Our Founder

Aanal is an accomplished dancer, choreographer and teacher. 

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Trained in Indian classical Kuchipudi dance form and in multiple Indian folk and semi-classical dances as well as western and contemporary dances, Aanal has been dancing all her life. After earning her M.Ed in e-Learning and Instructional design from George Mason University and a career at a nationally renowned non-profit, she decided to pursue her true passion of teaching dance after the birth of her first son.

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Having heard from numerous people including children learning Indian classical and other dance forms, she realized that existing dance instruction was missing one key ingredient – a personal connection with youth & motivation. She started her first dance class with 2 students and a simple motto “Culture is sacred. Preserving it should be fun!”. Combining her dance background with her instructional design skills, Studio Dhoom now has more than 400 active dancers of all age groups. Working under the umbrella of Bollywood dancing, she has helped promote the vibrant and culture-rich traditional genres of Indian dancing including folk and semi-classical dancing styles.

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Aanal’s work and contributions have been recognized across the community and Studio Dhoom students have won many competitions and performed at prestigious events such as the NBA Washington Wizards half-time show, several Bollywood concerts at Warner Theater and EagleBank Arena, the Hershey Park and the National Cherry Blossom festival.

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She draws strength and continued passion realizing the impact of her work on passing on the rich cultural heritage to the next generation through the medium of dance – all while having fun in a warm, friendly, cheerful and safe environment!