Iswarapriya (Priya) Gajaananan

Guru (Teacher) and Artistic Director

A lifelong student of dance, Priya started learning Bharatanatyam as a little girl of five. For 18 years, she trained under Smt. Shanthini Sivanesan, daughter of renowned maestro Erampu Suppiah, who founded the Kalabhavanam Dance School in Kokuvil, Jaffna, Sri Lanka. Graduating with a diploma in Bharatanatyam, Priya was awarded the North Ceylon Oriental Music Society’s Teachers’ Grade Award. A lead dancer in numerous dance performances and dance dramas, Priya won many competitions as a dance student. Priya has inherited the dance styles of her gurus and their gurus, Smt. Shanthini Sivanesan, ‘Kalaichelvan’ Erampu Suppiah, Adayar K. Lakshman, and Guru Gopinath. An avid musician, Priya also holds a diploma in carnatic instrumental music (violin) from the North Ceylon Oriental Music Society.

A motivated teacher and an inspired choreographer, Priya founded Kalabhavanam in Columbus, Ohio, in alliance with her Sri Lankan alma mater Kalabhavanam, in January 2000. Her students have participated in a dance drama and cultural events in the Central Ohio region and regular winners at the India Festival organized by the Federation of Indian Associations in Columbus, Ohio.

Priya holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and is currently employed at the McGraw Hill Companies.