2025 was another incredible chapter for Aakash Odedra Company – a year marked by powerful performances, inspiring connections, significant awards and artistic growth.
Across touring, participation and training, we continued to build our reputation for work that moves audiences, creatives and communities across cultures and generations.
The artistic vision and social impact of the company’s work, led by our Artistic Director and principal performer Aakash Odedra, were recognised on a national stage through two National Dance Awards and the Eastern Eye Award – a historic moment celebrating the company’s pioneering contribution to British Asian arts and its success in bringing South Asian stories and aesthetics to mainstream stages across the UK and internationally.
At the heart of the year was Songs of the Bulbul, a defining work that toured widely and further cemented the company’s reputation for visually striking, emotionally resonant performance bridging classical and contemporary dance forms.
A standout moment came at The Lowry in Manchester, where the company was joined on stage by a live orchestra, Manchester Camerata. This collaboration expanded the scale and musicality of the work, creating a landmark performance for audiences, partners and the company alike.
Songs of the Bulbul 2025. Image Credits: Angela Grabowska
Alongside this, Little Murmur toured extensively across the UK and internationally, reaching families, schools and festivals with its sensitive and imaginative exploration of dyslexia and neurodiversity for audiences aged 7+.
Blending dance, digital imagery and poetic design, the production opened up hopeful conversations around difference, creativity and self-expression, resonating deeply with young audiences and carers alike.
The company’s wider repertoire, including Samsara and Mehek, reinforced Aakash Odedra Company’s position as an international touring company rooted in South Asian dance traditions while remaining committed to contemporary storytelling.
Throughout 2025, the company toured nationally and across four international territories, strengthening its global profile while remaining firmly grounded in Belgrave, Leicester.
Audience numbers exceeded expectations, and critical and sector responses consistently highlighted the emotional impact, choreographic clarity and distinctive artistic voice of the work.
Participation and community engagement remained central to the company’s mission. Our programmes supported a broad range of participants, including local schools, women’s groups and an all-male over-50s group, creating inclusive opportunities for people who may face barriers to arts participation.
Long-term initiatives such as ROOTS continued to nurture early-career dancers locally, nationally and internationally.
Training also took a significant step forward with the successful relaunch of the Aakash Odedra Company Masterclass series at De Montfort University’s PACE Building.
Delivered in partnership with local and international artists, including Alleyne Dance, the programme offered high-level training across contemporary and South Asian-informed practices.
2025 also marked a year of organisational growth, with strengthened governance with new board members and the arrival of Interim Executive Director Skinder Hundal MBE, supporting the company through reflection and preparation for its next phase.
2026 – We Are Just Getting Started!
We’re launching 2026 with momentum and ambition like never before.
We begin the year touring our critically acclaimed Songs of the Bulbul with our friends at The Bagri Foundation in the UAE , a striking fusion of Kathak and Sufi poetry that explores freedom, beauty and transcendence through dance. Its resonance with international audiences makes this opening chapter especially meaningful and powerful.
We follow this with our Bulbul flying across oceans to Australia, covering Sydney, Melbourne and Perth And that’s just the start…
ROOTS 2026- A Game-Changing Dance Intensive From 2nd-6th March 2026,
ROOTS returns as a major force in training and creative exploration, bringing together a phenomenal cohort of artists, mentors and thought-leaders for a transformative five-day immersion in movement, dialogue and artistic discovery.
ROOTS 2026: On Ancestry and Re-Rooting invites dancers to explore how cultural, artistic and personal histories shape who we are and who we’re becoming as makers and performers. Through masterclasses, conversations and embodied practice, participants will expand their craft, deepen their creative thinking and build powerful networks within the dance world. Featuring contributions from world-class artists including Aakash Odedra, Akram Khan Company, Melissa Ugolini, Kesha Raithatha, Skinder Hundal MBE, Anita Bhalla OBE, Farooq Chaudry OBE and more, this year’s ROOTS is set to be a massive gathering of dancers and thinkers shaping the future of the form.
ROOTS 2025- Image Credits: Angela Grabowska
Whether you’re here to watch, to train, or to take your next big step in dance, 2026 promises creative risk, deep dialogue and unforgettable shared experiences.
As we step into 2026, we’re filled with excitement and momentum. With new touring opportunities, strengthened partnerships, and a continued focus on participation and training, the year ahead offers space for bold artistic risk and deeper connection.
We extend our heartfelt thanks to our audiences, participants, partners, funders, board members and artists. Your belief and collaboration make everything possible. Here’s to another year of ambitious, emotionally resonant dance, locally rooted, internationally connected, and created with care.
With gratitude and excitement,
Aakash Odedra Company ✨
