OUR TEAM
Charlotte Moraga
Artistic Director
STAFF
Artistic Director: Charlotte Moraga
Executive Director: Celine Schein Das
Operations & School Manager: Bhavya K. Jain
Youth Company Assistant Director: Asavari Ukidve
Video Production Specialist: Kritika Sharma
Marketing Intern: Avani Viswanathan
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Ajanta Basak
Lori Laqua
Charlotte Moraga
Celine Schein Das
Jayshri Yadwadkar
Preeti Zalavadia
PARENT TEACHERASSOCIATION
Mebi Babu
Shweta Bansal
Priti Goel
Prerna Jain
Yosha Kanakia
Anjali Kucheria
Jayanto Minocha
Rasika Patankar
Jayshri Yadwadkar
TEACHERS
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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 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 were blessed to have him as a role model in their young lives and feels that CDI staff will continue his teaching legacy with the passion and dedication he was known for.
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Preeti Zalavadia began studying with Pandit Chitresh Das in 2003. She began teaching in 2006 and went on to become branch director of one of Panditji's largest branches. She has performed in many of Pandit Das' school shows, community performances and has participated in Arts Education programs, teaching in schools. Preeti is a dancer, instructor, Managing Director (2017-2024) and Co-Founder of the Chitresh Das Institute.
Preeti feels eternally grateful to Pandit Chitresh Das for sharing his knowledge and showing students of all ages a world full of rhythm and whisking them into a beautiful mathematical dance adventure!
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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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Gauri began learning kathak at Pandit Chitresh Das’ institution in 2006 at the age of six, and auditioned and was accepted in to the youth company in 2009 when she was nine. She has since performed at Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco Opera House, Zellerbach Hall, with the Toronto Tabla Ensemble in Toronto, in Los Angeles, and many other prestigious events. In 2020, Gauri was selected as one of the inaugural cohorts of Chitresh Das Institute Kathak Fellows and performed in the 2021 premiere of “Mantram”. In 2022 she became a member of the Chitresh Das Institute’s professional dance company, Chitresh Das Dance.
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Samyukta began her journey into the realm of Indian classical dance at the tender age of 6, in India. Over the course of a decade, she devoted herself to the rigorous training of Bharatnatyam. In 2016, Samyukta expanded her dance repertoire by commencing her Kathak training at the renowned Chitresh Das Institute (CDI). Starting in 2018, Samyukta began assisting in classes as a Teaching Assistant, and in 2022 she took on the role of a teacher at the San Mateo branch, marking a significant milestone in her career.
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Vanita began learning kathak at Pandit Chitresh Das’ institution in 2008 and then auditioned and was accepted in to 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”, which she then performed in New York in January 2023, and also in San Francisco and San Jose in September and October 2023. She is now a member of the Chitresh Das Institute’s professional dance company, Chitresh Das Dance.