Kalatheera

Uday Kumar Shetty
Soumya Uday Kumar

Kalatheera, inaugurated on 6th August 2000, is a charitable trust for the propagation of Performing Arts, dedicated to foster India's rich cultural heritage through its magnificent traditions in Classical Dance and Music.

A modern day Gurukula- that is Kalatheera's vision.a traditional school that would spread awareness of Classical dance and music, both to value their spiritual nature and to integrate them in our vibrant economy through festivals and dance schools that become internationally acclaimed.

Kala meaning 'art' and Theera meaning 'the banks of a river', Kalatheera is the dream child of a devoted artist from the banks of River Tunga in Karnataka, a southern Indian state of rich cultural and natural heritage. Guru Uday Kumar Shetty is an exponent in Classical Odissi dance. Along with his wife Soumya Uday Kumar, who is a Kuchipudi and Odissi dancer, he set up Kalatheera after years of dedicated learning and respecting the art form. Today, the couple is earnestly committed to preserving the tradition and culture of Odissi Dance and is working at spreading this art form in the southern part of India, which is otherwise very popular in north India

In the initial years Kalatheera has been disseminating Odissi in South India through intensive dance training for a group of students, through lecture demonstrations and dance workshops, and through niche performances. After having begun with 20 students, Kalatheera now has about 60 students who are learning Odissi with keen interest and dedication. This young dance school is now ready to explore and expand itself to new horizons.