Our goals are to increase South Asian 

• Representation 

• Programming 

• Creation 

• Curation 

• Networking 

• Upskilling 

• Professional Platforms

Inspired, Curated & Directed By Artistic Directors Dr Priya Srinivasan, Hari Sivanesan And Uthra Vijay

Priya Srinivasan is a dancer/choreographer and lives and works on the lands of the Wurundjeri and Boonwurrung people in Narrm, combining theory and practice to work towards social justice issues through art. Her performances prioritize feminist decolonization processes making visible minority women’s histories. She began her career as a key dancer with the Bharatam Dance Company (the first Asian Australian funded professional company). Her experimental, postcolonial work rooted in South Asian classical dance practice has been presented in major festivals and venues internationally.

She has curated, choreographed and performed in several projects in partnership with Hermitage Museum Amsterdam, Pina Bausch Zentrum, Berlin Wall Memorial, Rockbund Art Museum Shanghai, Kalakshetra/Spaces/DakshinaChitra Chennai, Adishakti Puducherry, Shoonya Bangalore, Highways Los Angeles, DCA Darwin, Bunjil Place, Dancehouse, Artshouse, Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Carriageworks, Sydney Opera House.

Her large span of intercultural work focuses primarily on feminist collaborations, the most notable include: “Serpent Dreaming Women” and “Churning Waters” two collaborative First Nations/ Indian works, the latter which toured India for Australia Festival. Working with Uthra Vijay, Vicki Couzens, Priyadarsini Govind, Thilagavati Palani, Gina Maree Bundle, Yaran Bundle, Sylvia Nulpintidj and Nadine Lee to develop new understandings of equitable feminist intercultural work; “Encounters,” a collaboration with hereditary artist Yashoda Thakore of the marginalised kalavantulu communities in Andhra, Hari Sivanesan a British/Sri Lankan veena artist/composer and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra at Bunjil Place; and “The Durga Chronicles” with Uthra Vijay, Philipa Rothfield - a multidisciplinary immersive work at Artshouse and Bunjil Place bringing dance and a Carnatic choir of 12 women that focused on the prevention of violence against women.

Her many years of intracultural work with singer/ composer Uthra Vijay has explored the interdisciplinary processes of music, dance and text. Their explorations of lost Indian women’s voices has taken them to India and Europe to create intercultural feminist collaborations. Her work with veena player/composer Hari Sivanesan has forged new ground in exciting new collaborations with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Together with Uthra and Hari, they have developed mentoring programs, youth development, emerging artist showcases and commissions to upskill, professionalise and create new pathways for South Asian performance in Melbourne.

In her ongoing journey at the intersection of art, culture, and social justice, Priya Srinivasan continues to break new ground and foster meaningful connections through her transformative work, leaving an indelible mark on the global stage.

Composer and multi-instrumentalist, Hari Sivanesan is a unique representation of the new generation of Indian classical-contemporary artists of international acclaim. He was born and trained in the UK and brings his Sri Lankan, Tamil heritage, South Indian and Western classical music training together. Years of classical training, and contemporary mentorship has evolved his practice, performance style and mindset to negotiate both the austere classicism of the South Asian arts with researched, experimental and contemporary work in the UK and internationally. Hari, as a soloist on Veena, accompanist, musical director, researcher, composer and curator, has pioneered projects in partnership with BBC Radio & TV, BBC Proms, UK WOMADs, the Royal Opera House, The Boite, Multicultural Arts Victoria and Bunjil Place. For Sangam 2021 Hari premiers a groundbreaking orchestral work written solely for South Indian stringed instruments, a combination of instruments rarely seen in a format of sound and music unexplored in Australia. He is Co-Director of the South Asian Arts Pathways Program commissioned by The City of Casey and Bunjil Place. He is the co-Artistic Director of Sangam: Performing Arts Festival of South Asia and Diaspora in partnership with MAV, Abbotsford Convent, Drum Theatre, Bunjil Place and Dancehouse enabling a single platform for classical, contemporary and experimental forms.

Uthra Vijay is the Artistic Director of Keerthana School of Music in Melbourne that she founded in 2003. She is a versatile artist, composer and educator, who is equally comfortable working in the classical realm or experimenting with non-classical forms of music including popular music and contemporary forms. She has an extensive background in Indian classical music, having trained with legendary singer and guru S.P. Ramh (from the Lalgudi School) and winning several awards and performing in a range of venues in India and Australia and has directed several concerts. She has also composed and sung for dance in classical and contemporary performances in Melbourne for several festivals such as Mapping Melbourne, Jaipur Literary Festival and AsiaTOPA. She has worked extensively on inter-cultural and site specific performances as well as “Talking Dances” with dancer/choreographer Priya Srinivasan and Iranian, Yiddish, Surinamese, Flamenco and Indigenous singers in Melbourne, Chennai, Bangalore, London, Hamburg, Berlin, Amsterdam and Barcelona. For Sangam, Uthra will be premiering an exciting new composition for a women’s choir based on human relationships with the Earth Mother. She is a co curator of Sangam: Performing Arts Festival of South Asia and Diaspora. Her main goal is to work for South Asian, migrant and wider communities to open minds and hearts through music.

Our Team

Ayesha Tauseef - Producer

Ayesha Tauseef (she/her) is a Pakistani-Australian. She is a spoken word poet, entrepreneur and multi-modal artist currently learning kathak dancing, Hindustani classical vocals and water colour painting. She recently moved to Naarm/Melbourne from Meanjin/Brisbane to further pursue her artistic endeavours. She aims to complete a Masters in Arts Therapy.

She studied a Bachelor of Arts majoring in International Relations and Political Science at The University of Queensland (UQ).
Whilst at UQ she founded a Muslimah student society that enabled young Muslim women to express themselves in an open, safe space through events, workshops and online discussion forums. In 2019 her poem Chadar went viral, a poem highlighting the issue of street harassment in Pakistan. She created an online movement with more than 150 women sharing their personal sexual harassment stories with her on Instagram. Over the years she has run poetry workshops, retreats. She currently facilitates “Funoon-e-latifa” an arts meet up in melbourne for south Asians for their creative practice.

Ruiqi Fu - Media Coordinator

Combining her love for arts and moving images, Ruiqi has been capturing the perspectives of people and telling stories through photography, short videos and documentaries. With her solid grasp of sound and original eyes to see things that others may quickly dismiss, Ruiqi's agility and attention to detail complement her video production and content creation.

Devoted to connecting Asian arts with the western world, Ruiqi graduated with a master's degree in Arts and Cultural Management from the University of Melbourne. She’s also a Naarm-based multi-instrumentalist performing and actively organizing various live musical events.