaya TV

Prateeksha Kashi in Super Kutumba, Udaya TV

Akkamahadevi Hejjeguruthugalu

Dwar-Door for Transformation
Performance videos
Prateeksha Kashi in Essence of Life Press meet in Tajvivanta, HyderabadPress meet of EOL team in Bangalore

Essence of Life DVD Launch

Kalabharathi National Young Dance Fest 2013, Thrissur, Kerala

Rasa Sanje, ADA Rangamandira, Bangalore

MAHA MAAYA, Ravindra Kalakshetra, Bangalore

Tanisha Dance Festival,Kuchipudi Village, Andhrapradesh

Nrityabharath Dance Festival,Ravindra Kalakshetra, Bangalore

Music & Dance Feastival

Kuchipudi Sambrama, Bangalore

Bangalore Habba, Bangalore

Kuchipudi Vaibhavam, Indiranagar Sangeetha Sabha, Bangalore

Kuchipudi Recital, Natarani, Ahmedabad

Ankur Dance Festival, Kolkata

Kuchipudi Recital, Bangalore
Dance Workshops
Kuchipudi Recital, New York

Workshop & performance in Italy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kashi, Prateeksha Kuchipudi exponents Year of birth missing (living people) Artists from Bangalore Living people Indian female classical dancers Performers of Indian classical dance Indian television actresses Actresses from Bangalore Dancers from Karnataka 20th-century Indian dancers 20th-century Indian women artists Women artists from Karnataka