Our Faculty
Vrinda Sunil
Sharmila Jothirajah
Sharmila Jothirajah
Meet Vrinda!
Natyalaya School of Arts was founded by Vrinda Sunil in 2006 in Carmel, Indiana. Vrinda teaches Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music from RLV College of Fine Arts in Kerala.
She began learning Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam at the age of four and trained in both art forms for more than 14 year
Meet Vrinda!
Natyalaya School of Arts was founded by Vrinda Sunil in 2006 in Carmel, Indiana. Vrinda teaches Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music from RLV College of Fine Arts in Kerala.
She began learning Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam at the age of four and trained in both art forms for more than 14 years. Vrinda’s Bharatanatyam guru was Smt. Kalamandalam Kala Vijayan. Her Mohiniyattam guru was one of the founders of Mohiniyattam, the late Smt. Kalamandalam Kalyani Kutty Amma, along with her granddaughters Smt. Smitha Rajan and Smt. Sandhya Rajan.
Sharmila Jothirajah
Sharmila Jothirajah
Sharmila Jothirajah
Meet Sharmila!
Sharmila Jothirajah has been learning Bharatanatyam for over 10 years and has been a student at Natyalaya School of Arts since 2012. She has been teaching at Natyalaya for the past three years and is passionate about sharing her knowledge and love of dance with her students. She has choreographed and coordinated dance perf
Meet Sharmila!
Sharmila Jothirajah has been learning Bharatanatyam for over 10 years and has been a student at Natyalaya School of Arts since 2012. She has been teaching at Natyalaya for the past three years and is passionate about sharing her knowledge and love of dance with her students. She has choreographed and coordinated dance performances for numerous events in both Indiana and India. Sharmila has also been part of many Natyalaya School of Arts productions, including Swathi Thirunal and Agni. She currently works at Corteva Agriscience.
Anjali Pillai
Sharmila Jothirajah
Anjali Pillai
Meet Anjali!
Anjali Pillai began her Bharatanatyam training in 2002 at the age of five under Smt. Sunitha Yogananda, learning the Kalakshetra style of the art form. In 2006, she began learning Mohiniyattam at Natyalaya School of Arts, and in 2007, she continued her Bharatanatyam education with Smt. Vrinda Sunil, this time in the Vazhavoor
Meet Anjali!
Anjali Pillai began her Bharatanatyam training in 2002 at the age of five under Smt. Sunitha Yogananda, learning the Kalakshetra style of the art form. In 2006, she began learning Mohiniyattam at Natyalaya School of Arts, and in 2007, she continued her Bharatanatyam education with Smt. Vrinda Sunil, this time in the Vazhavoor style.
In 2011, Anjali began teaching both art forms at Natyalaya to younger students. She has been actively involved in many of Natyalaya School of Arts’ productions, including Swathi Thirunal and Agni. Anjali performed her Arangetram in both Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam on September 21, 2013.
She is also trained in Carnatic music and is currently learning Kuchipudi. Anjali is a graduate of Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI).
Sharanya Chandran
Pranathi Jothirajah
Pranathi Jothirajah
Meet Archana!
Sharanya started learning Bharatanatyam (Pandanallur Style) when she was 5 years old under Guru Late Mrs. Usha Rao. She completed her arangetram at the age of 16. She has done numerous performances under the guidance or Guru Balakrishna Marar, solo and group, including the closing ceremony of the XIX Commonwealth Games host
Meet Archana!
Sharanya started learning Bharatanatyam (Pandanallur Style) when she was 5 years old under Guru Late Mrs. Usha Rao. She completed her arangetram at the age of 16. She has done numerous performances under the guidance or Guru Balakrishna Marar, solo and group, including the closing ceremony of the XIX Commonwealth Games hosted in Delhi, India in 2010.Sharanya is currently studying to be a Certified Public Accountant. In 2019, She is also continuing her Bharatanatyam (Vazhavoor Style) education under the guidance of Guru. Vrinda Sunil at Natyalaya School of Arts. She believes that one never “graduates” from dancing. You are a student for life and Bharatanatyam is a great dance form which keeps you connected to your roots.
Pranathi Jothirajah
Pranathi Jothirajah
Pranathi Jothirajah
Meet Pranathi!
Pranathi has been learning Bharatanatyam since the age of 5 at Natyalaya School of Arts. She has been a part of several productions and stage shows by Natyalaya. She is a passionate Bharatanatyam dancer and a teacher.
Chitra Sunil
Pranathi Jothirajah
Chitra Sunil
Meet Chitra!
Chitra has been learning Bharathanatyam since the age of 4 at Natyalaya School of Arts, and began learning Mohiniyattam at 7 years old. She has been a part of productions by Natyalaya such as Agni and Kannaki. Chitra began teaching Bharatanatyam in the fall of 2018 to younger students and is currently training for her arange
Meet Chitra!
Chitra has been learning Bharathanatyam since the age of 4 at Natyalaya School of Arts, and began learning Mohiniyattam at 7 years old. She has been a part of productions by Natyalaya such as Agni and Kannaki. Chitra began teaching Bharatanatyam in the fall of 2018 to younger students and is currently training for her arangetram in both art forms. She is learning Carnatic music as well. Chitra is currently a student at Carmel High School.
Vineesha Gadde
Vineesha Gadde
Vineesha Gadde
Meet Vineesha!
Vineesha Gadde started her Bharatanatyam journey with Natyalaya School of Arts. She developed a liking for this traditional form of art as a kid and got the opportunity to learn it formally through Natyalaya School of Arts. She loves kids and is excited to be a part of the team to teach and spread this divine form of art to
Meet Vineesha!
Vineesha Gadde started her Bharatanatyam journey with Natyalaya School of Arts. She developed a liking for this traditional form of art as a kid and got the opportunity to learn it formally through Natyalaya School of Arts. She loves kids and is excited to be a part of the team to teach and spread this divine form of art to the little ones. She is an IT professional, lives in Carmel with her husband and two kids.
Anjani Madhan
Vineesha Gadde
Vineesha Gadde
Meet Anjani!
Anjani is a passionate Bharatanatyam dancer and a teacher.