Faculty Bio

Plano, Texas

Sunaina Rao is a Kathak dancer, educator, and choreographer with over 20 years of training in the classical art form. Born in Mumbai and raised in Texas, she began her training under her mother and guru, Akhila Rao, a disciple of late Kathak maestros, Guru Ganesh Hiralal and Smt. Asha Joglekar. Sunaina has earned prestigious titles such as "Singaar Mani," "Natya Pravina," and "Nav Gandharva" for her solo performances in India and USA. Known for her strong technique and emotive expression, Sunaina's artistic style spans both traditional and contemporary movement vocabularies of Kathak. Her teaching style is disciplined, yet deeply relatable and effective across all age groups, and encourages students to reach their full potential. A co-founder and principal dancer of Kathak Rhythms, Sunaina teaches over 50 students and mentors aspiring dancers pursuing performance and academic opportunities in the arts. In addition to her artistic accomplishments, Sunaina holds a Doctor of Pharmacy and serves as a Senior Pharmacy Executive at Apexus.