This past Sunday, Harker senior and avid dancer Sharanya Balaji performed for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who appeared at the SAP Center in San Jose. Balaji, who was previously featured in the San Jose Mercury News for organizing a benefit dance show for arts programs at schools, performed in one of three dance acts at the event. “The act that I was a part of was a medley of Indian classical dance forms,” Balaji said. “We were the representatives for Bharatnatyam.”

Prime Minister Modi’s appearance at the SAP Center was the last stop on a two-day tour of Silicon Valley that included meetings with the leaders of valley companies such as Facebook, Google and Apple. Balaji learned of the opportunity from her dance teacher. “We were chosen as the sole representatives for our dance style,” she said. Although the Mercury News piece was not a factor in her group being chosen, she said, “it did definitely get me more noticed during rehearsals.” Balaji is writing an article for Harker Aquila, a student publication and we will provide the link as soon as that story is ready!