Chaula is a lifelong student of the classical and folk dances of India. Her Gurus’s include Shri Shrinivasan Shenoy, a disciple of Acharya Parvatikumar; Shri K. Ramaiah and the late Shreemati Bala Saraswati, “Queen of Abhinaya or Expression”.

Chaula is the artistic director of Nadanta as well as the founder of the Chauladevi Institute of Dance and Yoga where for over 25 years she is teaching, Classical, Creative and Folk dances as well as Yoga. She currently has over 150 students in southeastern Michigan. She has been a faculty member at CCS and has also taught dance courses/master classes at the Wayne State University, Oakland University and Marygrove College. She has worked with various Public and Private schools for their multicultural activities. One example of this is a presentation at Far-Eastern Celebration at the Western International High School for an audience of about 1500. She conducted a series of Lecture Demonstrations at 8 Community Colleges under the auspices of Michigan Global Awareness Consortium (MGAC) in Northern Michigan and Upper Peninsula where such art is not normally seen. She also works as a dance and movement therapist for mentally and physically impaired people.

Chaula Thacker is an accomplished choreographer and dancer who has performed for audiences in India, United States, Canada, Former Soviet Union, Denmark, Spain, (Bali) Indonesia, and Australia. Her cultural contributions have been recognized by numerous Indian communities and other organizations including Michigan Legislature, IRS (Internal Revenue Service), INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service), Army Corps of Engineers and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). She has well over 100 awards for choreography, costume design, direction and performance from many of the most prestigious folk dance competitions on three continents. Her choreography and direction were instrumental in bringing Nadanta National Championships in 1989, 1994, 1995 and 1999. She has presented her dances to television audiences in India and the United States. She was an adviser to All India Radio for youth programs. In 2006 Chaula directed Super Bowl XL multicultural show “Nations in Rhythm Detroit!”. She has also directed “Splendor of the East”, Celebrating the Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, in 2006 and 2007. PBS Channel 56 recorded her creation “Ahimsa” for future broadcast.

Chaula is dedicated to the preservation, promotion and enhancement of Indian dance traditions in all of their many forms. She has created, choreographed and presented numerous musical dance-dramas such as Raas Lila, Roop Garvita, Ramayan, Mohini Bhasmasur, Menka Vishwamitra, Ram ki Vadhai, Images of India, Mela, Meera, Sculptural Images, Ohm Shakti, Triveni, Bharat Ke Rang – Nadanta Ke Sang, Expedition – 95, Shoobh Deepavali, Bharat, Devdasi Chauladevi, Navrang, Prakriti, Satyarth Prakash, Anand Yoga Nirvana, Bharat 2000, and Shiksha – Teachings of the Buddha, Megh-Dhanush, Saptapadi, Nataraj, Ahimsa, Utsav, Panchatantra and Chandraghanta. She is also an author of a book “An Introduction to Bharat Natyam” and a companion educational video.

Chaula has a Bachelor’s degree in Dance (Bharat Natyam style) from Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, Bombay. In addition to her extensive training in various dance styles, she has a diploma in North Indian classical vocal music and in Indian musical instruments Sitar and Tabla. She has also studied Carnatic music of South India. She has studied Ballet for 12 years

Her other talents include painting, Japanese Bunka embroidery, photography and videography. She also has a degree in Microbiology.