Dance like a man

Upadhye and his troupe during a performance in Pune

Dance, for Parshwanath Upadhye, is a way of life, beyond performance and teaching. It’s a medium to connect with the supreme and one’s own self. Bangalore-based Upadhye’s dance journey is as interesting as his views on the art form. He was born and brought up in Belgaum (Karnataka), which was devoid of classical dance gurus till the early ’90s. When he was just three years old, his mother began teaching him to dance to devaranamas (religious compositions) in a semi-classical style. At the age of four, Upadhye’s formal training in dance began when Ravindra Sharma, a dance guru whose forte was traditional Mysore-style Bharatanatyam, moved from Mysore to Belgaum. He gave his arangetram in 1996, when he was 14. Though he was always serious about dance, when it came to making a career choice, he chose being a dance teacher over a performing artiste. Prior to moving to Bangalore in 2001, where Upadhye began teaching Bharatanatyam at Shantala Nrityalaya, he was associated as a dance teacher with two organisations in Belgaum — Indradhanush Organization and Sharada Sangeetha Nritya Academy.
However, he couldn’t suppress his passion for long. About five years ago, Upadhye took the decision of making dance his full-time career. “I regret not getting into full-time dancing earlier,” says Upadhye, who, till date, has won eight national-level Bharatanatyam dance competitions. A Natya Mayura awardee, he is an A-grade artiste at Bangalore Doordarshan Kendra and also an empanelled artiste of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR). Upadhye was in Pune to perform at 4th Naada Bindu Festival, which was held at Chinmaya Vibhooti, Kolwan, from May 23 to 25.
Upadhye, along with five artistes from his Bangalore-based dance institute Punyah Dance Company (PDC), presented stylistic Bharatanatyam choreography followed by a special dance-drama titled Punyah Krishna. The festival was organised by Chinmaya Naada Bindu (CNB) Gurukul, a residential learning centre for Indian performing arts.
Upadhye continues to learn, under acclaimed dancers Kiran Subramanyam and Sandhya Kiran. “Fly high but never forget your roots” is an advice that he got from his gurus; it is something he preaches to all his students too. “Apart from my gurus, I am also inspired by the styles of two artistes: Shankar Kandaswamy (Malaysia) and Padma Subrahmanyam (Chennai),” adds the 32-year-old. Currently, along with his wife Shruthi, Upadhye choreographs, directs, produces and presents his work at national and international venues under the banners of Upadhye School of Dance and PDC, Bangalore.
Although Upadhye’s career in dance is marked with several prestigious national and international performances, two performances are closest to his heart. “The first such moment came during one of my solos in Belgaum, after taking training under my first guru (Sharma) for 10 years. When my performance ended, my guru came to me, removed his ancestral silver kada (anklet) and gave it to me with teary eyes,” says Upadhye, adding, “The second memorable moment happened in 2013 when I performed along with Shobhana Jeysingh Dance Company, London, before the UK Prime Minister.”
Apart from being a professional Bharatanatyam dancer, Upadhye is also a black belt in karate, state-level swimmer and trained Carnatic vocalist. Besides, he has taken formal training in kalaripayattu and also holds a Masters degree in Kannada literature.
“All these were and are my passions; I still swim, practice kalaripayattu and karate, and also sing. I try not getting saturated by a monotonous schedule,” says Upadhye.
Sharing his future aspirations, Upadhye says, “My dream project is to build an art village in my hometown, Belgaum. I also wish to see Indian classical dance and music become compulsory subjects in our educational system.”