Sneha Kapoor

In an era defined by the globalisation of dance and cultural fusion, Sneha Kapoor emerged as a force that completely redefined Salsa in India. Born on 1986-04-18 in Bangalore, Karnataka, India, she began life as an athlete but pivoted to dance, joining Lourd Vijay's Dance Studio in Bangalore in 2006 and launching a career that would challenge norms and cross continents.

Years later, this foundation bore fruit when she claimed the Guinness World Record in 2011 for 'Most Number of Swing Dance Flips in a Minute', executing 39 flips with her team and formally placing India in a league of its own. During this decade she also won the Australian Salsa Classic (Sydney 2007) and the European Salsa Masters (UK 2007), and was 1st Runner-Up at the Asian Open Salsa Championships (Hong Kong 2007).

她 (She) encountered institutional resistance and the skepticism of classical dance purists and reality-show judges alike, yet persisted. When she appeared on the reality TV series Dance India Dance (Season 3) and later became a sought-after choreographer on shows such as Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa and Nach Baliye, she leveraged those platforms to elevate salsa and Latin-inspired movement beyond niche clubs and workshops into mainstream Indian dance culture.

As head of her own dance institute in Mumbai and a global workshop host, Kapoor infused Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Jive, Hip-Hop, Adagio and Bollywood styles into a coherent teaching methodology. Her choreography in the Hindi film Heroine and South-Indian film Jugaari emphasised narrative through dance, bridging regional and international forms.

In recent years she has emerged not just as performer but as mentor and institution-builder, helping a new generation of dancers see Latin styles as viable professional disciplines in India and Asia. Her enduring legacy lies in the way she transformed a marginal form into a vibrant movement, empowering students from diverse backgrounds and showcasing Indian talent on the world stage. Their story stands as a timeless reminder that true innovation often begins with resilience, unwavering belief, and a willingness to challenge.