Priyadarsini Govind, this Bharathanatyam dancer from Chennai began her classes at the age of six from Smt. Usha and after her arangetram at the age of nine, was guided to further her tutelage under Smt. Kalanidhi Narayanan, the abhinaya exponent and Sri. Rajarathnam Pillai. She says “I have given several performances before my marriage and continued to dance after marriage, but it was around 8 years back that I took it up professionally. Committing myself to a professional career in dance, I developed myself to systematize my dance. I dedicated myself to practise everyday early in the morning and I started working on the various aspects of this art form and researching various themes for my recitals. In the last few years, I have travelled extensively all over India and to different countries performing and enjoying every bit of it”.
“Balancing family and a career as a dancer is a challenge because it demands high energy levels, fitness of the body, mind and also managing erratic time schedules with hectic travelling. I get a lot of support from my husband and mother. My sister is a constant source of strength. My children understand, adjust and accept my being away for long durations. In the professional front, the challenge is to move ahead as there is no structured progress or a defined path to follow. We need to find avenues for expansion and growth and continuously redefine our aims and goals”.
Priyadarsini expresses that she carries a lot of memorable experiences after every program because there is always an intangible communication that takes place between the artiste and the audience. She enjoys the spontaneous laughter and applause from the audience when she is performing. She cherishes the awards which she has won, the ‘Nrithya choodamani’ from Krishna Gana Sabha, the coveted Kalamiamani from the Government, Bharath Kalachar’s recognition - to name a few as she believes that they are acknowledgement of the artiste’s progress. Priyadarsini loves to meet people and get to know about various cultures and food when she travels, “but top priority is my program” she adds. She feels grateful that dance has taken her to places like Afghanistan and Israel which carry great historical importance.
Priyadarsini appreciates the healthy competition now as all dancers are contributing towards pushing the boundaries of Bharathanatyam. A lot of research is undertaken to present different compositions and dance features. Artistes are also becoming conscious of stage presence and personality and increasing awareness about health is also increasing the life span of an individual as an artiste. She is very positive about the present trend in this field and concluded that “it is a golden period for dance and dancers”.
Born and living in Chennai all her life, this artiste feels highly energetic and enthusiastic about her chosen career. She brings laurels to this art form and glory to artistes whenever she presents her recitals in any part of the world.
Click here to give your feedback on this issue