US town’s mayor honours Bengaluru origin dancer

Bengaluru-origin dancer, choreographer and teacher Supriya Desai is probably the first Indian-origin artiste to be honoured with a proclamation by the Mayor of Morrisville town in the US state of North Carolina.

Supriya, whose Payal Dance Academy turned 30 last year, is an exponent of Indian classical dance forms like Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi.

Commending Supriya’s contribution to the community, Mayor T J Cawley’s proclamation states, “Guru Supriya Desai has been a shining beacon of classical dance captivating audiences for 30 years with her extraordinary talent and dedication. Her dedication to teaching has nurtured the talents of over 400 students over the past 30 years, guiding them with the wisdom and passion to achieve excellence in the art of dance, thereby ensuring the preservation and propagation of Indian classical dance traditions.”

Supriya, who was conferred the title 'Karnataka Kalashree' by the government of Karnataka, has popularised Indian dance and music with various performances like the 15-city US dance tour for her own first major dance drama production called 'Meera', leading four professional dancers from India.

A founding member and first president of Sampige Triangle Kannada Association, she has also been actively involved in other Kannada organisations like AKKA and Navika.

Along with her husband Surendra, Supriya has played an active role in the operations of the Indian Classical Music and Dance Society (ICMDS) of North Carolina.

For Supriya, her hobby of passion was cricket. Having played for National College, Jayanagar, she is now making contributions to the promotion of the sport in the Triangle area and has served as Promotion and Media Outreach Head for USA cricket in December 2022 to August 2023, when it was selected as co-host for the T20I World Cup Cricket 2024.