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Hari and Chethana
Hari and Chethana are Internationally recognized Kathak dance exponents from Bangalore, India. Together, have created, nurtured and revitalized the traditional art form through the establishment of their training centre, “Noopur Performing Art Centre” in the city of Bangalore. Focusing on the aspects of traditional varieties of the dance form, Hari and Chethana, aim at rejuvenating the spirit and passion of learning and performance through a dedication towards the facet of divinity and devotion. Having founded their learning centre in the year 1996, they have aspired to train students in the art form for over 15 years, rekindling a fervent passion and spirit for the art. They have endeavored to promote the art form of ‘Kathak’ through ebullient performances at various national and international forums and in the process inspired its light and knowledge with cultures and populations across the world.

Early life and training
Hari and Chethana were initiated to Kathak by Geethanjali Lal, grounded by Bharathi Vittal and Vaibhavi Joshipura and finally sculpted by Smt. Kumudini Lakhia. Hari is a graduate from Natya Institute of Kathak and Choreography under the able guidance of Guru. Smt.Maya Rao.

Career
Hari and Chethana have distinguished themselves as inspiring dancers and have given performances all over India, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, Indonesia, France, Switzerland, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Srilanka, and the Middle East and have won critical acclaim around the globe.

They are empanelled artistes of Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and auditioned artist of Bangalore Doordarshan. They are also members of the International Dance council (CID, UNESCO).

Hari and Chethana have trained more than 500 children to put up dance productions such as Yatra – The journey of Dance, Ramayan and Bali Yatra in the year 2003, 2005 and 2007, respectively. They have had the honour to perform in the presence of The King of Ipoh - Malaysia. They also performed for her Royal Highness Princess of Kuwait, Princess of Jordan, His Royal Highness of Dubai, at Burj Al-Arab. In fact, they are officially the first Kathak dance couple with the credit of performing in Saudi Arabia.

Hari and Chethana have featured in Regional Kannada film Parva directed by Sunil kumar Desai. Recently they have acted and Choreographed in a Historical Malayalam Film “Makara Manju” based on the life history of Raja Ravi Verma, directed by Lenin Rajendran,

Performances and Accolades
They have performed at several prestigious dance festivals organized by the Government of India. To name a few-


 * Hampi Utsav –Belary
 * Siddendra yogi Kuchipudi Dance festival
 * Karavali Utsav –Mangalore
 * Navaratri Celebrations at Narayani Peedam
 * Natyanjali dance Festival, Chidambaram and Coimbatore
 * Navarasapur Festival-Bijapur
 * Mahamahasthabhisheka- Sravanabelagola
 * Tirupathi Brahmotsavam –Tirupathi
 * Dasara Festival- Mysore
 * Bharath Mahotsav, Kerala
 * Kala mandalam Dance Festival
 * Soorya Festival
 * Swathi Thirunal Festival, International Film Festival – Trivandram
 * India Indian Habitat Centre – New Delhi.
 * Chalukya Utsav at Badami
 * Uday shankar Festival kolkotta
 * Taj Mahotsav –Agra
 * Mudra Festival Trivandra
 * Virasat Festival and Choreography Festival- Lucknow
 * Vishaka Music and Dance festival – Vishakhapatnam
 * Sangeet Natak Academy festival- Pondicherry
 * Kuchipudi dance festival- Vijaywada

For their valuable contribution to the Art form, they have been awarded:


 * 1) Natyalakshana Akademi Award by the Former Foreign Secretary, A.P.Venkateswaran,
 * 2) Best Dance couple award, Bangalore Club for Kathakali and Arts
 * 3) Rasa Ranjini Award
 * 4) Shiva foundation award
 * 5) Nritya Kowmudhi Award, Andhra Pradesh

What Critics Have to Say
“Enchanting twosome” –

“Hari and Chethna lead a life of absolute dedication and devotion to this art form, which has made them an epitome of illustriousness in Kathak. With zest for excellence, this duo have paved the way for professionalism in dance and have carved a niche for themselves as good role models for the future generation of Kathak dancers to emulate” –

“Hari and Chethana’s dazzling display of the rhythmic wizardry and grace inherent in performing Kathak was appreciated by the audience comprising of dancers, teachers, students and many connoisseurs of dance” -

“The mastery of technique, combined personal charm with grace chiseled features. Sublime and gently, amazing spins and twists. Intense with devotional fervour to dance” –

“Remarkable technique and perfect technique and Chethna’s especially showed beautiful facial expression that reflected her joy in dancing”. –

“ The divine dance performance by you both were out of the world. Our members in the audience were spellbound and totally absorbed and enjoyed every moment of your art. You have left a permanent picture in our hearts and mind”- “[http://www.hindu.com/fr/2007/10/05/stories/2007100550270300.htm It was the perfect synchronization of Hari and Chetana, the Kathak duo from Bangalore that was the predominant feature in their performance. With right timing, striking footwork and a good sense of costumes, the duo kept the audience mesmerized. Their presentation of ‘Madhur Madhav,’ a Swati Tirunal composition in Brindavani sarangi, which beautifully shows the various shades of Radha’s love for Krishan, was a highlight of their performance” – The Hindu, 5th oct 2007 by Nisha]. Steps of togetherness- “Hari and Chetana, the Kathak duo, strike an aesthetic harmony”-

“The success it achieved was due to the poetic finish with which each and every lyric got scripted with ardor interspersed with poetry, set to effectively revealing music and its empathetic rendering that got exemplarily recorded. The dramatist personae got depicted empathetically by actors, who are disciples of Hari and Chetana who donned the lead roles of Dushyantha and Shakuntala. The depiction of the change of locale on the stage with the help of impressively painted curtains with astounding lighting on the stage was wonderful. Better still was the way the characters made their entry, exit and the way they lived each moment on stage in perfect synchrony with the recorded music” -