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Leela Rammohan Rao Leela Rammohan Rao was introduced to the world of Bharatnatyam when she was 5 years old in Bangalore. She then moved to Madras and was fortunate to have received the direct training from the legendary master, Padmasri Natyakala Kesari Late Sri Vazhuvoor Ramiaih Pillai. After the demise of Sri Ramiaih Pillai, Leela was trained by Kalaimamani Sri Kunjidapadam Pillai, from the Kathumannar Muthukumara Pillai school. She learned from him several margams which were pieces of the Tanjuvur Quartet and also Sri Kunjidapadam Pillai’s own compositions. Leela later on sought training from the maestro Kalaimamani Mrs. K J Sarasa, a disciple of the doyen Vazhuvoor Ramiaih Pillai. She learned from the expert teacher for several years. She obtained training in Abhinaya from Padmabhushan Mrs. Kalanidhi Narayanan, the leading exponent and authority in the field and Mrs. Anuradha Jaganathan. Leela is appreciated by critics and art-lovers for her expressive talents in the art. Seeking to delve into the teaching and conducting aspects of the art, Leela developed her expertise in Nattuvangam under the able tutelage of Mrs. Kamala Rani of Kalakshetra. The proficient and rigorous training in music from her mother, Mrs. Sarojini Sundaresan, in the laya-rich Alathur style and in Konnakol(the art verbally rendering Mridangam sollukattus) from the notable Mridangam artist Late Sri. M.N Kanadaswamy has aided her in fortifying the rhythmic aspects of Bharatnatyam. She has been appreciated by several critics for her precise and musical rendering of the Sollukattus. Having been trained by such leading Gurus in the art, Leela now does her own choreography for rare and popular compositions. She has also choreographed several intricate pieces of Mrs. Sundaresan and presented it in her concerts and taught to many of her students. She has performed in several leading dance festivals and her concerts have been telecast on the national television network in India and elsewhere. Leela is a gifted composer in Tamil and Hindi and has several songs on Lord Krishna to her credit. The compositions have also been taken by senior dance choreographers and teachers for their students and presented in international festivals. Leela is a very capable painter in different media and has won accolades in solo and joint exhibitions of her paintings on canvas and other forms as well. She has often donated proceeds of her paintings for many deserving causes of human welfare in developing countries. She has been presented by television networks in India and the UK as a multi-faceted personality. Leela is the Founder & Director of RaagaLaya Foundation USA, a center dedicated to the training and performance of Carnatic Music and Bharatnatyam in Florida. She holds an MBA-Finance from one of the top business schools in the UK and is a Fellow Member of the Securities Institute, UK and Member of the Association of Investment Management & Research, USA, premier-most professional bodies in the Investment industry. She is the President of GoodWin Asset Management Inc., based in the US, where she lives with her husband who is a Pulmonary/ Critical Care/ Sleep Disorders specialist.

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