Nalini is absolutely fantastic; as a teacher, as a choreographer, and as a performer in her own right. I have been a student of hers for around 5 years now so I have a lot of experience to back up my comments. If you want to learn to dance, or improve your dancing and move to the next level, I highly recommend taking classes from Nalini.
As a teacher she is supportive, inspiring, and challenging - a combination you do not often find. Many teachers are either one or the other but not all of them. This combination really brings out the best in each student and helps her students grow. She is very attentive to detail and teaches you all aspects of dancing, from foundational, correct movement to the finer details of expression and presentation (costuming, makeup, etc.). As detail oriented as she is, she will not overwhelm you with more than you can handle but she will also not let you stagnate at the same level. For people just starting out she will focus on getting the basics right and then teach how to layer additional details like expression as they get the basics down. As a student gets more skilled, she will add focus on the seemingly small details of gesture, expression, and presentation that make the difference between good and excellent performances.
She has many students who have been with her for years. Her student groups, especially in the Bollywood style, get many performance opportunities, particularly in the summer months when there are many local festivals and events. She also helps prep students for competitions; a number of her students have won competitions in both individual and group categories. She can also create custom choreographies on request.
Nalini is a gifted and inspiring performer as well. If you get the opportunity to see her, don't miss it! She has formal training in dance and choreography and it really shows in the high caliber of her performances as well as the choreographies that she creates for herself and for her students. For the last few years, she has toured in India performing, so she is out of town some months of the year but then comes back with new choreography inspired by the latest music and trends in India.
One other commenter said something about Nalini teaching through having students mimic her but not teaching technique or expression - this does not match my experience at all. While Nalini does have students mimic her, this is an effective technique that many dance teachers use. It is also not the only method she uses. She also definitely does teach technique and expression; it may be that she was not focusing on that at the specific class that the commenter went to. I would really suggest taking classes for at least a month before jumping to any conclusion.
This same commenter also said that Nalini starts late - this is not usually true, Nalini is usually very punctual. They also complained that Nalini cancelled class when only one student showed up for a group class - many dance, music, and fitness teachers do this because otherwise they are giving a private lesson but not getting paid for it. I personally feel it is disrespectful to expect a teacher to give a you private lesson but only pay them a group class rate. There was one more comment in that other post that I felt was a bit misleading. The person stated that Nalini had classes in her living room - it is true that some classes were in her home but it was a room that was converted into a home dance studio. There was a hardwood floor, a wall of mirrors, and no furniture. Many classes are held in separate dance studios. read more
