Who We are

We are storytellers hailing from the land of the oldest oral storytelling tradition - Bharata (India) - the Land of Cultural Heritage. As the author of the great Indian Epic Mahabharatha says - "If you listen carefully, at the end you'll be someone else." Thus is the power of story telling - to entertain while leaving the world with a message.

Based out of Bangalore, South India, our production house - Abhinava Dance Company (ADC) stands as one of the premier dance companies in the country. ABHINAVA means "Classical and all-time-new" and as founders our attempt is to create unique performances that reach out to a global audience.

Our body of work is based on techniques derived from Natyashastra - A 5000-year-old classical text on dramaturgy. Our performances also bring a fresh flavour to story telling by encompassing dance movements, expression, oratory skills and rich music, which render to our creative presentation style.

Over the last twenty five years, our efforts to showcase the spectrum of Indian dance forms in all its grandeur to people across different cultures has garnered admiration from over 6 million people across the world.

- Nirupama & Rajendra

Our Core Elements:

Focusing on core elements - content, style, performance and feedback, our Dance Company brings forth a unique spectacle for its audience through each of its productions resulting in an experience that is enriching, visually breathtaking and rooted in culture and tradition.

CONTENT - Our poetic performances weave together traditional tales, mythology and memoirs showcased through dynamic movements and expressions resulting in a warm and animated performance that will leave you enamoured.

STYLE - Our style is a rare blend of music, hand gestures, key poses and graceful movements from regional dance styles – Kathak and Bharathanatyam. It also includes special vocabularies from the Natya tradition fuelling interpretations that are deep yet appealing. It is reflective of modern sensibilities and offers an experience of rich celebration to the spectators.

PERFORMANCES - Our stories are conveyed through a multitude of human emotions while imbibing the true essence of the story. Our productions emphasise on bringing together light and sound, costume and ambiance thus creating a theatrical spectacle for the audience. Through this we sincerely attempt to instil harmony within self and the world around while transcending time, space and cultures.

RESPONSE - Our global audience takes back with them a variety of fulfilling experiences, values, and inspiration as they witness the Abhinava magic at various platforms. To savour an Abhinava experience, there are no criteria for age, caste, creed, nationality, language, gender, or a predisposition to classical dance that is required. Our shows are designed to evoke an introspective response in each individual inspiring them through art.

The audience has fuelled our passion for over 25 years and continue to inspire us to bring forth holistic and creative presentations for the world.

The Artistic Directors

Nirupama & Rajendra

Nirupama & Rajendra are one of India's foremost classical dancers, who hail from a family of educationists, artists and Harikatha Vidwans (traditional story tellers).

As founders of ‘Abhinava Dance Company’- one of India’s most popular and cutting-edge production houses recognised worldwide, the duo have been instrumental in introducing a great deal of innovation, creativity, enthusiasm and imagination to the realm of Classical Art. They are not only dancers, but also essay the roles of choreographers, teachers and storytellers. They stand today as the artistic directors of Abhinava Dance Company with a vision of adapting traditional themes to classical media that will reach out to an audience that may or may not have context to traditional dance.

Their performances are based on Indian classical dance perfected over the years from their learning in music, dance, literature and culture from various sources (some that date back to 5000 year old scriptures to 21st century technological innovations). Their cumulative experience and knowledge is applied to provide an immersive art experience for their spectators.

To know more about the duo click here : Nirupama & Rajendra

Advisory Board

Mr. Dhiraj Wali

Vice President - Bosch Group

Mr. Dhiraj Wali is currently the Vice President at Bosch, prior to which, he was the Managing Director of Bosch Chassis Systems India Limited, Pune. After completing his engineering degree in Electronics and Communication from Regional Engineering College, Srinagar, he went on to complete the Executive General Management Programme from IIM, Bangalore. Mr. Wali has over 30 years of work experience to his credit and has been a valuable member of the Advisory Board at Abhinava.

Mr.Shailesh Sheth

International Consultant - Management and Manufacturing Technology

Mr. Shailesh Sheth is an MBA from IIM, Ahmedabad. Having started his career with Guest, Keen and Williams Ltd., he later went on to lead the Perfect Machine Tools (PMT Group). Today he is an Independent Corporate Advisor as well as the Member of the Board of Directors of several renowned companies.

Mr. Sheth’s advisory role encompasses Business Strategy with a strong focus on Manufacturing Competitiveness. He is the Director and Strategy Adviser to Jost’s Engineering Co. Ltd, Mumbai, BFW Ltd., Bangalore, ATE Group, and KNF Pumps, Pune.

Mr. Sheth’s repertoire also includes publishing articles and research papers. He also used to edit a manufacturing technology magazine for Times of India group. He has delivered several keynote speeches including one at the European Manufacturing Summit held in Finland. Mr. Sheth is a pioneer in ‘Leadership Induced Change’ through the famous ‘Vision’ workshops for CEOs’.

Mr. Sheth was the President of the Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association, Chairman of CII’s Capital Goods Committee and the Western Region’s ‘Manufacturing Competitiveness Council’, where he organized three consecutive Manufacturing Summits.

Mr.Vijayaraghavan

Legal Adviser & Culture Activist

S.Vijayaragavan is a Senior Advocate with over 39 years' practicing in the Madras High court, and other High Courts in Karnataka, Bombay and occasionally at the Supreme Court of India. He is a senior Legal consultant for several Corporates like New Indian Express Group, Times of India, Star Vijay Television , Frost and Sullivan etc.

Regarded also as a strategist, he is sought after by a diverse clientele. He also provides pro bono legalconsultancy services to those in dire need of it. He has been intensively and continuously involved in promoting several artistic endeavors across several art forms including music and dance, both classical and otherwise over the years. His diverse interests and artistic pusuits compelled him to hold regular concerts/events at his residence besides conducting them in other institutions.

He was responsible for a very grand celebration of The GNB centenary in 2010 along with N.Murali of The Music Academy and R.Krishnaswamy of Naradha Gana Sabha featuring artistes of the calibre of N.Ramani, Hari prasad Chaurasiya, Sudha Raghunathan, T.N. Seshagopalan, Aruna Sairam and others with eminent personalities such as Dr. Karan Singh, The Gaekwad of Baroda, The Maharaja of Travancore, The Maharana of Udaipur and The Princess of Mysore presiding over the events on various dates. He is a founding member of the British Business Group at Chennai. He has been for several years a Management Committee Member of The Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda College for several years.

Shathavadhani Dr. R.Ganesh

Poet & Scholar

For almost 3 decades Dr.Ganesh has been the Chief mentor and a pillar of strength for Abhinava. The name “ Abhinava “ was suggested by Dr.Ganesh to guide the company towards creating novelty in all its artist endeavors. He has provided literary research materials for numerous productions of Abhinava dance Company. Dr.Ganesh has conducted a special study course in all major Sanskrit works including Natyashstra and Kalidasa’s major works .

Śatāvadhāni Dr. R Ganesh is a poet par excellence and a scholar of Indian arts and aesthetics. He is a practitioner of the uniquely Indian art form - Avadhāna which requires great spontaneous creativity, word power and scholarly wisdom. He has performed over 1000 aṣṭāvadhānaṃs and 5 Śatāvadhānams in Sanskrit, Kannada and Telugu. He is a polygot, well versed in 16 languages including Greek, Latin and Italian. His contributions to the field of music, dance, painting and sculpture are also enormous.
His deep rooted knowledge of Indian philosophy and various art forms, introspective wisdom of the past and current affairs, creativity expressed in extempore poetry and his inherent wit makes Summer School a rare opportunity for learning.

Besides degrees in Mechanical Engineering, Material Science and Metallurgy and Sanskrit, he was awarded the D.Litt for his thesis on the Art of Avadhāna by the Hampi University, Karnataka.

Our Team