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'''Hema Rajagopalan''' is a [[Bharatanatyam#:~:text=Bharatanatyam is the oldest classical,ancient art forms including Bharatanatyam.|Bharatanatyam]] dancer, teacher, and choreographer from New Delhi, India.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/theater/ct-ent-dance-chicago-rajagopalan-0908-20190906-5vfdzdebwfd2lplg465pgt3cp4-story.html|title=For Hema Rajagopalan of Natya Dance, Indian dance is contemporary dance|first=Lauren|last=Warnecke|website=chicagotribune.com}}</ref>

Hema Rajagopalan started dancing in 1956 at the age of six under the instruction of her [[devadasi]] guru, Swarna Saraswathy. Hema Rajagopalan performed her first [[arangetram (dance)|arangetram]] after just six months of training and was then hailed a child prodigy in the art of Bharatanatyam. Later on in her career, she also studied Bharatanatyam under [[K. N. Dandayudhapani Pillai|Padmasri K.N. Dandayudapani Pillai]] and his brothers K.N. Pakkiriswami Pillai and K.N. Dakshinamoorthy Pillai. Most recently, Hema Rajagopalan studied under [[Kalanidhi Narayanan|Padma Kalanidhi Narayanan]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/varna-like-none-other/article7819180.ece|title=Varna like none other|first=Sunil|last=Kothari|date=October 29, 2015|via=www.thehindu.com}}</ref>

Hema Rajagopalan moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1974 where she began doing smaller performances for friends to introduce Indian and Hindu culture beyond the small pockets of Indian immigrant communities. She then founded the Natya Dance Theatre to preserve and promote Bharatanatyam in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/theater/reviews/ct-ent-natya-dance-review-1111-20191109-csje2h3iynchtcvoz4nffw27dy-story.html|title=Review: Natya Dance's world premiere 'Inai' asks, what if there were no differences, racial or otherwise?}}</ref> Natya Dance Theatre performs contemporary interpretations of traditional dances through facial expressions, rhythmic footwork, dynamic body movement, and hand gestures through [[Abhinaya]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/dance/hema-rajagopalans-search-for-the-solo-dancer/article32348123.ece|title=Hema Rajagopalan's search for the solo dancer|first=Chitra|last=Swaminathan|date=August 13, 2020|via=www.thehindu.com}}</ref>

In 2001, Hema Rajagopalan curated ''In the Diaspora: Spiritual, Classical, Contemporary'', the first Bharatanatyam dance conference in the United States in a partnership with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and [[Columbia College Chicago]].  In 2006, they partnered again to curate ''Dance India'', the second U.S. Bharatanatyam dance conference.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

Hema Rajagopalan has received awards from the Asian American Heritage Council, the City of Chicago, and was the first Indian classical choreographer to be chosen by the Chicago Dancemakers Forum to create new work. She was also given the Vishwa Kala Bharathi Award for Artistic Excellence, given to only one artist per year.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

In 2015, Hema Rajagopalan had an in-depth interview with the Chicago Dance History Project, discussing Natya Dance Theatre and her conenctions to Chicago among other things.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chicago Dance History Project - Hema Rajagopalan |url=https://www.chicagodancehistory.org/hema-rajagopalan |access-date=2022-06-28 |website=chidancehistory |language=en}}</ref>

Hema Rajagopalan has been awarded grants from the [[National Endowment for the Arts]] and the [[Illinois Arts Council]] and has served as a panelist for both organizations.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://apps.nea.gov/grantsearch/|title=NEA Online Grant Search - Grant Search|website=apps.nea.gov}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagodancemakers.org/hema-rajagopalan|title=HEMA RAJAGOPALAN|website=chicagodancemakers}}</ref> Most notably, Natya Dance Theatre was awarded a $50,000 grant from the [[MacArthur Foundation|McArthur Foundation]] in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.indiawest.com/entertainment/global/chicago-based-natya-dance-theatre-receives-50k-macarthur-grant/article_77639678-f1cb-11e8-be4c-378af41906e2.html|title=Chicago-based Natya Dance Theatre Receives $50K MacArthur Grant|first=India-West Staff|last=Reporter|website=India West}}</ref>

Hema Rajagopalan is currently the artistic director of Natya Dance Theatre in Chicago with her daughter Krithika Rajagopalan serving as the Co-Artistic Director.  She also conducts masterclasses at universities across the country.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dancermusic.com/inside-natya-dance-theatre-founder-and-artistic-director-hema-rajagopalan-on-the-world-premiere-of-inai-the-connection/|title=INSIDE: Natya Dance Theatre Founder and Artistic Director Hema Rajagopalan on the World Premiere of "INAI–The Connection"|date=October 17, 2019}}</ref>

== References ==
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[[Category:Indian classical choreographers]]
[[Category:Bharatanatyam exponents]]
[[Category:People from New Delhi]]
[[Category:People from Chicago]]
[[Category:Dancers from Illinois]]
[[Category:Indian female dancers]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Living people]]