Gayatri Packiarajan

🪔 About

Gayatri Packiarajan is a dedicated Bharatanatyam dancer, teacher, and the founder of Chella Natyalaya. With over 21 years of experience as a dancer and more than 5 years as a teacher and mentor, she established Chella Natyalaya in India on October 26, 2020, which is now also recognized in Sweden and based in Gothenburg. Her life's mission, or 'seva', is to awaken Bhagavan’s consciousness in children through the art of dance, a spiritual lineage rooted in her family's devotion to Lord Arunachala and Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharishi. From a young age, Gayatri was guided by her mother and Guru, learning and presenting dance-dramas that brought divine stories to life. Her performance career spans over a decade in India's sacred spaces. Notably, from 2004 to 2017, she performed in devotional dance-dramas for the Sri Ramana Ratha Yatra through Ramana Kendram, Madurai, under the tutelage of Dr. Kalarani Rengasamy. Continuing her commitment to sacred performance, she has been offering her dance as devotion for Lord Jagannath Ratha Yatra through ISKCON Gothenburg since 2023. Although an engineer by profession, Gayatri considers herself a dancer by soul. Through Chella Natyalaya, she provides both online and offline Bharatanatyam classes to children aged 4 to 16, aiming to foster devotion and spiritual connection. The academy has successfully trained over 75 students globally in the past five years. Chella Natyalaya's curriculum is structured progressively from Foundation to Arangetram, focusing on developing discipline, spiritual awareness through devotional storytelling, physical strength, mental focus, and cultural pride by immersing students in Indian classical traditions. Gayatri Packiarajan is also the author of the book "Stop Feeding the Ego: Discovering Lord Shiva as the True Self."