A Kathak dancer who is taking her family tradition of dance to the next generation, Shinjini feels blessed to be a part of a legendary dance family. She wants to make herself her ideal with her hard work.

Shinjini Kulkarni is a Kathak dancer of the Lucknow Gharana of Kathak and is the ninth generation of her family in the  Kathak field. Shinjini feels blessed to have learned Kathak from her grandfather, Pt. Birju Maharaj. She did her Foundation under Vidushi Mamta Maharaj and is currently under the guidance of Pandit Jai Kishan Maharaj.

Shinjini is from New Delhi. She started learning dance at the age of four. She learned the dance in the "Guru Shishya Parampara" style. She has a Senior Diploma in Kathak dance. She graduated from St Stephen’s College and got her master's degree in History from Delhi University. She is further thinking of pursuing a double  master's in Kathak as well.

Recalling her childhood, Shinjini says that she belongs to a family devoted to Kathak, and they even used to play games that were around or linked to dance or Kathak. She learned the dance from her aunt, uncle, and grandfather.

Talking about her journey so far, Shinjini feels that it has been a blessed journey. She concedes that she might have benefited coming from such a privileged lineage, but says ultimately you have to prove your own mettle.

When asked about challenges, Shinjini says Indian Classical Music and Dance does come with its challenges. She laments that she has noticed a decline in people’s patronage towards this art. She also believes that the Kathak industry is an unorganized sector, which presents major challenges to upcoming artists.

Regretting her mistakes, Shinjini shares that she did not train enough in her teenage years. She was under a lot of study pressure because she wanted to become an IAS officer, so she did not get enough training for Kathak, which was her major mistake.

Sharing her accomplishments, Shinjini says she has received the Nritya Shiromani Award, the Vrindavani Award, the Gharana Samman , and many more. She has also done more than hundred concerts all over India and worldwide. She has also done films and TV shows. Her greatest accomplishment, she believes, is when her gurus praise her performance.

When asked about her role models, Shinjini says she respects and looks up to Dr. Shovana Narayan and Aditi Mangaldas for their immense contribution to Kathak. But, she does not want to name any particular person as her role model and says that she has a desire to make herself her ideal some day.

Shinjini believes that mental peace can come from different things. She is more likely to practice or listen to meditative music when she feels stressed, and she also prefers to keep herself calm in order to learn from things.

Shinjini’s life mantra is to work with honesty.