‘I love to dance, it is my confidence, my passion, my life’ — reads Parvathy Viswanathan’s Facebook status. And she has proved it by going where not many dancers dare to tread. Parvathy has nailed to perfection the fine art of dancing on nails which she has been doing for the past four years. She started learning dance at an age of three and is proficient in Mohiniyattam, Bharatanatyam, Kerala Nadanam, Kuchipudi and folk dance. A Kalathilakam, she could have chosen to continue with what she had learnt on regular stages, but what makes her stand apart is her chosen method of dancing — on 1,700 nails, each four inches high and one cm thick, on a 30 kg wooden board.
On what led to her nailbiting performances, Parvathy says, “I was participating in a dance reality show on Surya TV and each contestant was supposed to come up with a unique and novel concept. I initially performed dance as well as mono act but was not happy with that. A suggestion came my way about trying to dance on nails. I did some research and found that it was not common at all. In fact, very few dancers have attempted it and I decided to give it a try.” It was easier said than done, she realised. “My father Viswanathan and brother Vysakh made a wooden board studded with nails. I first attempted to step on it and immediately stepped down because of the pain. Later, I managed to stand and finally dance on those nails. It was a very painful transition,” she recalls.
Along with Parvathy’s ability to endure the pain, her length of endurance too shot up. Starting off with a two-and-a-half minute performance at a temple where her legs bled very badly, she can now dance for more than two hours without breaking a sweat. Parvathy performs Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam as well as fusion dance on those sharp nails. She talks about the hardships, “Normally the full stage is used during Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi, but when I dance on nails, the area is considerably reduced. Initially, my knees used to hurt very badly but over the time I could dance without being hurt!”
Parvathy is also an engineer and the only time she had taken a break from her dance was during her engineering days. Now she reveals that it is full-time dance, but she hopes to get a government job.
Accolades and awards have come her way, including the Pravasi Excellence award, from various quarters over the past four years, but it is some heartwarming personal encounters that she holds close to heart. Like a child opening a treasure box, Parvathy remembers, “I was a contestant on the TV show Ningalkkum Aakaam Kodeeshwaran hosted by superstar Suresh Gopi.
Though I could not make it to the hot seat, I had mentioned in my profile that I would like to perform the nail dance in front of him. It was noted and I got to perform before him. He cried and hugged me and asked what gift he could give me? The shoot was at the AVM Studios, Chennai. I was completing my engineering on a student loan and by the time I reached home, I found that he had paid off my loan. That will always remain in my heart and I have no words to express that feeling!”
Another memory she cherishes is of veteran actor Madhu being riveted by her performance and enquiring how she managed to dance on sharp nails. She says, “I am still in touch with him.” She recently danced at the Changampuzha Park in Kochi as part of the Urmila Unni Foundation programme and was conferred an award. “While others were dancing the regular way, my nail dancing evicted a lot of curiosity and appreciation. Seeing me, many think it is easy to dance on those sharp nails, but the adventurous few who tried, could not even stand on them.”
In between a lot of happiness, there is also pain. “My family is my strength and it was my ammoomma (grandmother) who used to accompany me to every performance. Sadly she passed away a month ago leaving a big void in my life.”
On her future plans, she says, “I am trying to enter the Guinness Book of Records for the longest duration a dance has been performed on nails.” Tinseltown has also beckoned and she ruminates, “I had rejected the offers earlier, but now, if a good offer comes my way, I might accept it.”
