A classical dance artist, Jenita has been running her own dance academy for the last eleven years. Classical dance is her passion and career.

Jenita Lopes Pillai is a performer, choreographer, and teacher of Bharatanatyam. She is also the owner of Natana Kala Academy, Mumbai.

Recalling her childhood, Jenita says that her childhood was great and that she had grown up by looking up to her father. Her father was a street theatre artist and after tenth grade, her parents enrolled her in a dance college. Slowly and gradually, her interest grew in this field.  She did her graduation and master's degree in Bharatanatyam.

Talking about her journey, Jenita says that she had liked to dance since childhood, and after completing her tenth grade, by the guidance of her guru she was introduced to Nalanda College, Mumbai. Initially, she faced many problems understanding the Sanskrit language. But, later, she topped her college continuously for five years in Bharatanatyam. Afterwards, she gave many solo performances and choreographed with her guru. She was attracted to the mythology section.  She also learned hip-hop style of dance at the time of the pandemic. She started promoting classical and Bollywood dance in a village called Manipur in Vasai. Now she is teaching around 150 students in Vasai, and her journey is still continuing in this field.

When asked about her mistakes, Jenita says that she was a very naughty child in her childhood, so she made many mistakes. She had to drop out for one year while learning dance due to her lack of focus, which was her mistake. But she learned from her mistake and came back to this field to prove herself. She says that one year in her life taught her a lot of things, and she became serious about her profession.

Sharing her achievements, Jenita says that she has been recognised by many awards like the Nritya Nipun Award, the International Dance Day Award, etc. Many students and people are connected with her journey, which is an accomplishment for her. Once, her father got emotional looking at her performance, which was one of her biggest achievements.

Jenita’s role model is her father, as she learned from him how to talk without hesitation and boldly in front of others. She also admires her guru, Vaibhav Arekar, who always encouraged her to do better in the field of dance.

Jenita’s life mantra is to spread the joy of dancing.

Advising aspirants to her field, Jenita says that, in the dance field, it is important to take disciplined training under the guidance of a guru. To master any art, you have to learn it forever. Discipline and consistency are required in this field to achieve success.