Mr.Shannon Benjamin an IT brain & Dr.Priti Gupta a physiotherapist by education. Two bohemians who got together by fate only to bring colours & joy of Dance to everyone around them.
Why DanceSport ?
Our Founders Mr.Shannon Benjamin & Dr.Priti Gupta made history by being the first Indian couple to participate in the International World Latin DanceSport Championship held in Singapore in 2006 and at the Indoor Asian Games 2007 with blessings and sponsorship from Mrs. Jaya Bachchan. And ever since, they haven’t looked back. .
They are the ones who introduced a new sport in India – The DanceSport. A sport that involves Latin & Ballroom Dancing which has recently been included in the 2010 Asian Games and is bidding to be the next big Olympic Sport.
Where did they study DANCE ?
The couple have been competing & training in UK, Hungary, Macau, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Colombo and many more places with the whos who of Latin & Ballroom fraternity across the globe. They are steadily improving with their international rankings and have been the only couple having won a Gold medal internationally for India in DanceSport. They also studied the Flamenco (A Spanish Gypsy dance from Southern Spain) under the Guidance of Rosanna Maya & Maria Del Sol from Malta.
The duo has trained in almost all couple dance forms, and today train people in all forms of Latin American and Standard Ballroom Dances, namely Rumba, Samba, Cha Cha, Jive, Paso Doble, Bolero, Bossa Nova, Meringue, Salsa, Tango, Waltz, Quickstep, Viennese Waltz, Bachata, Mambo, Foxtrot.
With over 15 years of teaching experience the duo together established the school DanceSport India in 2008, with the aim to promote this sport across India and create the champions for tomorrow.
They are amongst the founder members of a sports organization – The DanceSport Association of Maharashtra where-in they hold extravagant Championships and Examinations for DanceSport enthusiasts. Certificates provided to all the candidates who have participated in the competition & examinations.
Participants not only from our institute DanceSport India in Mumbai but also largely from different schools in Pune, Nashik, Kolhapur, Goa, Chandigarh have participated to make the championships a great success.
DanceSport India & The Glamour World
Shannon & Priti have trained over 5000 students and dance enthusiasts along with a seriesof celebrities from the glamour world – including Shekhar Suman, Gunn Nayar, Onjalee Nair, Kunika Lal, InderMohan, Neena Gupta, Adhyayan Suman, Jennifer Winget, Rajesh Shringarpure, Pony Verma, and many more.
Dr. Priti Gupta has been the key choreographer partnering Shekhar Suman in Jhalak Dikhlaja Season 4 Sony Television 2010-2011.
The duo won at the All India Latin Special Competition at the Sansui Boogie Woogie on SONY Television in Jan 2008.
The duo along with their dynamic troupe, have set the stage on fire at many recent events for various brands like Shaadi.com, Cinthol, Lux, Kala Ghoda Festival of India, Lakme India Fashion Week (Neeta Lulla), GRT Grand Chennai, Reliance Mutual Funds, ICICI Prudential, Rudra Spa, MTV, The Indian Navy NWWA/ Navy Ball, Shipping Corporations, Grand Prix Awards and Hindustan Lever.
They have also appeared in Print and Ad films for prestigious brands like Star Plus, Reliance, Close Up and Mantri Builders.
More achievements
They are also trainers at grooming schools for Social Dancing etiquette, Poise & Posture development.
Dr. Priti apart from being a trained Bharat Natyam & Flamenco dancer has also featured in the ‘Limca Book of Records’ for being a key participant in the ‘World Longest Dance Party’, dancing non-stop for 55 hours 15 Minutes.
She has also been a part of theatre, for a brief period, for projects with Mishti Verma, Rajesh Shringarpure, Gunn Nayar, Tom Alter.
Roll of Honour:
- 19th Lion City DanceSport Championship – Singapore, Aug. 2006: Quarter Finals
- 1st National DanceSport Championship – New Delhi, Dec. 2006: Grade A – Ranked 1st – Gold Medal
- Creative DanceSport Championship – Malaysia, Jan. 2007: Ipoh Ranked 9th
- Hong Kong Open DanceSport Championship – July 2007: Ranked 5th
- 2nd Indoor Asian Games – Macau, Nov. 2007: Quarter Finals
- Hong Kong Open DanceSport Championship – March 2008: Ranked 2nd – Silver Medal
- Sri Lankan DanceSport Championship – Colombo, Nov. 2008: Ranked 2nd – Silver Medal
- Supremacy Awards UK – London, April 2009: Semi Finals
- Sri Lankan DanceSport Championship – Colombo, June 2009: Ranked 1st – Gold Medal in 4 categories & Ranked 2nd – Silver Medal in 4 categories.
- ISIS Cup – Hungary, Sept. 2009: Szombathley Finals – Ranked 6th