Shinjini Kulkarni

Shinjini recently completed her graduation in history (honors) from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University. Alongside her academic achievements, she has pursued Kathak with deep dedication and has had the privilege of performing in several important choreographies by her grandfather, Pt. Birju Maharaj, including Nritya Keli, Editing, Holi Utsav, Krishnayan, and Loha. She is a regular performer at the annual festival Vasant-Utsava.

Shinjini has presented numerous solo and group performances across India and in international cities such as New York, Houston, Westchester, Austin, Milwaukee, and Bangkok, earning wide appreciation from audiences.

She is also a member of LayaCurry, a newly formed pure classical percussion ensemble featuring young artists like Anubrata Chatterjee, S. Swaminathan, Shikhar Naad Qureshi, Esani Dey, and I. D. Rao.

Recently, she performed a dance sequence in the film Jaanisaar, directed by Muzaffar Ali under the dance direction of Pt. Birju Maharaj. The warm response to her performance encouraged her to explore acting as well. Her latest project includes a Kathak-based solo song composed by Pt. Bickram Ghosh for the Bengali film Har Har Byomkesh.

A disciple and granddaughter of Pt. Birju Maharaj, Shinjini represents India on international platforms, is a TEDx speaker, and continues to shape the future of Kathak through her performances and through the Sai Shinjini Academy, which she founded to train the next generation of dancers.