Roopa Mahadevan

Roopa Mahadevan is a versatile Indian Classical vocalist. Born and raised in San Jose, California, Roopa underwent her major formative training in Carnatic vocal music under Asha Ramesh, disciple of the late Sangeetha Kalanidhi D.K. Jayaraman and Sri Nanganallur Ramanathan. In 2007, Roopa was awarded the Fulbright Scholarship by the U.S. Department of State to receive advanced Carnatic vocal training in Chennai, India under Smt. Suguna Varadachari, a senior guru of the Musiri Subramania Iyer tradition. Roopa has been a regular performer of Carnatic vocal concerts in the U.S. and India. She has been performing in all of the major “sabhas” in Chennai, India during the December music season, including the prestigious Music Academy. She has received praise from the Carnatic music fraternity and notable press, including The Hindu. She has also performed at the well-known Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana, which gave her the title ‘Kala Ratna’ for her commitment to the pursuit of Carnatic music as a young American. Roopa is also an accomplished Bharathanatyam dancer who has performed her arangetram under the training of the Smt. Indumathy Ganesh, disciple of Padmashri Smt. Chitra Visweswaran. Roopa is a sought-after singer for Bharathanatyam productions and has sung for a variety of artists, including C.V. Chandrasekhar, Bragha Bessel, Mythili Prakash, Rasika Kumar, Preeti Vasudevan, Vidhya Subramaniam, Janaki Rangarajan, Aparna Ramaswamy, Abhinaya Dance Company, Ragamala Dance Company, and Shakti Dance Company (CA) among several others. Roopa also enjoys performing R&B/soul music and has lent her voice to several contemporary art projects, including two urban/R&B music albums ’Lovespeak’ (with Everyday People A Capella), ‘Bring Back the Nyte’, and the album *Calling All Dawns* composed by Christopher Tin, which won the 2011 Grammy for “Best Crossover Classical Album.” In 2011, Roopa performed an exciting acting and singing role in “Bakwas Bumbug,” a first-ever Desi Musical directed by Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri and produced by Desipina in New York City. Roopa has been fortunate to perform at prestigious venues, including the Hollywood Bowl, Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. Roopa is the artistic director of the NYC-based Navatman Music Collective, an Indian Classical Vocal ensemble, conceived by Navatman founder Sahi Sambamoorthy. Roopa was an inaugural 2013 fellow of IndianRaga and is a frequent instructor for the IndianRaga Labs program. Roopa received her Bachelor’s degree in Biology and Master’s degree in Cognitive Science from Stanford University. She is based in New York City, where she enjoys a mission-driven career in public health policy while pursuing her artistic passions with equal vigor. Performance artist who enjoys music, dance, and theater. Primarily trained in Carnatic vocal music and Bharathanayam dance. Enjoys community, humor, cultural parlay, and issues of social justice. Artistic Director of Navatman Music Collective.