Interview by AFA Intern Mackenzie Timbrell in Spring of 2024
Q: Who are you?
Rathi: My name is Rathi, and I moved to New York about six years ago. I came here to pursue dance. I studied dance at the Peridance Center for about three years in contemporary dance. Since then, I have worked with different companies as well as on my own work. Before moving to New York, I was a graphic designer and illustrator. I have not pursued it as much since moving here, but recently I have been getting back to my roots. It feels good to be staying in touch with my creative side because it nourishes my dance as well. I also take part in a postcard sharing service called Postcrossing, where you can send postcards to anywhere in the world, and you will receive one back from someplace unexpected!
Q: How did you first get involved in the arts and dance?
Rathi: I was enrolled in dance by my mother when I was 15 years old, and I have been doing it since. I have mostly done Bollywood/Bollywood jazz and some different kinds of contemporary. When it comes to drawing and painting, I have been doing that ever since I was 5 or 6 years old. I have always been inclined toward the arts. I have also studied performance art and digital illustration. I also published my own adult coloring book when I was in India called The Indian Garden, which features the native flora and fauna of India!
Q: How do the children you work with inspire you to continue being a teaching artist?
Rathi: I joined Arts For All about two months ago. We are currently working with Disney movies. When I first started, we were looking at Mulan, and I was able to see how the kids were responding to the ideas and visuals in that movie. I came up with the idea to create shields, and the kids were able to pose with their shields. I was surprised by how open the kids were to using their bodies confidently to participate in the activity. They went all out and used the words on the shields, like confident or brave, to define themselves. This gave me ideas on how to create more projects. I am currently working on Inside Out, and I had them draw emotions according to how they looked in their heads. I have noticed that kids love talking about emotions and are very receptive to how other people feel.
Q: What is one of the main takeaways you hope the students gain from your classes?
Rathi: I came with the intention of providing art knowledge to the students, but I also feel like social and emotional learning are very important. So I am trying to tie that together with physical movement as well. I have played songs with different emotions and have asked them to move according to how the song makes them feel or what the emotion would look like. So I try to teach them both art and life skills while making it fun for the students.
Q: What drew you to Arts For All?
Rathi: I came across Arts For All in December, and they had a very similar mission to what I believe in. I have also previously worked at organizations that have provided students with social and emotional skills, and I was excited to join a group that provided arts to multiple different schools across NYC.
Q: Do you have any favorite in-classroom moments working with students?
Rathi: At the beginning, I wasn’t sure what the kids liked, but as I have been teaching, I have been able to learn what helps the students learn best. During our Mulan unit, I asked the students what it means to be a good friend like Mulan and Mushu. They were all very excited to tell stories about how they have positively impacted a friend or been there when one of their friends is sad. Responses like that are always indicative of positive classroom experiences.
Q: What does art mean to you?
Rathi: Art, for me, is about bringing the community together. There is no right or wrong in art. It does not just stick to a regular piece of paper. It can be as small or as big as you want. For me, a lot of art is color, but if someone resonates with art and it elicits an emotion, then the art has been impactful in some way.
