The Team - Founders of the School
Who We Are
Sangeetha Subramanian
Founder & Lead Bollywood Dance Teacher
Sangeetha is one of the founders and the Artistic Director of the Swara Nritya School of Arts. With a deep-rooted passion for dance, she has been performing since the age of six and has dedicated over 15 years to pursuing and sharing her love for the art form. Sangeetha began teaching dance in 2013 and is formally trained in Bollywood dance from Bangalore, India. Her vibrant career includes performances at prestigious national and international dance events, including the India-Japan Cultural Association in Matsuyama, Japan, and numerous shows across the UK.
Sangeetha is also a trained Bharatanatyam dancer with over 10 years of experience. She has performed at renowned festivals like Natyanjali as in various temples India. Throughout her journey, Sangeetha has graced more than 100 stages, showcasing her versatility in dance forms such as Bollywood, Bharatanatyam, Tollywood, Kollywood, and Contemporary styles.
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As an educator, Sangeetha is passionate about nurturing talent. She offers Bollywood-style dance lessons for children and adults. Her teaching goes beyond performance, empowering students to embrace challenges and compete in prestigious competitions. Under her guidance, students have performed at events such as the Teen Stars Talent Competition (UK), the National Entertainment Awards Ceremony (UK), International Indian Icon (Chicago, USA), U.Dance East, and the Diwali Festival at Trafalgar Square, London. She also mentors senior students to develop their skills as future dance instructors.
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Sangeetha has organized and led dance workshops in primary schools, community centers, and public events across Cambridge, fostering a love for dance in diverse audiences. Her passion for continuous learning drives her to participate in Bollywood dance workshops across London, ensuring her skills remain fresh and dynamic.
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Sangeetha’s motto, “Love what you do and do what you love,” reflects her unwavering dedication to the art of dance and her commitment to inspiring others to pursue their passions.
Tamara Tirijak
Founder & Odissi Dance Teacher
Tamara Tirják is one of the founders and Artistic Director of Swara Nritya School of Arts, Cambridge. She is an Odissi dancer born in Hungary. At a young age, she had 10 years of training in rhytmic gymnastics and ballet. This was followed by oriental dance as early as 2000, in classic and modern bellydance styles, which she was also teaching between 2003 an 2005. In 2005, she fell in love with Indian dance forms, and started taking classes in Budapest in Bharatanatyam, Odissi and Bollywood. In 2010, she decided to dedicate herself to Odissi, and joined the Parvati dance group in Budapest – led by Virág Réka Túri, a disciple of the late Guru Bijay Kumar Senapathi in Puri –, and had several major performances all around Hungary both as part of the group and as a soloist, and started training the beginner group, as well.
In 2012, she found her guru in Bhubaneswar: Padmashree Ileana Citaristi, a highly renowned dancer, teacher and choreographer, one of the most prominent disciples of the late Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra. Tamara has already travelled to India several times to polish her knowledge of the dance, even to perform on an art festival in the city of Jagannath Puri. She took a number of workshops with Sandhyadipa Kar and Saswat Joshi in Budapest, Hungary.
In 2013-2014 she joined the Gungur odissi group in Barcelona, led by Patricia Salgado, and was performing both with the group and as a solo artist.
Moving to Cambridge, UK she joined Sanskruti School of Dance in 2016 as an Odissi instructor, teaching both adults and children, and preparing them for performing at various community events and festivals. She continued honing her skills and expanding her repertoire by attending workshops led by Sujata Mohapatra and Madhavi Mudgal.
Tamara is a founding member of Swara Nritya School of Dance, teaching Odissi and Yoga classes.
Santoshi Iyer
Artistic Director & Carnatic Music Teacher
Born in Coimbatore, Nagasanthoshi Nagarajan (aka) Santhoshi Iyer began her musical journey at the age of four. She trained under esteemed Gurus such as Mrs. Manjula Rao, Shakthivel, and M.S. Sheela, and explored the violin under Guruvayorappan. A passionate performer, she has delivered numerous classical concerts and stage performances, including a notable recording for the Ashtamsa Varadha Maruti Temple in Coimbatore. Santhoshi's cherished project is Aanantha Bala, a devotional album composed by Anuradha Sriram with lyrics by Marabin Mainthan Muthiah, dedicated to her spiritual Guru, Balarishi Sri Vishwashirasini. A firm believer in music's power to inspire inner peace, she trains students by integrating both musical excellence and spiritual values. In recognition of her contributions to Carnatic music, she was recently honoured with the title ‘Gana Kaladhara’ by Griffin London, affiliated with the reputed prestigious universities around the world.
