Shantha Ratii Initiatives

Shantha Ratii Initiatives (SRI) was established in 2016 with a unique premise: to integrate the grammar and vocabulary of Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam, and Kathakali with Chinese, Malay, and Western contemporary dances, to explore the guiding philosophy of "deeper roots - wider horizons." Besides teaching, SRI focuses on cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural works, attempting to address contemporary social issues such as environmental degradation and climate change, the significance of Dharma in our daily lives, and the devastating effects of crises, especially the pandemic, on women. 

SRI's mentorship program ‘SPARKS’, launched in 2020, is a notable contribution to nurturing young home-grown Singaporean artistes. Founder and Artistic Director Shantha Ratii personally leads the mentorship program, drawing on her five decades of experience and exposure in performance, choreography, and teaching across multiple countries. SRI's other objective has been to build diverse audiences for dance, which Ratii has done through illustrated-performances and lectures over two decades. Although Tamil is not SRI’s principal language of communication, it has contributed to the Tamil dance scene in Singapore by introducing several Tamil compositions to Ratii’s Kuchipudi repertoire, consisting primarily of songs from Telugu and Sanskrit.



For more information
A celebration of love : Romantic Heroine in the Indian Arts. New Delhi, India : Lustre Press : Roli Books, 2004
Kothari, Sunil. Kuchipudi. New Delhi: Abhinav Publications, 2001 (Call No. q793.31954 KOT-[REC])
Ratii, Shantha. "The Romantic Nayika." A Celebration of Love, edited by Harsha V. Deheji, Roli Books in arrangement with Roli & Janssen, 2004
Shantha Ratii Initiatives. Accessed 1 August 2025. www.shantharatiiinitiatives.com

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The information in this article is valid as of August 2025 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. If you have any feedback on this article, please submit here.