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Anisha Gururaj Arangetram Album

Anisha Gururaj has been under the tutelage of Guru Prasanna Kasthuri for the past 8 years. She has performed in many of his productions such as Avataara (1999), Anubhava Mantapa (2002), and Rainbow ll (2006). She has also danced in Bangalore, India with Guru Prasanna and some of his students. Along with these performances, Anisha has danced for functions at the Hindu temple, other Indian associations, and in 2002 and 2003, performed for an International Cultural Arts Festival in Maryland Heights.

Anisha’s interests do not stop at dance. She also sings Indian Classical Carnatic music and plays both Indian and Western violin (in which she was selected for an All-Suburban Orchestra), and Western piano

Anisha also fares well academically. She was a qualified 7^th grade student chosen by the Duke TIP (Talent Identification Program) to take the college entrance exams alongside high school students and won a silver medal in recognition of her placement in the Missouri state ceremony. Anisha was also recognized in the Duke TIP National Grand Recognition Ceremony. She additionally won 1^st place for an essay on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. sponsored by Monsanto. Anisha is an active participator in her school’s Math Contest Club, and she has won several prizes, such as 1^st place in the 7^th grade MCTM Regionals, 3^rd place for the Atlantic Pacific Math League Contest in 7^th grade, and 8^th place in the Excellence in Mathematics Contest in 2006. Anisha was chosen as the best student in her Foreign Language Latin class as well. Furthermore, Anisha and her classmate entered the science fair. Their project was eligible for the Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge and they spent a lot of time writing essays for the Challenge. Anisha will be an 8^th grader this year at Parkway Central Middle School.

As a whole, Bharathanatyam has helped Anisha learn much about perseverance, commitment, Indian culture, perfection, creativity, and most of all, the importance of practice. She says: “Dance has enabled me to see beyond the ordinary and understand the beauties and intricacies of expressing oneself through this dance form. Understanding the beautiful meanings of the songs has allowed me to absolutely become a part of the dance with full mind and conscience.”

Arangetram Focus:

According to Guru Prasanna Kasthuri, Anisha's arangetram is focused on her mother tongue, Kannada. This language driven approach helps children to understand their languages better and also it will expose them to their rich literature and traditions. Anisha will be performing a Varnam based on a devaranama, and as a special performance, she will be performing folk tale of Karnataka - "GOVINA HAADU".