Evangeline Alva began her dance career as a trained ballroom dancer, specializing in Latin Ballroom, but since then has trained or has taught Salsa, Bachata, Kizomba, Zouk,Fox Trot, Waltz, Cha-Cha and Rumba. She is also a professional Belly dancer, having competed and taught in the US, Brazil and Mexico, including Arabic folk dances (Khaleeji, Dabke, Melaya Leff). And last but not least, she is also a trained classical and jazz pianist and percussionist. Evangeline has been training in Kathak for 7 years under Anvita Sharma. Her love for the dance comes from her desire to connect with her Indian culture and express the music that she feels most connected to, relating stories and feelings. She is passionate about education and is also a language teacher, currently teaching Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic. During the pandemic Evi moved to Mexico, so has continued in our online classes. She’s also an occasional substitute teacher for the Academy, and now runs one of our virtual classes remote from Mexico! She currently teaches Salsa, Bollywood and Belly dance. 

Vasudha, dreamt of pursuing Kathak since childhood. “This dream came true when I started my Kathak Journey with Anvita Didi during the pandemic.” Vasudha has been a sincere and dedicated student of Kathak since she joined the academy, and recently started filling in as a substitute to help with sudden growth of classesthe Academy experienced. Now she runs one of our new classes in Irvine! She is also a Program Manager in the software industry by profession and Mother to 2 energetic boys.

Arianne started her dance journey at the age of 5 learning Kathak and Bollywood, not realizing it was to become an integral part of her life. Her Kathak training was a mix of Lucknow and Jaipur styles, as she trained under the tutelage of Smt. Bhairavi Kumar and Smt. Anjani Ambegaokar for 16 years combined before joining our academy 2 years ago. She was also heavily involved with the NDM Bollywood Studios dance troupe for many years until her schedule became too hectic in med school. Now Dr. Arianne Kalra, is back continuing her training in Kathak at our academy since Jan 2023. “I took the leap back into Kathak where my heart truly was, and now under the training of Anvita didi, I feel I am once again whole.” She is part of our dance troupe, and is a substitute teacher for our Mid City and Pasadena classes.