Hari & Chethana

 

Hari and Chethana were initiated to Kathak by Guru 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.
The duo consider their gurus as the greatest blessing of their lives.

Destiny brought them together. It was like coming together of creative minds. With each passing year, their training progressed and their thirst for knowledge grew sharper. Being together has brought indepth understanding of the Art.
Their quest to pass on their fine blend of classical rigor and technical virtuosity lead them to establish The Noopur Performing Arts Center.

Hari and Chethana have distinguished themselves as inspiring dancers and have given performances all over India, United states of America, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Indonesia, France, Switzerland, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Saudi- Arabia, 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.

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 Manya” based on the life history of Raja Ravi Verma, directed by Lenin Rajendran

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

Natyalakshana Akademi Award by the Former Foreign Secretary, A.P.Venkateswaran,
Best Dance couple award, Bangalore Club for Kathakali and Arts
Rasa Ranjini Award
Shiva foundation award
Nritya Kowmudhi Award, Andhra Pradesh
What Critics Have to Say

“Enchanting twosome” – The New Indian Express, 2nd Aug 2002.
“Hari and Chetha 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” – Temple of Fine Arts, Malaysia.
“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” – Indian Cultural Center, Sri Lanka, Colombo, 25th October 2002.
“The mastery of technique, combined personal charm with grace chiseled features . Sublime and gently, amazing spins and twists. Intense with devotional fervour to dance” – ShowTime Malaysia , 28th Nov.2004.
“Remarkable technique and perfect technique and Chethna’s especially showed beautiful facial expression that reflected her joy in dancing”. – Star Metro Malaysia, Sat 11 Nov 2006.
“ 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”- President Kannada Balaga U.K 1st and 2nd Nov 2007.
“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 Hindu, 24 April 2009
“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 dramatis 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” – The Hindu, 25th August 2011