The Actors’ Studio has been set up with an objective to help aspiring actors get a holistic understanding of Acting, by teaching them the various nuances of acting primarily for cinema, while also equipping students with the understanding and nuances of other allied acting methods. Students pursuing this course can build an acting career in films, theater and television.
The degree course in Acting is accredited by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences.
Department Overview
Arvind Pandey
Head of Department
Mr. Pandey is an alumnus of NSD, New Delhi. Post his PG from NSD, he had done a research on ‘Method Acting’ under the aegis of NSD and subsequently studied acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute,USA. His association with Whistling Woods International began in 2006 as faculty in the acting department while it was headed by Mr. Naseeruddin Shah. His experience of acting in films, television and theatre spans across two decades. Mr. Pandey has taught acting at almost all top-ranking film and drama schools in the country. Besides acting and teaching he has also written, adapted screenplays and directed them. At present he heads the department of Acting.
Atul Bali
Faculty
Mr. Bali started working in plays for INT (Indian National Theater) and has also worked with Marathi theater artists. He was a full-length play co-writer that was performed in the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA). Atul Bali has completed Advance Actors training under Mr. Barry John and has worked in experimental plays under the guidance of Pandit Satyadev Dubey. Through his years of journey, he gained experience in various fields like writing, acting, filmmaking, etc. Thereafter, he explored working in the industry behind the camera in various ad films, films with the likes of Rajkumar Hirani films, Vinod Chopra Films. His love for the art pulled him back towards acting after which he got trained to become a professional acting mentor and chose the path of spreading his knowledge. When not teaching he is busy writing and directing his own short films and his current experimental film is in the post-production stage. Atul has a strong knowledge of various acting methods and has been teaching for 9 years now. He believes that we all are students of life.
Nivedita Bhargava
Faculty
Ms. Bhargava has over 19 years of vast experience in the field of imparting Theatre Training and as a Media Professional. She is a graduate from the National School of Drama, New Delhi and has directed many plays throughout her remarkable career. Her accolades include fellowships and production grant from the Ministry of the Culture, Government of India in the field of Theatre. She is also trained in Indian Classical Vocal Music and has performed in Radio Concerts. She additionally spends her time taking workshops across the country in Theatre and Personality Advancement. As an actor, she has featured in the Popular Series “Sacred Games” on Netflix. Her well known commercial theatre plays include Ladies Sangeet, Bandish and Zoon for Aadyam Theatre, an Aditya Birla Initiative.
Sonali Bhardwaj
Faculty
Ms. Bhardwaj is an alumnus from the National School of Drama and trained in dramatic arts. She is trained in various art forms like Koodiyattam (a traditional performing art form of Kerala), Kalaripayattu (a famous martial art form of India), Silambam (a log fighting art of south India), Devarattam (a folk-dance form of Tamilnadu) and Clowning among many others. As an artist, she has performed in various theatre festivals across the country. One of her acclaimed work incorporates working with R. Balakrishnan in Ki& Ka. Besides acting and teaching, she has also directed plays and conducted so many workshops including kids acting workshop. Sonali Bhardwaj has been awarded a Research Fellowship by the Ministry of Culture on Folk Games and Performances.
Oorvazi Irani
Faculty
Ms. Irani has a multifaceted career and wears many hats like that of an acting coach, an actor, a filmmaker, a film educationalist, an entrepreneur, and a film critic. She runs her own home production company SBI Impresario Pvt. Ltd and has been involved in research, production, direction for various international film projects with her film company that has been in the industry for more than three decades. Oorvazi Irani is a Graduate in Arts from Jai Hind College, Mumbai and further trained at the Film and Television Institute of India(FTII) & National Film Archives of India (NFAI) for teacher’s training. In 2015, Ms. Irani successfully produced and directed her debut independent feature film “The Path of Zarathustra” in which she acted as well. The film was successfully released in PVR theatres in 5 cities in India and was one of the 15 select films that were screened in more than 15 cities all over India organised by the Federation of Film Societies of India. She has been a pioneer in introducing The Michael Chekhov Acting Technique in India, atechnique practiced internationally by Anthony Hopkins, Jack Nicholson, Ingrid Bergman, Clint Eastwood, Johnny Depp, to name a few. Oorvazi has been in the teaching field for the past 10 years and her experience includes teaching at the Film and Television Institute of India, an International Baccalaureate school and is an International Baccalaureate Examiner.
Alumni Speak
Aahana Kumra
Actor, Lipstick Under My Burkha, The Accidental Prime Minister
Akash Dhar
Actor, Dishoom, Game, Tuesday, Kaanchi
Anil Mange
Actor, PK, Raees, Simba, Sanju, Hasee Toh Phasee, Singh is Bling
Aru Verma
Actor, 2 States, Jab Harry Met Sejal, Student of the Year 2
Divyang Thakkar
Actor, Kevi Rite Jaish, Bey Yaar
Nakul Sahdev
Actor, Gully Boy, Mod
Gaurav Ghatnekar
Actor, Ballad of Rustom, Tujhi Majhi Love Story, Vazandar, Kaay Re Raascalaa
Harnam Singh Sandhu
Actor, Made in Heaven Series (Amazon Prime)
