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Coaching for Artists

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We help
artists build careers
in the arts

We’re here to help you succeed by offering PAID PERFORMANCES ACCESS TO FUNDING CAREER CONSULTING

Who we are…


We are artists who mean business with years of experience wearing all sorts of hats on the business side of the arts including artist manager, agent, producer, tour coordinator, marketing copy writer and more.

What we do…


Our mission is to nurture the ecosystem for South Asian performing arts practitioners (YOU). We are here to help share your work with the world in a sustainable manner.

How we do it…


Based on your work, goals, and needs, we’ll connect you to paid performances, funding / residency opportunities, professional development services like workshops and consulting, and more.

Join the MELA Network! Fill out our Artist Intake Form.

Why choose MELA Arts Connect?



We’re well-versed in the cultural nuances of the Indian subcontinent and its diaspora; worked as performing artists; understand the arts and entertainment business; and have wide networks.

We’re committed to providing you with the insights and expertise to support you on your artistic journey.

Types of performances we book artists for:

  • performing arts series
  • festival
  • school assembly
  • residencies
  • fundraising concert
  • gala
  • wedding
  • private party
  • corporate event
  • corporate team building
  • kid’s birthday party
  • community event

Types of artists we work with:

Our portfolio includes Indian classical musicians (Hindustani and Carnatic), Indian classical dancers (Bharatanatyam, Kathak, and more), Bollywood dancers and musicians, folk dancers (bhangra, garba), folk musicians, Indo-western classical ensembles, folk rock bands, Indo-jazz groups, baraat bands, and more!

 
Get Paid Performances. Fill out our Artist Intake Form.

Where we’ve booked performances:

 
 

What artists have to say:

We love working with MELA because we know that all the details are being taken care, so we can focus on giving the best performance possible.

Jas AhluwaliaTabla Player

The performance MELA booked for us, even a year later, remains one of the best run gigs for which we’ve had the honor of performing for.

Vaish SridharanUCSD Raas Ruckus Co-Captain

Thank you for the wonderful opportunity! It was truly inspiring and special environment to be singing in! We all really enjoyed the experience.

Samarth NagarkarIndian Classical Vocalist
Connect to Performances and Opportunities! Fill out our Artist Intake Form.

Business and Career Consulting for Artists:

The “business” of being a performing artist can be overwhelming and/or exhausting. At MELA, our team has experience with diverse responsibilities in the performing arts and entertainment industry – from dealing with contracts and visas to creating marketing materials, from booking flights and coordinating the logistics of a tour to running an Indian music school and teaching dance classes. Our formal titles have included booking agent, artist manager, strategist, school administrator, musician, dancer, educator, curator, producer, and more. We’ve learnt from the best and have learnt through experience and now want to share that with you to propel your career.

We want artists, especially practitioners of South Asian art forms, to thrive in building their careers and navigating the arts and entertainment industry. With our personalized consulting program with our founder Heena Patel, you have access to MELA’s knowledge, expertise, and networks to answer your questions, create strategies for growth and an action plan. We’ll share our mistakes, reasoning, and experience to you can realize your dreams in most effective ways.

Topics that we’ve worked with artists on:

  • Strategies for Growth
  • Showcasing Dos and Don’ts
  • Events to Attend
  • Organizations to Join
  • Promotional material assessment
  • Marketing Copy
  • Grant Applications
  • What is a Press Kit
  • Touring the US
  • Regional and National Arts Markets
  • and more

What artist clients have to say:

Heena has a clear understanding about the music industry and its pitfalls. She has given me a lot of great insights and helped guide me in a better direction for my career.

Neel NadkarniSinger

Heena was open, honest, knowledgeable and easy to talk to. She’s extremely approachable, but at the same time, she’s brutally honest about the dos and donts in the performing arts.

Nadhi ThekkakIndian Classical Dancer

Heena and MELA are well-versed in the realities of touring in the US for a band from India. We can now approach touring in the US with more clarity and realistic expectations.

Devanshi GuptaArtist Manager, India

Consulting Options:

  • Single session (1 – 1.5 hours): This session can be on a specific topic or you ask about anything on your mind
  • 3 month consulting / coaching package (1 hr/ week for 3 months): Work towards specific goals with the dedicated time and support of Heena. Ideal clients for this are open to recommendations, looking to learn new information, driven, hard working and willing to do whatever it takes to really make their dreams happen. There are no shortcuts, only handwork and action oriented steps!

Looking for something else? MELA can also customize consulting packages based on your needs.

Propel Your Career

Set up your FREE introductory call!

About

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Our mission is to
nurture the ecosystem
around South Asian performing arts and its practitioners.


Who We are

We are cultural connectors for South Asian performing arts and community. Our goal is to facilitate the creation, presentation, and engagement with performing arts, artists, and communities connected to the Indian subcontinent. To achieve this, we produce South Asian performing arts shows and experiences, and offer services as cultural consultants, specializing in curatorial and booking services as well as cultural strategy and community building work with South Asian communities.

Who We’ve Worked With:

 
 

How we got here


Phase 1: In House Productions

MELA Arts Connect draws its roots from Rhythm Riders Music Productions – the production house and management company for creations by rhythm meastro Pandit Divyang Vakil and his son and world music composer Rushi Vakil. Affiliated with Pandit Vakil’s music institute – Rhythm Riders Music Institute in Ahmedabad, the company promoted Indian classical arts through performance and education. While the Vakils created high-quality accessible performances of Indian arts, contemporary and classical, the business head Heena Patel worked to build sustainable performing careers for the artists, honing her expertise as a manager, booking agent, and marketer.

Rhythm Riders’ first artist was contemporary classical tabla ensemble Talavya. In the process of growing the band’s presence and career in the United States and Canada, Heena became acutely aware of the hurdles that prevents South Asian performing arts from being as widely represented as they could be in the international marketplace – setting the stage for phase 2 of the company.

Phase 2: Expansion & New Avatars

Building on its ongoing collaborative efforts to promote Indian arts and world music, by 2014, Rhythm Riders began to more formally expand its booking and management roster, while also working with US and Canadian presenters to grow their programming of performing arts of the Indian subcontinent (finding the right artists for their needs) and matching a larger network of artists to the rights gigs, including performances for South Asian organizations and Indian weddings. In 2015, in light of the larger mission and changed goals of the organization, Heena created MELA Group LLC with two arms – MELA Arts Connect – a cultural connector and consultants for South Asian performing arts, culture, and community and MELA Agency – talent management and booking agency.

Phase 3: Creative Producer & Consultants

As MELA worked with organizations and artists across North America and the Indian subcontinent, it was uniquely positioned to facilitate partnerships. With broader sense of the needs and gaps within the performing arts sector, particularly with regards to cultural equity, in 2017, the focus of MELA was redefined. MELA Agency was shut down, while MELA Arts Connect would focus on creating and producing South Asian work; working with organization in presenting such work and building relationships with South Asian communities as consultants; and supporting South Asian artists in building their careers as a coach.

Notable productions include: Bollywood Boulevard, Garba360, Kathakaar: The Spinning Storyteller, and desi:NOW.

About the Founder

Heena Patel HeadshotHeena Patel

Founder and CEO

Heena Patel is a cultural strategist, consultant, producer, speaker, and coach.

The founder and CEO of MELA Arts Connect, Heena’s work has focused on nurturing the ecosystem around South Asian performing arts and community. A sanitation engineer turned tabla player and performing arts entrepreneur, she started off in the arts as a dancer and choreographer of Indian dance. Over the years and through MELA, she’s assumed the roles of producer, booking agent, manager, dancer, musician, teaching artist, and diversity and equity advocate. Recent credits as a producer and artistic director include the multidisciplinary stage show Bollywood Boulevard, immersive dance experience Garba360, desi:NOW – a showcase of hyphenated South Asian identities, and Woven: The Indian-American Story featuring 30 different artist ensembles. Through MELA, Heena seeks to foster partnerships to create meaningful cross-cultural experiences, help artists build sustainable careers and use the arts to build greater equity.

During the pandemic, she expanded her work beyond South Asian arts to support organizations in reimagining gatherings for changing realities, fostering connection and community in virtual spaces.

Currently living in the US, Heena is a Toronto native and for over a decade, split her time between the US and India as she build her career in the arts through cross-cultural exchange.

Heena currently serves on the board of NAPAMA (North American Performing Arts Manager and Agents) as Vice-President. She has been on several committees for Western Arts Alliance, Arts Midwest, and South Arts; and served as a panelist/jury member for the MAP Fund, Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, and North Dakota State Arts Agency, amongst others; and has been a speaker and moderator for numerous national and international conferences and events, including APAP, INK Conference, La Ciudad de las Ideas, IOMMA, and XChange, as well as at institutions like Lincoln Center, New York University, University of Utah, University of Denver, Sarah Lawrence College, College of DuPage, Sonoma State University, Dean University, and more. Heena has been awarded the APAP Leadership Fellowship and ISPA Global Fellowship, and is a member of WOCA (Women of Color in the Arts) and Women In Music.