Shinjini Kulkarni
New Delhi, India
Born into the Ninth Generation of the Kalka Bindadin Lineage, Shinjini Kulkarni is the granddaughter of the Kathak Maestro Pt. Birju Maharaj. She began her training in kathak dance at the tender age of five under the tutelage of her grandfather. She began performing at the age of eight, and has ever since been exploring her passion for dance.
An outstanding student academically, Shinjini has recently completed her graduation in History Honours from the premier Arts college of the country, St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University. While excelling in her studies, she has also continued her training with utmost dedication and sincerity.
She has performed at prestigious festivals such as Khajuraho dance festival, Sankat Mochan Samaroh, Taj Mahotsava, Chakradhar Samaroh, Kalidas Festival, Kathak Mahotsava, etc. She has given numerous solo performances and group shows in various cities of India and abroad such as New York, San Francisco, Houston, Minneapolis, Bangkok, Tehran, Chabahar to name a few, and has received affectionate appreciation and blessings by the audience in the short span of her career.
Recently she had the privilege of speaking twice at the extremely prestigious platform – TEDx where she inspired many by her powerful ideas and speech.
Shinjini is also a member of the newly formed pure classical based percussion band – LayaCurry. She has had the privilege to be a part of her grandfather’s choreographies such Nritya Keli, Editing, Holi Utsav, Krishnayan, and Loha, to name a few.
Recently, she has performed a dance sequence in the movie Jaanisaar, directed by Sh. Muzaffar Ali ji under the dance direction of Pt. Birju Maharaj ji. Receiving warm appreciation, she has begun exploring the field of acting as well. Her most recent project is a kathak based solo song composed by Pt. Bickram Ghosh for the Bengali movie Har Har Byomkesh which completed 100 days in the cinema halls, followed by an advertisement commercial for La’ffaire Sarees, a luxury brand in handlooms.
Recent Awards:
In 2018, She received the Tarana Foundation’s Yuva Pratibha Award, in New Delhi.
In 2017, Shinjini was conferred with the title Nritya Shiromani at the International Cuttack Dance Festival.
Later in 2017, she received the Parampara Samman by Sangeet Kala Niketan, Jaipur.
She also received the prestigious Smt. Krisha Hangal Memorial Award acknowledging her as an emerging talent in the field of Indian Classical Music and Dance in 2015.