CHENNAI: A pint-sized eight-year-old boy dressed in a bright, green-yellow satin attire, confidently sashays with a Karagam sombu on his head, swiftly climbs on top of a mud pot, balances himself and strikes a pose with a smile on his face. Nidheesh MR recently performed around seven folk dance forms with 20 different properties like plates, wheels, and drums, and made it to the Kalam Book of Records. Still fresh from the success, the Coimbatore local is all set to receive an honorary doctorate from the Malaysian University on November 23. “My mother is a freestyle dancer and I started dancing when I was three years old. Soon, I had the urge to learn dancing professionally.
Two years later, I was enrolled in a dance class at Selvapuram and learned western dance and folk dance. In 2017, I participated in a dancing competition held in Chennai. It was telecast in a regional TV channel and this exposed me to different folk art forms and artistes. In one of the many c o m p e t i t i v e rounds, I opted to dance with the parai, a traditional musical instrument,” explains Nidheesh, a class 3 student at Kendriya Vidyalaya. When Nidheesh’s dance teacher encouraged him to learn more about the traditional art forms of Tamil Nadu, the young artiste went to Jaya Raj, a folk dance mentor, to understand the nuances and intricacies of the folk art forms.
“Jaya master taught me all the folk art forms and its significance. First, I learned the parai and it made me feel more energetic when I danced. This fuelled my interest and pushed me to learn more about folk arts,” says the artiste, who is also a talented tightrope walker. “I can walk on the rope with a Karagam on my head and ensure that it doesn’t slip,” says Nidheesh who practices all the art forms for six hours every day. In August 2019, Nidheesh’s mother Marlin Sneha C enrolled him at the Gramiya Puthalvan Kalai Kuzhu under the tutelage of Kalaiarasan R.
“Training Nidheesh was very easy. He is a fast learner who observes dance steps keenly and replicates it with perfection. After his school hours, he spends all his time in the dance school. Sometimes, I am astonished by his energy,” says Kalaiarasan. Nidheesh has so far performed in several stage shows and reality programmes. He experiments with styles, innovates and fuses d i f f e rent ar t forms. “It was challenging for me to learn all these different styles. But with rigorous training and encouragement from my family and mentors, I was able to break barriers,” says Nidheesh.
The Malaysian University identified his talent and has decided to honour him with an honorary doctorate on November 23, at a ceremony in Chennai. “In the future, I want to learn all the folk art forms and create awareness about it. That’s my dream,” says Nidheesh.