Guru Vidushi
Smt. Padmini Achchi
Padmini is a rare combination of dedicated teacher and soulful performer. She has a MSc in Physics, MA in Bharatanatyam with first rank and three gold medals. She also holds an honorary doctorate from Indian Empire University, Tamilnadu.
Trained under some of the best Gurus of Karnataka like Guru Shri K Ramamurthy Rao, Guru Dr. Vasundhara Doreswamy, Guru B Bhanumathi and Now being trained under Guru Smt Sheela Chandrashekhar in BharathaNatyam, Guru Dr Shobha Shashi Kumar for Karanas And depth of Natyashasthra Guru Vidwan. Sri Narayanaswamy for Thaala and natuvangam Guru Vidwan Somashekhar Jois for Konnakkol.
Her vast resource into these lineage has made her steadfast in her commitment to her art. She heads the “Achchi Classical Dance Centre” owning several students in bharatnatya and so far many students have performed arangetram under her guidance.
Also, the fact that hundreds of students have passed the examinations conducted by the Karnataka Board of Secondary Education and Gandharva Mahavidyalaya with distinction or first class, is a testimony for the quality of knowledge in Bharatanatyam imparted and the way the disciples are mentored.
The group dances of her disciples trained under her guidance have won many prizes in district level, state level, national and global level competitions. She has also carved a niche for herself as an excellent choreographer with several productions to her credit. Achchi and her students have been part of several prestigious festivals like Dasara Utsava, Udupi Utsava, Hampi Utsava, Kaveri Utsava etc. and toured the USA too.
Some notable choreographies include
- “Bharatha Bhagya Vidhaatha” for Department of information,
- “Sugandhada seemeyaache” a theatrical presentation directed by Shri. Giriraj
- Ishtakamya movie title track directed by Dr. Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar.
- Kuvempu Kavana Natya Namana
- Girija Kalyana
- Vachana Navarasa
- Karnataka Vaibhava
- Sthri Ranga Vaibhava
- Hari Hara
- Shambho
- Krishnaarpanam
- “Mankuthimmana Maarga” a unique presentation on Kaggas of the renowned poet DVG, with her friend Sneha Kappanna
- Choreography for a song of the upcoming movie of Dr. Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar and so on.
She has been awarded
- Nritya lanchana,
- Vishwa Kannada kanmani,
- Suvarnashri and
- Nritya kalaa bhaargava state awards.
- Nritya Seva Ratna
- Best teacher award in the field of dance
Her forays into acting in
- Magalu Janaki,
- Mithuna Rashi,
- Nannarasi Radhe,
- Radhe Shyama
- Satya
- Ardhangi
- Ganda Hendathi
- Radhika
Shot movie
Vagdevi for colors kannada channel
Movies (Yet to release)
- Agnathavasi
- Anartha
- Yet to name movie of Dr. Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar Brings her many accolades
About the establishment and growth of ACDC
‘Achchi Classical Dance Centre’(ACDC) was founded in year 2000 in AGS Layout, Bangalore. ACDC provides students of all age groups with all levels of training in theory and practical technique. Dance individually is a journey as each one of ours is. Our primary objective is to guide our students’ personal growth, enabling them to progress in technique, artistry and creativity. We give a great deal of importance for ‘Guru-Shishya sambandha’. We were winners of Global level dance competition held by ‘Sri Shankara Channel’ and ‘Ramana Maharshi Centre for Learning’. We also secured prizes in various categories in state level competition hosted by ‘Bharathiya Nritya Kala Parishath’.
Annual Programs
Achchi Classical Dance Centre presents annual programs
‘CHIGURU’ plans to be held during January
‘TILIJALA’ plans to be held during June/July. Both of which are one day events.
Tilijala
“Tilijala”, the annual dance festival of ACDC started in the year 2011, which consistently has been a well-received show by the audience every year. This festival was started by Guru. Vidhushi Smt Padmini Achchi to encourage the students of the institution and create a platform to showcase their talent through group performances, wonderfully choreographed by the Guru herself. Since past 7 years, the institution aims at producing new directions and choreographies to live music, making the performance even more cherishable. Guru Padmini Achchi also believes that Tilijala is not just to showcase the talents, but also a medium to learn responsibilities and develop a wonderful personality as a professional dancer.
The main objective of this event is:
Chiguru
Chiguru – The adorable dance festival of ACDC, started in the year 2017 by Guru Vidhushi Smt Padmini Achchi with the vision of creating a platform for the budding artists of the institution. Preparing the toddlers who are initially at the crawling stage of Bharathanatyam to give a full-fledged stage performance, requires lot of patience and diligence. This commendable quality can be seen in Guru Padmini Achchi through her choreographies specially meant for the kids.This festival also creates opportunities for the senior students of the institution to train and prepare the kids, also host the show. Thus creating a package for the overall development of students.
The main objective of this event is:
Trimaasothsava
Along with these two annual programs, ‘Trimaasothsava’ is held once in every three months which include programs like:
Classes / Batches
We have formulated batches into 5 levels based on the student’s learning stage:
Adavu Batch
Adavus are the basic/building blocks of Bharathanatyam. Students in this batch learn basics and elementary knowledge
Junior batch
Once the training in Adavus is complete, the students are introduced to simple dance choreographies which mostly contain nritta like alaripu, jatiswara, little bit of abhinaya through devaranamas and theoaritical knowledge from Natyashastra and Abhinayadarpana.
Senior Batch
Here they learn advance choreographies in both nirtta and abhinaya and are introduced to Nayika bhavas.
Vidwath batch
In this batch, students are introduced to complex items like Varna. They are trained to sing jatis, handle nattuvanga and do make up for self and others. They are also introduced to teaching aspects of dance under guru’s guidance. They become complete dancers at this stage.
Sreemathi Batch
This batch was introduced to women who wanted to start learning at a much mature age. The sequence of teaching remains the same. But progress of every individual depends on their learning speed.
Performance Highlights
Exams
Students at ACDC undergo intense training through regular contact classes, in both the practical and theoretical
aspects of the subject, grooming them to be holistic artists.
They are motivated to take up the exams conducted by
-
- Karnataka Secondary Education Board
- Akhila Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya
Hundreds of students have cleared these exams on multiple levels with flying colors under her guidance.
She introduced her own institution exams in order to well verse her disciples with aspects of both ‘Abhinaya Darpana’ and ‘Naatya Shastra’ Institution exams will not only enhance the learning speed but also allow her to establish great bonding with her students.
Faculty
Siri Mahesh
Siri Mahesh, a passionate Bharatanatyam dancer and dedicated nutritionist, began her journey in dance at the age of 10 under the tutelage of her mother, Guru Vidhushi Smt. Padmini Achchi, at Achchi Classical Dance Centre. Encouraged by her parents and mentored with care, Siri has earned recognition as a captivating performer through her relentless dedication and love for the art form.
Ini Mahesh
Ini Mahesh is a gifted and accomplished classical dancer whose journey in the world of dance began in her childhood. Trained at the prestigious Achchi Classical Dance Centre under the guidance of her revered teacher, Padmini Achchi, Ini’s journey has been one of passion, love, and unwavering support. Her teacher’s mentorship has played a pivotal role in shaping her into the graceful and skilled performer she is today.
Dhrithi N K
Dhrithi N K is a passionate and accomplished Bharatanatyam dancer, with over 10 years of disciplined training and dedicated practice. She began her dance journey at the age of 7, under the expert guidance of Dr. Guru Vidhushi Srimati Padmini Achchi at the renowned Achchi Classical Dance Centre.Throughout the years, Dhrithi has honed her skills, reaching advanced levels of proficiency. She successfully completed the prestigious Visharad 2 certification from Akhila Bharatiya Gandharva Vidyalaya and cleared the Senior Bharatanatyam examinations from the Karnataka Secondary Education Board, solidifying her technical and artistic mastery of the classical dance form.
Sanvika M Naik
Sanvika is a passionate bharatnatyam dancer with over 10 years of disciplined training under the guidance of her revered Guru -Guru Vidushi Smt.Padmini Achchi at the Achchi Classical Dance Centre.Beyond her passion for dance, Sanvika is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science Engieneering with AIML at PES University,Bengaluru.Her ability to balance her rigorous curriculum with her dedication to Bharatnatyam showcases her determination and multifaceted personality.
Technical Team
Adithi N Rao
Adithi N Rao began her journey in Bharatanatyam at the tender age of 6, and over the past 11 years, this ancient art form has become an integral part of her life. Under the expert guidance of her Guru, Vidushi Smt. Padmini Achchi, at the Achchi Classical Dance Centre, she has cultivated her passion and honed her skills.
Adithi S
Adithi S, began her journey in this classical art form at the age of 10 under the expert tutelage of Guru Vidhushi Padmini Achchi. With unwavering support from her parents, she has honed her skills over the years, completing the Junior Examination under the Karnataka Education Examination Board and the Madhyama Prathama examination conducted by Akhila Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya from Maharashtra Board. Her commitment to the art reflects her deep appreciation for its cultural significance and technical mastery.
Ananya G Bhat
Ananya G. Bhat is a passionate and accomplished Bharatanatyam dancer with over a decade of dedicated practice and performance. She began her dance journey at the tender age of 8 under the expert guidance of Guru Vidhushi Srimathi Padmini Achchi at the renowned Achchi Classical Dance Centre. Over the years, Ananya has honed her skills and risen to advanced levels of proficiency, successfully completing the prestigious Visharadh 2 certification from Akhila Bharathiya Gandharva Vidyalaya. Additionally, she has cleared the Senior Bharatanatyam examinations, further solidifying her technical and artistic mastery in the classical dance form.
Sanvika M Naik
Sanvika is a passionate bharatnatyam dancer with over 10 years of disciplined training under the guidance of her revered Guru -Guru Vidushi Smt.Padmini Achchi at the Achchi Classical Dance Centre.Beyond her passion for dance, Sanvika is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science Engieneering with AIML at PES University,Bengaluru.Her ability to balance her rigorous curriculum with her dedication to Bharatnatyam showcases her determination and multifaceted personality.