The fifth edition of the Indian International Dance Congress or IIDC, that ended until July 17, saw Hyderabadis shine in more ways than just their costumes with Jegatha Muralidharan and Sanjay MJ from Hyderabad winning the women’s and men’s solo championship, as well as the professional-couple category. Jegatha hails from Goa and has settled in Hyderabad for a while now. Before making dance her full-time career, she was a professional architect. How did she master dancing then? She answers that being dedicated to your passion is the key.
“Firstly, you must be passionate about what you’re pursuing. Then you must explore yourself. Get out and keep participating in competitions. That’s how you learn quickly,” she says. She says that she was always confident that she’d make it to the top. “The competition was really tough as the others were also good. But I was counting on my energy levels. The most important thing when you are dancing is about remaining energetic throughout.”
Speaking about her experience, she says, “It was amazing. There were so many international artistes, so there was a lot of learning and dancing. We are given only two-and-a-half minutes to perform. So I had to showcase my best. I gave it my all.” Sanjay, who won the men’s solo championship, says that he had a great time participating in the workshops and winning the competition. His best moment, however, was receiving the award from the Mambo king Eddie Torres.
Jegatha along with Sanjay, also won in the kizomba professional-couple category. Talking about their chemistry, Jegatha says, “The best thing about us is that we are creative and passionate. Our ideas do clash in, but we work it out.” However, performing solo is what she enjoys the most. “I love performing solo because it’s all about you. You don’t have to depend on anyone and can improvise while you are performing.” She calls her husband Karthikeyan Krishnan her support and her critic. What are her plans after IIDC? “We get to attend the Canada Salsa Congress and Malaysia Salsa Congress. I’d love to participate in the competitions there,” she replies.
