I am Manoj Manikkoth, born in 1968 in Kannur (Kerala, India), and I have beenteaching South Indian classical dance for the past two and half decades. At the age of 8, I started the initial learning of Classical dance from Bharatheeya Natya Kalalayam Thalassery in Kalakshetra style, starting with Bharatanatyam under the guidance of Sri. Viba Vasu Master and later I became the disciple of Sri Chemenchery Kunhiraman Master. After 8 years of learning at the first dance academy, I continued to pursue personal coaching for Bharatanatyam advanced levels from Mrs. Sobha S Anand. My quest to learn and excel in other SouthIndian classical dance forms did not end there. I started learning Kuchipudi and Mohiniyatam under many legendary gurus like Guru Udayalakshmanan for over 18 years. I continued my Bharatanatyam studies at Kalai KaviriCollege in Trichy after I completedmy Bachelor's degree in Botany from Pondicherry University. Then I focused on my passionin learning Bharatanatyam and completed my Masters in Fine Arts (MFA) from Bharathidasan University in Tamil Nadu and later my MPhil. in Dance from Tanjavur Tamil University. In 1992, I moved to the UAE and started working as an office secretary. I was not happy and contented by having a secretarial job and I believed the purpose of my life was topromote Indian culture anddisseminate my learnings to the new budding artists. I was not able to get ample time to maintain my passion, my dance practice, due to my hectic work schedule. In 1994, whenever time permitted and during my holidays,I used to take part in various stage performances under the auspices of the Indian Arts Society of Dubai where I was amember.By this time, I started choreography and many students in Sharjah and Dubai started taking personal training from me. I gradually startedannual dance festival programs in Dubai and Sharjah with my disciples in 1999. Later in the year 2013,I founded a dance Academy in Dubai called Narthitha with the vision of sharing the beauty and depth of the classical dance form, “Bharatanatyam”, which is the oldest and most widely performed traditional dance form of India. Narthitha School of Dance, Dubai trained thousands of students since 2013 and attained a name in the hearts of art lovers. I just finished organizing the 28th Dance Festival in the UAE. Mypassion for Indian Classical dance forms was so deep, that I started as a performer, then choreographer, and later teacher. Being the founder of Narthitha School of Dance Dubai and trainer myself, Ibelieve I do justice to my vision and mission by imparting high quality training in Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Mohiniyattam, and Keralanatanam. Some of my students have even received the most prestigious recognitions such as the “Sheikh Hamdan Award” in UAE. Under my guidance, the training philosophy at Narthitha is based on the fundamental value of learning and practicing the art with joy, strict discipline, striving for excellence, and constructive introspection for both personal and artistic growth. The trained students are selected to host and perform in front of a specially invited audience from the dance fraternity twice a year. Over the years under the banner of Narthitha, I was able to produce many talented young dancers who have won accolades in dance competitions organized by eminent institutions and cultural organizations in UAE, India, and some other countries. My vision is to help youngsters with an artistic caliber develop into first-class performers through the right training. The motto I kept for Narthitha is “We promise to mold your child into being a complete dancer – a Narthitha”.