MANZIL GOT TALENT

MEENAKSHI: DANCE FOR YOURSELF

Meenakshi 

“You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,
Love like you'll never be hurt,
Sing like there's nobody listening,
And live like it's heaven on earth.”
― William W. Purkey ―

Meenakshi joined Manzil in 2009 as a student learning Computer Science and English. Her keen interest in dance and theatre made her opt for these special classes as well. In her theatre classes with Anish Bhaiya, she got to be a part of the stage and street plays alike. Being the shy, introvert that she was, Meenakshi hesitated at first however now she proudly owes her confidence enhancement to the theatre classes at Manzil. Moreover, Manzil helped Meenakshi get her first job, where she was a part of the customer care team. She worked for a living on the weekdays, but that did not stop her from following her passion, which was dance. She would come on weekends for the dance class and practice to her heart’s content.

Meenakshi trained her students in Manzil Utsav in 2017 

During her western dance class, she expressed her desire to learn classical dance forms. Soon she was introduced to Deepti Didi then there was certainly no looking back. She has cleared the first level of Kathak Mahavidyalaya exam with first division and is now a Kathak teacher at Manzil, along with other organisations. She never missed any of her dance classes, neither as a student nor as a teacher. She feels that she gets to learn something new from every student and never fails to seek feedback from them. She has been associated with Prem Sanstha, Vidya & Child and Ashish Centre. Meenakshi says that working at the Ashish centre was the most challenging and exhilarating experience of her existence as she got a chance to work with‘special’ children. She is currently working with the ‘Samarpan Foundation’ as an Assistant Education Coordinator. The foundation has 8 schools out of which Meenakshi is a teacher at 5 of the schools, where she teaches both Classical and Bollywood dance.

Furthermore, Meenakshi has choreographed various dance performances for Manzil Utsav and has also provided a support to the theatre group in the plays that were performed in the event. She was also awarded the first prize in a dance competition conducted by Seva Foundation, among various other prizes in music, dance and yoga in her early years.

Meenakshi hopes to live her dream of providing a learning platform to the children through her own Dance Academy, where children can come and learn how to dance. Her experience at Manzil has inspired her to give back to the society. Despite countless financial and personal challenges, Meenakshi ensured that she does not give up on her ardour. We salute her spirit of fighting against all odds. Three cheers for Meenakshi!

By: Anshul Gupta
Edited by Niharika