My name is Anjlee Sidhartha. I am a high school student in New Providence High school. I only started dance in the summer before Junior year, as opposed to the Indian girls initiating at age five and having their Arangetram at sixteen. My dance teacher, a small Indian mother, never imagined her newest students would perform in her first Arangetram. This scared me, no one had put all their eggs in my basket before and the thought of failing somebody almost killed me.

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For me, dancing had always been a part of a disconnected culture. My small town only had so much diversity, even the idea of ethnic foods was an oddity to the majority. Regardless, I’ll keep dancing in college. It not only connects me to my roots, but it gave me a new viewpoint on life.

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Regardless, I had a lot of motivation. My Arangetram is to be a charity event. Music has been my saving grace for as long as I can remember. The only way I can properly repay my music teachers, is to hold a charity event for my school’s underfunded music boosters program.