“Beyond the pleasure of Bharadvaj’s deft execution, the sweet shimmering antique vision she created reminded everyone that the most profound themes can be danced lightly, joyously and fill the eye as well as the mind.” 

– Lewis Segal, Los Angeles Times, July 2000

Swetha Bharadvaj

Swetha Bharadvaj, an accomplished performer of both the Bharata Natyam and Kuchipudi dance styles had her training in Bharata Natyam from her mother Ramaa and studied Kuchipudi from M. V. N. Murthy.  She gave her first Bharata Natyam performance in Madras, India, when she was only 4, and was hailed as a “child prodigy” by the dance elite of Madras.  The Hindu newspaper called her “a child dancer of uncommon merit,” while Sruti Magazine wrote, “she showed an inherent capacity to feel and transmit”.  Swetha presented her arangetram, (solo dance debut) on the auspicious Sivaratri night at the Siva Temple in Concord California, when she was only 7 years old.  In 1987, her prodigious talent received recognition when Sankarabaranam Trust, Madras, honored her with the title of “Nritya Kishori”, and in 1990, she was selected by Society Magazine of Bombay as one of the 10 Indian child prodigies of the year. 

Swetha has performed in India, U. S. A, and Canada, both as a soloist as well as a principal dancer in the Angahara Ensemble.  She has danced at prominent festivals such as Pacific Asian Performing Arts Festival (San Francisco), Dance Kaleidoscope and Summer Nights at the Ford (Los Angeles), Young Achiever’s Festival presented by International Dance Alliance, (Madras, India), Young Dancers Festival (Los Angeles), Ramayana Festival (Los Angeles), at Narada Gana Sabha and Bharat Kalachar as part of the prestigious Madras Music and Dance Season (Madras, India) etc.  

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Recent Accomplishments

• 1999 -  Received the Traditional and Folk Arts Grant from the Fund for Folk Culture and the California Arts Council. 

• 2000 - Featured along with her mother Ramaa in Dr. Sunil Kothari’s book on Kuchipudi dance.

• 2000 - Featured along with her mother Ramaa on the cover of the June issue of Dance Magazine, the world’s most prestigious dance publication. 

• 2002 - Recipient of the 2002 Next Generation Grant from the California Arts Council.

• 2002 & 2005 - Featured performer at the prestigious Annual Holiday Celebration performance at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, which was broadcast live by PBS.

• 2004 - Featured performer at Summersounds Festival of the Hollywood Bowl - creating a weeklong dance presentation of Indian fables for 5000 children from the Los Angeles area. 

• 2006 - Swetha Bharadvaj's dance and interview featured in "The Divorced American" a documentary by Director Michael Ray Gonzalez.  It debuts theatrically before moving to the TLC channel in Spring 2006. 

To read what the critics say please go to REVIEWS

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