The Odissi Profiles: Sonali Mishra

Sonali’s journey into dance began at the tender age of five when she started learning Bharatanatyam with Smt. Uma Suresh and then later, under Smt. Sudha Chandrasekhar. She was initiated into Odissi dance at the age of fourteen under the Chitralekha Dance Academy with (Kalashree) Chitralekha, (Kalashree) Ellora, and Guru Devraj Patnaik all of whom cultivated her love not only for Odissi dance, but also for her home state of Orissa, the birthplace of this ancient art form. Since 1995, she has traveled to India regularly for further training and refinement from Guru Sri Bichitrananda Swain and Sri Ramesh Chandra Jena at the Orissa Dance Academy under the direct supervision of Guru Sri Gangadhar Pradhan.

Her training includes one year of rigorous and sustained training in Orissa, India from 1999-2000. Sonali has also had the privelege of training extensively with renowned dancers Smt. Aruna Mohanty from Bhunabeswar and Smt. Nandita Behera from Los Angeles.She currently continues to refine her dance under Rudrakshya, the Odissi dance institute founded by her Guru.

A talented dancer with an incessant flow of energy, Sonali is in constant pursuit of perfection. By her sheer dedication and sincerity, she has emerged as one of the most promising young dancers of her generation. Sonali has performed extensively as a soloist at various festivals and programs in India, Canada, the US and the UK to include: the Asian American Dance Festival (New York), the Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center (Boston), The Brooklyn Folk Feet Festival (New York), the Mahari Award Program (Orissa), and the 3rd International Odissi Festival (Orissa) to name a few. She has also performed at and conducted a number of lecture-demonstrations at the University of Michigan, Carnegie Mellon University, New York University, City University of New York, and Stony Brook University.

Sonali holds a Bachelors degree in English from the University of Michigan and a Masters degree in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University. She is currently living in New York City.