Indian-American Classical Dancer/Actress

Kids certainly are cute, aren’t they? Whatever it is they do, naturally, they think everyone else does the same thing. One kid in Brooklyn jumps rope. Doesn’t everyone, he thinks? Another kid in Nebraska can identify five types of corn. Doesn’t everyone, he thinks? Yet another kid in California went surfing with his father. Doesn’t everyone, he thinks?

Amrapali Ambegaokar was just a child when she followed her mother’s footsteps and discovered her passion for dance. Growing up in a household where her mother was always dancing or otherwise being artistic, Ambegaokar figured every kid was just like her. “Everyone dances, don’t they?” she sheepishly told Buzzine. “I just figured everyone danced as a kid.”

Well, not every kid grew up dancing. Further, not every kid grew up to be a stunningly beautiful dancer/actor who appeared on Superstars of Dance and several television programs. Claiming second place as a soloist on the five-week televised international dance competition, Ambegaokar did not just suddenly become a great dancer and artist. Trained in the classical Indian dance of Kathak –- a genre which is the base for modern Bollywood dance –- the 30-year-old Chicago native was a principle dancer of a company at age of 11. Consistently touring at large concert venues since her days as a munchkin, dancing was something she always did. “I was always doing this,” Ambegaokar said about her lifelong work in dance. “It was nothing that had a beginning.”

While she cannot pinpoint a beginning, Ambegaokar does not want to find the end either. For her, this is something she loves doing and hopes her dream life continues to chug forward. Yet the dream came with a price –- responsibility. “Dance is a big responsibility for me,” Ambegaokar candidly told Buzzine. It is a responsibility she takes very seriously –- so seriously, it was a driving force of her recent performance on NBC’s Superstars of Dance, where she was honored as one of the best soloists in the international competition.

The silver medal soloist on Superstars of Dance saw her participation on the program as an opportunity to showcase an element of Indian dance that many outside the country didn’t know existed. “It was an opportunity for Indian classical artists to be seen in a way we have never been seen before,” Ambegaokar said about two of India’s most skilled dances of Kathak and Bharat Natyam -– both classical forms of Indian dance that heavily influenced many modern dance genres popularized in Bollywood movies. “This is the highest, purest form of Indian dance. I wanted people to understand the depth of Indian culture, and (by participating on Superstars of Dance,) I think it was achieved.”

However, bringing classical Indian dance to mainstream American culture was no easy task. Not only are opportunities to present the dance form on such a large stage few and far between, but even when those opportunities do arise, the size of the window is rather small.

According to Ambegaokar, a soloist had the shortest amount of time to perform on Superstars of Dance -– all of one minute! Being more of a sprint than a marathon, Ambegaokar said it was difficult determining how best to perfectly perform her Kathak piece while also getting her message out in the brief amount of time allocated.

Ambegaokar told Buzzine she had a very specific strategy before displaying her talents in front of the judges and cameras: (a) as is common practice in Kathak, all of her dances were about God; (b) choosing the best technique to impress the judges; (c) due to the time constraints, it was vital to keep the performance cohesive, avoiding gaps in between steps. “There can’t be any transitions or gaps,” she said. “Each step must have meaning. There was no time to waste.”

Despite the intense strategy and pressure to impress the judges while stunning the audience and educating the masses, Ambegaokar was blessed to have the opportunity to display her skills on such a grand stage. “The beauty of this was Nigel [Lythgoe] appreciated the different forms of dance,” Ambegaokar humbly told this writer. “My experience was more about bringing classical Kathak to the mainstream. This was an opportunity, since this kind of exposure may not occur more frequently.”

On that note, Ambegaokar does not really look at her silver medal award as a second-place finish for a solo performance on Superstars of Dance. Instead, she saw her rewarding performance as a breakthrough for an artistically difficult Indian dance genre and international dance as a whole. “For world dance, I feel as if I won first place,” Ambegaokar emphatically said about her performance. “On behalf of non-western dance forms, I won first place. Everyone knows ballet, but not too many people can name non-western dances.”

Yet, displaying her beautifully complex dance moves on Superstars of Dance was more than claiming victory for world dancers. Instead, it was about living out that childhood dream, when Ambegaokar naively thought everyone was a dancer. “I’ve been looking for an opportunity to share my dance on an international stage,” she said. “It’s kind of been a childhood dream. People don’t follow their dreams enough, and they get lost in what people tell them to do. Sometimes it’s about taking risk and following your dreams.”

It is that dream Ambegaokar managed to keep alive for the 30 years this critically-acclaimed dancer graced this place we call Earth. Growing up watching what she called a “very ambitious Indian mother,” Ambegaokar actually prefers to be called an artist, as she does more than just dance -– she also choreographs, designs, and acts. In fact, she currently has recurring guest roles on television shows such as Heroes and Grey’s Anatomy. “I won’t ever only dance or only act,” Ambegaokar said. “I am a very multifaceted artist. There was never a time I considered making this career. It was just something I was always doing.”

Just like her time on Superstars of Dance, Ambegaokar’s mission is focused. She knows she is a multifaceted artist, and she knows what she has to do to perfect her craft. The former UCLA Bruin said she does not really believe in experimenting but instead is focused on being the best dancer, designer, choreographer, and actor she can be. “It’s always what I wanted to do, and when you are following your dream, you just make it happen. It’s all a blessing.”

Ambegaokar will be counting her blessings as she continues to increase her presence in Hollywood. To follow this rising star, visit her website at www.amrapalionline.com.