Malaika Castellino, a young law student, has been pursuing Kathak since the past seven years. In pursuing the classical dance form, this Colaba resident is simply following in the dance steps of her grandaunt the late, legendary Kathak exponent Guru Malati Pande.

Family tree

“I have very few years of Kathak practice. Dancing, though, piqued my interest in knowing more about my late grandaunt Guru Malati Pande and her husband, the late Guru Mohanlal Pande, both Kathak exponents of the highest calibre. Since there was no internet then [in the 1930s and 1940s], very little is known about them. I was in the process of trying to contact the late Guru Birju Maharajji for information on my Mumbai-based relatives. The Pandes were senior to Guru Birju Maharajji, and I learnt from my father, Bruno Castellino, that he used to visit my relatives’ home to see them dance. I am doing some personal research on my grandaunt and granduncle, and wanted to see if Guru Birju Maharajji had any recollection about visiting them, or other memories he could share,” she told mid-day.