God-gifted dancing princess

R.Chandana, staying in Banaswadi Channasandra, is one helluva talented youngster who is gifted with natural dancing skills.

Some kids, as they say, are God-gifted and 15-year-old Chandana belongs to that category. Her unmatched dance steps, along with killer expressions, are a proof of it.
"My daughter gave her first performance at one of the nearby temples here when she was four years old. Everyone was in awe with her moves and since then encouragements started pouring in," said Veena, a home maker. 
Her house snuggled in the middle of 2nd Cross, Muneshwara Temple Road, is filled with certificates, trophies, CDs and albums of her in various dancing poses.

Master diva in making
Be it Bharatanatyam, Western, folk or Kuchipudi for that matter, this girl has mastered them all without taking any kind of help or attending dance classes. Bollywood's original dancing diva, Helen, Madhuri Dixit, Prabhu Deva and pop legend Michael Jackson are some of the dancing icons she really looks up to. 
Chandana grabbed eyeballs of many when she set the stage on fire with her vibrant dance performances on television. She participated four times in 'Chinnara Loka', a popular dance show on Udaya channel. Besides, she took part in Zee Kannada's 'Kuniyona Bara'. In 2006, Chandana won 3rd prize in Pratibhavotsava, which was conducted at state-level, in which almost 700 children took part. In the same year, she won yet another award at a cultural fest organized by Karnataka Pratibhavadharta Academy. The biggest moment was when she received a memento from P. B. Srinivas, the acclaimed playback singer in the Indian film industry. "It was one of the most memorable days of my life when Srinivas Sir himself gave me the trophy and patted my back for my dancing skills." 
As of now, she is busy gearing up for a dance programme on the occasion of annual celebration in her school, which is on January 16.

To be a doctor who dances
In 2009, she received a letter of appreciation from Unnati Centre for her remarkable Odissi dance performance. A student of Mariam Nilaya High School, Chandana is good at drawing, sketching, singing, mimicry and in studies too. Asked about what her ambition is, she replied: "I want to become a doctor and serve the people of this nation. So, right now I am paying full attention to my studies as I don't want to regret later for not studying." 
Talking about her family, Chandana has a younger brother, Keshava Gowda. Her father, Ravi Kumar, has his own cable operation business. Asked about her daughter's future plans, Veena said: "It doesn't matter which field she chooses as long as she is happy with it. As a daughter, she is very good, disciplined and most importantly hardworking. For now, I encourage her to focus on education and in free time she can always practise dance as it's useful and keeps her body fit and flexible."

Fame and name
Chandana grabbed the attention of many when she set the stage on fire with her vibrant dance performances on television. She participated four times in 'Chinnara Loka', a popular dance show on Udaya channel. She also took part in Zee Kannada's 'Kuniyona Bara'.

--NIVEDITHA JAIN