In order to impress upon the State government about the importance of preservation of ancient dance form of Telangana, the SRR Government Arts and Science in Karimnagar has embarked upon an ambitious task of providing training to the students in the Perini Shiva Thandavam and Perini Lasyam dance forms to both boys and girls respectively.
Perini Shiva thandavam is dance form performed by men and aimed to motivate the warriors before they went to battlefield for war. Perini Lasyam is performed by the women.
Sponsored by the Department of Language and Culture, around 75 students of SRR Degree College including girls have been practising the dance from October 1 onwards.
The residential training programme starts early morning till late evening followed by theory classes.
The organisers have divided students into three batches and have been conducting classes under the training of Ranjit, Krishna and Madhavi and supervised by Rathan Kumar and Perini Prakash.
Perini Shiva Thandavam originated 800 years during the Kakatiya dynasty was on the verge of disappearing when it was revived by musicologist Nataraja Ramakrishna in the early 1970s. In spite of its rebirth, it was neglected in the united Andhra Pradesh State and Perini Shiva Thandavam dance forms were neglected by not conducting any festivals.
Neglected
SRR College principal B Madhusudhan Reddy, who is the brain behind this training programme, said that this dance was neglected in united Andhra Pradesh.
Now, we are demanding the State government to recognise Perini dance form as Telangana’s classical dance form and ensure it flourishes , he added.
He said that local NGOs also come forward for the noble cause and are extending all support for the training programme and declaration of Perini as classical dance of Telangana.
Students were also ecstatic over the training programme of ancient dance in residential form, he said and added “our ultimate aim is to impress the government to announce it as classical dance form of Telangana State”.
Mega show
The students and the instructors of the training programme were gearing up to conduct a mega show in Karimnagar town on October 15, the concluding day of 15-day training by performing in the heart of the town at Tower Circle and appeal the State government to declare as classical dance of Telangana state.
