Rangana Navodini Udayakumara (Rangana Ariyadasa)

🪔 About

Rangana Navodini Udayakumara, widely known as Rangana Ariyadasa, is a prominent Sri Lankan classical dancer, choreographer, and lecturer specializing in Bharatanatyam. She is currently a lecturer in Classical Bharathanatyam at the University of Visual and Performing Arts, Colombo. Born to Kalasuri & Kala Bhushana Mrs. Padmini Manel Dahanayake Ariyadasa, who is credited as the first Sri Lankan woman to introduce Bharatanatyam to Sri Lanka, Rangana was inspired by dance from a young age, performing at 4½ years old. Her artistic lineage extends further, with a grandmother who was a renowned singer and a grandfather who was a Tower Hall actor, and her great-grandfather being former Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Dr. W. Dahanayaka. Rangana Ariyadasa received comprehensive training in various dance forms. As a student of Musaeus College, Colombo, she studied Up-country, Low-country, and Sabaragamu dancing forms. She further pursued Kathak under Mrs. Srimathi Rasadari and later Mr. Jayasena Kottegoda. For five years, she trained at the prestigious Kalakshetra Institute of Fine Arts in Chennai, India, where she mastered Classical Bharatanatyam, Kathakali, Karnatic Music, and the Thampura instrument, also gaining knowledge in Tamil and Sanskrit. Her arangetram, or inaugural public performance, took place on December 24, 1984. After graduating from Kalakshetra, Rangana Ariyadasa served as a Fine Arts Instructress at the National Youth Council for five years. In 2000, she established her own academy, "Shree Padma Ranga Nrithya Nikethan," registered under the Ministry of Cultural Affairs. The academy has trained over 400 students, with approximately 52 having completed their arangetrams. She joined the University of Visual and Performing Arts as a visiting lecturer in Bharatanatyam in 2007, later becoming a permanent staff member. She has also served as an instructress at the Tower Hall Foundation, Mahaweli Centre, and the Cultural Troupe of the Armed Forces. Beyond teaching, she is a choreographer, having choreographed dance dramas, including scenes for the movie "Siddhartha the Gautham." Rangana Ariyadasa has performed at numerous state festivals, presidential award ceremonies, and foreign embassies, and has served as a judge for various dance competitions and reality programs in Sri Lanka. She currently offers Bharatanatyam classes in Melbourne, Australia, through the Rangana Ariyadasa Dance Academy.