Kadambari School of Odissi Dance

Karishma Ahuja is an artiste trained in Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Style of Odissi Dance. She is a graded artiste of Doordarshan. She has performed at various dance festivals, private, corporate and public events across India and Internationally Abroad, both as part of group presentations and also as a Solo Artiste. Karishma has won several accolades for her work. In 2025, she was awarded ‘Guru Dayanidhi Samman’ for her valuable contributions in the field of Odissi at the Global and National level through performances, productions, choreography and training. In 2021, She was recognised among Top 100 Iconic Artists and Educators of the year by the Rhythms Group, Mumbai. In 2024, she was recognised and awarded by the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, for her exemplary performances, teaching and her commitment to the field of arts. Karishma has established the Kadambari School of Odissi Dance which imparts quality training in Odissi. The school has branches in Bangalore and Chennai. She also curates two annual Dance and Music Festivals, ‘Kadambari Utsav’ and ‘Aikyam’, that provide a platform for upcoming as well as senior artists. She has performed solo at prestigious platforms such as Indian Classical Music and Dance Festival (Taiwan), Chidambaram Natyanjali (Chidambaram), Taj Mahotsav (Agra), etc and group performances at G20 India Energy Week (Bangalore), Mamallapuram Indian Dance Festival (Shore Temple, Mahabalipuram), Mysore Dasara (Mysore Palace), Soorya Dance Festival (Trivandrum), National Classical Dance Festival (Chandigarh) and many more. As a performer, Karishma has been much appreciated for her grace, poise and stage presence. Karishma is an MBA in HR and had worked in the corporate world as an HR professional for 8 years before she stepped into the world of Dance. She has completed Nritya Vibhakar (BA) in Odissi Dance. She is also a certified Yoga Instructor. She firmly believes that Dance heals and intends to use it as a medium to touch lives.

Productions

In 2025, Karishma Ahuja collaborated with Mohiniattam and Sattriya artists to stage a production named ‘Aloka’. Aloka was based on ideas that see good and evil as two opposite forces - like light and darkness. Each art form interpreted the concept of ‘Aloka’ or ‘Light’ through ideas and stories of mythology celebrating the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil.
In 2025, Karishma choreographed and staged a production, ‘The Song of Love’ based on the compositions of 12th century poet Jayadeva. This was presented by the Kadambari Dance Ensemble,
In 2024, Karishma collaborated with Persian scholars, poets and musicians to create a production named ‘The celestial birth - A tribute to Rumi’ which was an inter- cultural collaboration celebrating the poetries of Rumi through the medium of Odissi dance.
In 2023, Karishma staged a solo dance production,‘Laasya’.
In 2020, Karishma was invited to be a part of ‘Atal Kavya Kala Narthan’, a National Level Dance Production based on poetries of Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, which was premiered on Doordarshan (National Television Channel of India).