About Anu
I grew up in India and moved to the US more than 20 years ago. After the move, I was starved for authentic Indian experiences and community and devoured anything that came my way: film festivals, exhibits, book readings etc. Once I became a mother, the lack of quality and authentic Indian programs and classes became even more evident. I am an active parent and believe an awareness of one’s heritage, culture and language is key for children to become self-aware and confident individuals. I also recognize the immense benefits of being bilingual.
A as a cultural educator, I am looking forward to providing children with authentic, immersive and inspiring experiences. Through classes and events, we can offer cross-cultural exposure that can help shape knowledgeable, open-minded and respectful individuals.
The Culture Tree continues to expand. Although initially language was our primary focus, we have now expanded to cultural events and cooking classes, and building a sense of community. We are also partnering with organizations and museums to bring South Asian culture and languages to the forefront.
Shivani Solanki
Sophia Salingaros
Sophia Salingaros
Shivani Solanki grew up in Mumbai and is proficient in communicating in three languages, English, Gujarati and Hindi. She has BA in Economics, Diploma in Early Childhood, Care & Education and an Early Childhood Montessori. She has experience teaching elementary school and preschool kids. She loves to teach kids and loves to make sessions
Shivani Solanki grew up in Mumbai and is proficient in communicating in three languages, English, Gujarati and Hindi. She has BA in Economics, Diploma in Early Childhood, Care & Education and an Early Childhood Montessori. She has experience teaching elementary school and preschool kids. She loves to teach kids and loves to make sessions fun and relevant, while focusing on developing personalities, and instilling virtuous values in young children.
Sophia Salingaros
Sophia Salingaros
Sophia Salingaros
Sophia is a Bharatanatyam artiste, and has studied the art form under Guru Dr. Sreedhara Akkihebbalu for the past 15 years. She has been invited to perform at prestigious venues both nationally and internationally - to name a few: multiple solo tours across India; performances in Dubai, Paris, London, Lisbon; multiple performances at the
Sophia is a Bharatanatyam artiste, and has studied the art form under Guru Dr. Sreedhara Akkihebbalu for the past 15 years. She has been invited to perform at prestigious venues both nationally and internationally - to name a few: multiple solo tours across India; performances in Dubai, Paris, London, Lisbon; multiple performances at the United Nations and Indian Embassy in NYC.
As a Greek-Belgian Bharatanatyam artist, Sophia hopes to spread the message that art knows no religious or cultural boundaries.
Rohini Sandhu
Sophia Salingaros
Rohini Sandhu
Rohini Sandhu grew up in Punjab, India and is a native Hindi and Punjabi speaker. She did her schooling in Punjab and higher education in New Delhi. She has been teaching in NYC DOE for 5 years. She works with immigrant students, teaching them English as second language in GED program. She got certification in teaching Hindi as foreign la
Rohini Sandhu grew up in Punjab, India and is a native Hindi and Punjabi speaker. She did her schooling in Punjab and higher education in New Delhi. She has been teaching in NYC DOE for 5 years. She works with immigrant students, teaching them English as second language in GED program. She got certification in teaching Hindi as foreign language at NYU. She has also taught Hindi in NYU's Summer Hindi Program. She likes to learn other languages and cultures. She respects diversity and multiculturalism while teaching in her classroom. Teaching is her passion and she loves to help students to meet their academic standards and goals.
Our Educators
Sonia Amjad
Aashna Dangaich
Aashna Dangaich
Sonia was born in England and raised in Lahore. She has studies Applied Social Sciences at the University of Lincoln in North Lincolnshire in England. She has studied the Montessori education system and has been teaching Pre-K and Kindergarten for the past 7 years. She has also been teaching urdu to children for the past few years.
Aashna Dangaich
Aashna Dangaich
Aashna Dangaich
Aashna is from India and a native Hindi speaker. She holds a PhD in linguistics with focus on the acquisition of languages in children in a multilingual environment. As a Fulbright Language Teaching Assistant at New York University she was responsible for teaching Hindi at the elementary, intermediate and advanced level. She has attende
Aashna is from India and a native Hindi speaker. She holds a PhD in linguistics with focus on the acquisition of languages in children in a multilingual environment. As a Fulbright Language Teaching Assistant at New York University she was responsible for teaching Hindi at the elementary, intermediate and advanced level. She has attended a number of Startalk and ACTFL workshops which helped improve her Hindi teaching pedagogy and make it more learner oriented. Her classes are very interactive, culturally rich and fun.
Elin Nelson
Aashna Dangaich
Elin Nelson
Elin got her M.A. in Hindi-Urdu language pedagogy with a specialty in Urdu at Kean University and her B.A. in South Asia studies and comparative literature specializing in Urdu, Hindi, and Sanskrit at Wellesley College. She is also certified in Teaching English as a Foreign Language. Her teaching philosophy is that students should be able
Elin got her M.A. in Hindi-Urdu language pedagogy with a specialty in Urdu at Kean University and her B.A. in South Asia studies and comparative literature specializing in Urdu, Hindi, and Sanskrit at Wellesley College. She is also certified in Teaching English as a Foreign Language. Her teaching philosophy is that students should be able to use the language they are learning in their everyday lives and communicate with their families and friends. She has taught Urdu and Hindi at different organizations for students ages 3 to 65 since 2015 and most recently taught Elementary Hindi and Urdu at Wellesley College.
Rachna Khanna
Rachna Khanna
Rachna Khanna
Rachna is a native Hindi speaker and she is our head Hindi teacher. She is a mother of twin 15 year olds, who speak Hindi fluently and are strongly grounded in the Indian culture. Her passion is to teach Hindi to other children, her teaching style is gentle and fun.
Vandana Vyas
Rachna Khanna
Rachna Khanna
Vandana is from Uttar Pradesh in India and is a native Hindi speaker. She holds a Masters in Education and Hindi. She has been in the education field for the past 15 years and was a high school principal in India. She is trained for bilingual teaching (Hindi) at NYU and loves to make learning fun and culturally relavant.
Rajni Menon
Tasmiah Rashid
Tasmiah Rashid
Rajni received Bharatnatyam training in Mumbai from Guru Smt Vimala Nair, disciple of Late Kalaimamani Shri TS Kadirvelu Pillai for 15 years. She has performed in many prestigious events in Mumbai as well as New York. She wants to do her part in opening the door to the world of Indian arts and culture through her passion for dance.
Tasmiah Rashid
Tasmiah Rashid
Tasmiah Rashid
Tasmiah loves dance, croissants, and historic fiction novels — in that order. Dance being her first love, is something she started indulging at the young age of 6, when she started participating in cultural dance programs in her community. She soon recognized her love of Indian classical dance and started her training in Bharatnatyam and
Tasmiah loves dance, croissants, and historic fiction novels — in that order. Dance being her first love, is something she started indulging at the young age of 6, when she started participating in cultural dance programs in her community. She soon recognized her love of Indian classical dance and started her training in Bharatnatyam and Kathak at age 12 and has been exploring various Indian dance forms ever since. Along the way of her explorations, she became the captain of a Bollywood dance team in college, helped folks dance their way to healthy bodies through BollyX, and taught young tots how to aramandi as a dance teacher.