History
Ajna Dance Company was created to share artistic and authentic Indian dance with a global and diverse audience. We specialize in both contemporary and classical Indian dance forms. Ajna was founded by dance artist and distinguished choreographer, Minila Shah. The experience she gained traveling the world to further her art coupled with her experience working as the Artistic Director of Bollywood Grooves Dance Company in London, UK has made Minila an expert in many different forms of Indian dance including contemporary Bollywood, classical, and folk. Minila is passionate about sharing Indian dance and culture through arts education programs and performances by making them easily available and accessible to everyone. Our team is trained in a diverse range of dance styles and we pride ourselves in offering high quality instruction and performances.
Specialties
Arts Education Ajna Dance Company is leading the way in South Asian arts programming for schools across the tristate area. We have worked with over 200+ schools through our Indian dance assemblies, residencies and after-school programs. We incorporate social studies, geography, language into our lesson plans and students walk away with learning new dance styles and with a better understanding of South Asian culture. Our team of teaching artists are professionally trained and we tailor the lesson plan and choreography to the grade level of the students. Performance Our performance company work is an artistic blend of Classical Indian, folk and Bollywood dance styles. The unique combination with a focus on expression and grace that come from Classical styles have made our performance work stand out. The Ajna performance company recently performed at The Brooklyn Museum for First Saturday's and has also appeared on ABC's Good Morning America with Priyanka Chopra, NBC with Nick Cannon, The Food Network with Rachel Ray, Good Day New York in collaboration with DJ Rekha and the Smithsonian and on Viceland with Action Bronson . Moreover, we have had the honor of performing at various high profile events at the United Nations General Assembly, The Rubin Museum, The Brooklyn Children's Museum, The Children's Museum of Manhattan, MoMA Film, Facebook, Google, Barclays, S&P, BNP Paribas and Macy's.