October 30, 2023

MSP 166: Rukhmani Mehta

34 minutes

Creating a Vision for Kathak with Rukhmani Mehta

Today on Movers & Shapers, we are joined by Rukhmani Mehta (previously Rina Mehta). Rukhmani is a choreographer, dancer, educator, Artistic Director of Leela Youth Dance Company, and the Co-Artistic Director of Leela Dance Collective, which brings together leading artists from around the world to advance a collective vision for kathak, a classical North Indian dance. In this episode, Rukhmani speaks about her love for creating community through dance and her deep interest in and curiosity for collaborative projects and processes. What stands out most is Rukhmani’s resounding passion for her work and art form, despite the struggles she has had along the way, as well as the thoughtfulness with which she has built her life in dance, from co-leadership of her company to teaching to creating the first-ever endowment to support kathak dance and music in the US and more. Tune in today for an inspiring conversation about the power of collaboration, community, and preserving culture!

Key Points From This Episode:

· How Rukhmani started dancing and when she fell in love with kathak.

· What she learned about the art form from kathak master, Pt. Chitresh Das.

· The profoundly transformational experience that studying kathak afforded her.

· How she learned to follow her heart and commit to starting a professional dance company.

· Steps Rukhmani took to build a life in dance, including teaching and the Leela Foundation.

· Audience development and creating a future for kathak as an educator.

· Unpacking Rukhmani’s belief in the power of collaboration.

· Where the name Leela comes from and how it speaks to spontaneous creativity.

· Insight into Rukhmani’s love for creating communities of young women through dance.

· The process of building Leela as a collective and how it was impacted by COVID.

· Joys and challenges of a dance career and what you can look forward to from Leela!

· The heartwarming story of why Rukhmani changed her name from Rina.

“My work is about being an artist and putting the art form out in the world but – it has also become about creating the infrastructure that the artists who are carrying these traditions forward need.” — Rukhmani Mehta

Rukhmani Mehta brings a singular voice and vision to the art form of kathak, a classical dance genre from North India; she is a dancer, choreographer, educator, and Co-Founder/Co-Artistic Director of Leela Dance Collective.