They flip and freeze, then sway and jump in swag, all in sync with the upbeat music sporting loose T-shirts and funky caps. Stirring up Visakhapatnam’s dance culture are the B-boys and B-girls of the city.
From a few jam sessions held on the Beach Road to attract the attention of the people to dance studios specially dedicated to the form, break dance has come a long way, making home in resident’s hearts.
When Sohail Gill, a B-boy was introduced to the dance form in 2011, there were no classes in the city which could train him.
The soaring high popularity of this dance form on the Internet is what introduced him to break dance. He entered the world of B-boying by watching YouTube videos and trying to imitate them. His dance form took a definite shape when he took formal training from Mumbai-based dance company, Sonic.
“To catch people’s attention and to promote the dance form we started holding jam sessions on the Beach Road. Once we realised that we had managed to pique people’s interest , we went on to hold free workshops. This helped us to create a buzz among the citizens,” he says.
Going ahead Gill started Destiny breakers, a dance studio based in MVP Colony, which is completely dedicated to break dance.“We got a lot of enrolments for our classes, and the dance form had definitely picked up but it was sad that not many girls took to this dance form,” he says. However, the scenario is better for girls now as compared to the earlier times.
“There are a few girls who are learning break dance and the city is slowly coming to terms with it. When we started off, no girl approached us for learning the form,” he says.
For 22-year-old Niharika Murala, break dancing was an obvious choice. Not very fond of the dance styles that celebrate elegance, she took to break dance as she considered it be her thing.
“I was always a tomboy kind of a person. So not many were surprised when I decided to learn break dance and become a B-girl.
However, the taunts were not less. Every time I gave a demo to my classmates or friends about the dance form that I'm learning, they would dismiss me saying this wasn't dance,” she said.
Murala is one of the few girls in the city who have come ahead to shed off the perception that street dance is only for boys. “The scene is better than what it was when we started off. Back in 2011, there were hardly any B-girls, but I’m hoping that more girls will take up break dance,” she says.
Currently, every weekend the city witnesses dance battles where students of different dance studios challenge each other.
Now even girls can be seen participating in these battles showing off their moves.
