For Lalitha Jilakara  - Dance has always been one of her biggest passions.

Lalitha began her Kuchipudi training as a 9-year-old and is honored to be a student of the late Guru Ravishankar Vempati, the beloved son of the legendary Padmabhushan Dr. Vempati Chinna Satyam Garu. Excelling in her Kuchipudi training at a young age, Lalitha also had the privilege to perform on well-known platforms, such as: Nadaneerajanam (Tirumala), Ravindra Bharathi (Hyderabad), Kala Bharati (Vizag), Siddhi Vinayak Temple (Mumbai), Calcutta, Telugu Association of St. Louis (TAS), Cultural Association of South India (CASI), and Telugu Association of North America (TANA). Lalitha also holds a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for taking part in Silicon Andhra’s Kuchipudi Convention in 2008 and holds another record for partaking in the Bharatanatyam 50 jathis challenge conducted by Guru Madurai R. Muralidharan in 2021.

Lalitha has always been very talented in grasping various arts.

Besides Kuchipudi, Lalitha also has experience with modern dance, jazz, contemporary, and aerial dance, and has had the honor of interning with several prestigious dance companies. She is a devout Carnatic singer, pianist, and violinist. Lalitha is currently training in Konnakkol with guru Somashekar Jois and has trained in Nattuvangam with the Late Guru Bhagavathula Sita Rama Sharma garu. She has also completed her Diploma in Carnatic Vocal and Masters in Indian Classical Dance from the University of Silicon Andhra. Her goal is to spread the joy that she obtains from traditional Indian arts to the rest of her community and world, which is why she has begun choreographing classical dances as well. Lalitha is the head choreographer and founder of her school Kuchipudi Academy, in which she teaches Kuchipudi and Carnatic Vocal in and around the St.Louis area. She has been running her school successfully for the past five years. Lalitha strives to continue improving herself and spreading these wonderful art forms, and
extends her immense gratitude to all of her gurus for their support, encouragement, and blessings.

Lalitha Jilakara, the proud daughter of Smt. Lakshmi Jilakara and Sri. Prasad Jilakara, currently
works as an ETL Developer at Centene.