‘Dancers are messengers of the Gods’, once said Martha Graham, a very well known American Dancer and Choreographer when asked to define a dancer. Well Mangaluru has its own little messenger who has made her city proud with her dancing. This little wonder is Adhvika Shetty, who emerged as the third runner-up at the recently aired ‘Dancing Stars’ on Colors Kannada TV Channel.
Starting out at the tender age of four in the field of dancing, Adhvika is a treat to watch as she sways to the music, her graceful and supple dance moves, enthralling all. With a background in Bharathanatyam, a dance form that requires a great deal of energy, she proved she was competitive and and ended up the third runner-up of the reality show ‘Dancing Stars’.
“I started at the age of four and I am constantly improving in dance as I keep practicing”, she says as she describes her love for dancing. She believes in always learning new forms. “I have been learning Bharathanatyam for the past three years and Yakshagana for the past year”, she adds.
Sharing the experiences of her dancing journey with News Karnataka, the 10-year-old said, “It was a lot of fun. The participants were rehearsing for eight to nine hours a day. I did not feel any stress at that time. I enjoyed each and every moment there”, and added that they had to practice more of Kannada songs as the show was in Kannada. “I am flexible when it comes to both Kannada and fast-beat Hindi songs”, she said.
Speaking on how this little wonder manages her passion for dancing and her academics, Arpitha Shetty, her mother explains, “Adhvika skipped six months of her school. Her school supported a lot for this dance show. They allotted her a few months’ break to stay in the Bangalore and move ahead for the dance show. Understanding Adhvika’s requirements at the show, her school even promoted her to the next class without appearing in the annual exams. We are very thankful to her school for this kind support”.
Her past achievements are also worthy of mention. She has appeared in the well known dance show on Zee TV ‘DID Lil champs’ where she was selected in the top ten finalists. She has also won several trophies in many dance programs in the state and has participated in around 300 varied dance shows across the nation.
Adhvika says that participating in such shows helps her lot in self-improvement such as in communication, grooming, and confidence. “I have learned several dance forms such as salsa, cha-cha-cha, contemporary, etc especially these dance styles from DID, and aerial dance style through Dancing Stars”, she said.
Speaking about the journey and experiences that he shared with her, Adhvika’s father Venugopal Shetty, Marketing Executive at MRPL says, “We always want Adhvika to follow her passion, so we went to Mumbai during DID Lil champs, it took three days for Adhvika to show her performance, whereas in Bangalore for Dancing Stars, the process was not that hectic as compared to DID”.
The success and recognition gained by Adhvika is commendable. But the family does feel that her success on the show was incomplete. Sharing their slight disappointment with regard to the show, he said, “no doubt Dancing Stars show helped our children to get into the limelight and provided them a platform as well. But, personally I feel that they should have rewarded the second and third winner contestants as well, because they too have worked very hard. Even a certificate or a small trophy could have cheered their hard work and motivated them”, he said.
Although Adhvika dreams of pursuing her passion for dancing, her dreams are not restricted to the same. At such a young age, she dreams of more. “I want to become an IAS officer like my uncles. Dance is my hobby and passion, perhaps I could choose choreography as my aim, depends later. I know that my parents will always support me whatever I may chose in my life”, cheers Adhvika.
We wish all the success to this beautiful dancing princess and hope to continue seeing her making our city proud.
