OUR TEAM
Charlotte Moraga
Artistic Director
STAFF
Artistic Director: Charlotte Moraga
Executive Director: Celine Schein Das
Operations & School Manager: Bhavya K. Jain
Faculty: Ishani Basak, Rucha Khisti, Vanita Mundhra, Anita Pai, Samyukta Patil, Celine Schein Das, Asavari Ukidve, Preeti Zalavadia
Youth Company Assistant Directors: Asavari Ukidve & Vanita Mundhra
Video Production Specialist: Kritika Sharma
Marketing Intern: Avani Viswanathan
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Neha Balram
Ajanta Basak
Lori Laqua
Charlotte Moraga
Celine Schein Das
Jayshri Yadwadkar
Preeti Zalavadia
PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION
Mebi Babu
Shweta Bansal
Priti Goel
Prerna Jain
Yosha Kanakia
Anjali Kucheria
Smruti Phadnis
Jayanto Minocha
Rasika Patankar
Jayshri Yadwadkar
CDI FACULTY
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Anita Pai started learning kathak under the great kathak master artist and guru, Pandit Chitresh Das, in 2004 and began teaching in 2007. She has since taught students of all ages: kids, teens & adults, and at all levels: beginning to advanced. Anita has performed in many of Pandit Das' school show productions and Bay Area dance and community events. She intensely prepares her eligible students for the CDI Youth Company auditions each year and all students for CDI school shows, community performances and talent shows. Anita’s teaching philosophy is to guide her students, through engagement, empathy and understanding, to achieve their goals in the dance; firmly setting her expectations but also helping them rise up to meet them. Anita's two daughters, Ritika and Shruti, are both Chitresh Das Youth Company alumni. Shruti is currently a member of CDI's dance company, Chitresh Das Dance.
Pt. Das always encouraged his young students to be strong, independent and pursue their dreams with authenticity and integrity. Anita is grateful that her daughters studied under his tutelage and feels that CDI staff will continue his teaching legacy with the passion and dedication he was known for.
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Preeti began dancing at an early age and traveled across India and the United States performing with her Garba group, experiences that nurtured her love for rhythm, community, and cultural expression. Preeti began studying Kathak with Pandit Chitresh Das in 2003, immersing herself in his dynamic pedagogy and the rhythmic, mathematical world he opened for students of all ages. She feels eternally grateful to Pandit Das for sharing his knowledge and whisking students into a beautiful, lifelong dance adventure. Preeti remains committed to deepening her training and honoring the lineage with integrity and joy under the continued guidance of his senior disciple Charlotte Moraga.
With Pandit Ji's blessings, Preeti began teaching in 2006 and wholeheartedly embraced the physical and mental challenges of Kathak. She later became the branch director of one of Panditji’s largest schools, performing in numerous school productions, community events, and Arts Education programs throughout the Bay Area. As Co-Founder of the Chitresh Das Institute, she served as Managing Director from 2017–2024, teaching and dancing in CDI’s performances while establishing foundational processes that helped build and sustain a home for rigorous training, artistic excellence, and intergenerational community. She deeply enjoys working alongside CDI’s dedicated team of teachers.
Outside CDI, Preeti brings over a decade of experience in full‑cycle accounting across production, manufacturing, performing arts, and consumer-facing industries. Known for her precision, process design, and collaborative leadership, she has strengthened CDI’s organizational foundation through her love of data, numbers, and thoughtful systems.
Motivated by her interactions with Bay Area families, she is dedicated to fostering a welcoming, connected community where students of all ages can thrive. When not dancing or teaching, she enjoys traveling with family and friends and caring for her many green beings, who seem determined to take over her home one leaf at a time.
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Asavari started learning Kathak at the age of 7 from Shri Rajkumar Ketkar, shishya of Padmashri Gopi Krishna Ji. After taking a break to pursue education in engineering in India and later graduate studies in Utah, she once again pursued her passion for Kathak after moving to California in 1999 with Pandit Chitresh Das’s Institute. Within a few years she started learning directly under tutelage of Dadaji (Pandit Chitresh Das) until his passing in 2015. During that time Asavari performed at various events across the bay area such as the Chitresh Das Institute’s School productions, Art and Wine festival in Burlingame, ICC Diwali festival in ICC Milpitas, Art and Wind festival in San Ramon and many more. Continuing her pursuit of Kathak, In November 2022 Asavari performed her first full length Kathak Solo ‘Nrityanjali’ under guidance of Charlotte Moraga, Ganda Bandhan Shishya of Pandit Chitresh Das and Artistic director of Chitresh Das Institute(CDI). Asavari’s daughter Avani has trained at CDI for 12 years and performed her CDYC graduating solo recently in Aug 2025.
Asavari is currently a senior faculty at CDI and the Assistant Director of the Chitresh Das Youth Company. She started teaching in 2012 and at present teaches beginning and intermediate class for kids and adults and hopes to continue sharing and growing Pandit Chitresh Das’s legacy along with other CDI teachers.
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Celine began studied Western classical ballet from age 5 to age 25. She began her study of kathak with Pandit Chitresh Das at San Francisco State University in 1991. She went on to assist teaching his class and began teaching in his institution in 1995. In addition to ballet and kathak, Celine studied African Haitian dance for five years with Alicia Pierce. Following the passing of her husband, Pandit Chitresh Das, in 2015, she felt the need to follow through on his urging for her to teach and began teaching in Marin County. In 2020 she began teaching online and then in 2022 began in person classes in San Ramon. Celine began studying tabla with Esther Adams in 2018, and then directly with Esther’s Guruji, Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri in 2021. She is also a dedicated student of pilates and yoga in the Iyengar tradition.
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Rucha began her study of Kathak as a 5 year old in India with Usha Damle in Baroda, India. She finished her Visharad from Gandharva Mahavidyala before moving to Canada. Rucha came back to dance and started her Kathak study with Pandit Chitresh Das’ senior-most disciple, Gretchen Hayden, in 2005. She moved to the Bay area 2011 and began to take class directly with Pandit Chitresh Das. Rucha started teaching with Chhandia in 2008 and joined the Cupertino staff in 2012. She is passionate about introducing Kathak to beginning children, teens and adults and help them discover the joys in dance, connect to their roots and lay the foundation for future Kathakas. She is gentle, fun but also firm, ensuring a combination of joy and focus.
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Samyukta began her journey into the realm of Indian classical dance at the age of six in India. Over the course of a decade, she devoted herself to rigorous training in Bharatanatyam. In 2016, she expanded her dance repertoire by beginning her Kathak training at the renowned Chitresh Das Institute (CDI).
Since 2018, Samyukta has been actively involved in teaching at CDI, first as a Teaching Assistant and, since 2022, as a teacher at the San Mateo branch. Alongside her Kathak training and teaching, she continues to deepen her knowledge of Indian classical dance and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Bharatanatyam at Aria University in Milpitas, California.
Samyukta is passionate about teaching and takes great joy in helping students develop their skills, confidence, and appreciation for Kathak. She strives to create a supportive learning environment where students can grow as dancers while developing a deeper connection with the art form.
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Vanita began learning kathak at Pandit Chitresh Das institution in 2008 and then auditioned and was accepted into the youth company in 2011 where she trained under Pandit Chitresh Das. She has since performed at Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco Opera House, Palace of Fine Arts, Zellerbach Hall, with the Toronto Tabla Ensemble in Toronto, and many other prestigious events. She did her solo under the direction of Artistic Director Charlotte Moraga in 2017. In 2022, Vanita was selected as a Chitresh Das Institute Kathak Fellow and performed in the 2022 premiere of “Invoking the River” and
She is now a member of the Chitresh Das Institute’s professional dance company, Chitresh Das Dance.
which she then performed in many cities in the US in 2023 and 2024. She proceeded to join CDD in the tour of ITR out in India in three major cities - Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata and since then has been touring ITR, joined for Mantram in 2024, portrayed Janki Bai in the Veil of Janki Bai and continues to hope to tour ITR
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Ishani began her Kathak journey in 2008 at the age of five and was accepted into the pre-professional youth dance company in 2011, where she trained under Pandit Chitresh Das. During her ten years in the youth company, she performed at renowned venues including the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House, Davies Symphony Hall, Zellerbach Hall, the Palace of Fine Arts and toured to Toronto. Following the passing of Pandit Chitresh Das, she continued her taleem with Charlotte Moraga and presented her graduating solo showcase in 2021. That year, Ishani joined Chitresh Das Dance as a Kathak Fellow and performed in the company's inaugural production, Mantram. She has since performed in Invoking the River (New York, 2023), Mantram (2024), and Veil of Janki Bai (2025). In 2025, Ishani became CDI's first Teaching Fellow and continues to train, perform, and teach. She also studies tabla with Jim Santi Owen and now directly with Jimji's Guruji, Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri, deepening her connection to Indian classical music.